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Race-sensitive Police Training Available In Central IL

Justice Department officials are seeking widespread changes in policy, training and the hiring of officers in Ferguson, Missouri following the stunning report detailing a long-term pattern of racially-biased policing there.

Here in McLean County, a Bloomington police sergeant was captured on tape calling African-Americans quote "animals" and making other inappropriate comments during an incident at a Denny's Restaurant. At a recent public forum, several members of the community raised questions about how the Twin Cities' overwhelmingly white police departments train their officers to interact with minorities.

WGLT's Judy Valente has more on that training, and how it might be improved.

Members of the organization Not In Our Town say they plan to hold another forum on police-community relations in April similar to the meeting held in a few weeks ago after tapes of the Denny's Restaurant incident became public. The topic will be police training.