Aurora Sentinel: Besides the inarguable fact that too many Aurora police officers have used abusive, sometimes deadly force against residents here during the past several years, the very core of Aurora’s police problem has long been transparency and accountability.

Had those two critical failures been addressed years ago, as they became apparent, the police department would likely not be in the alarming place it is now.

Now, the city and its police department are under a court agreement to cooperate with the state attorney general’s office to implement a host of reforms across the sector. The so-called “consent decree” is the result of years of repeated and systemic problems surrounding racism and the abuse of force by some officers, and the department.

Aurora’s police and fire departments find themselves in the position of being internationally notorious for the death of Elijah McClain, as well as the abuse of black girls and women who were forced to lie face down on hot pavement during an erroneous arrest.

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