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The racial disparities are alarming and you need stop it. to have the weight of the justice department in that decision made further the push for reforms. >> reporter: months later donald trump became president. jeff sessions became attorney general. the dismantling of police reform began across the country. >> law enforcement will be respected. you are the thin blue line, police are not the problem, the criminals are the problem. >> reporter: sessions expanded the use of private prisons. he called for harsher punishments for minor crimes. when he was pushed out of office his final act was to ...

Attorney general matt whitaker and the president's nominee to permanently take over the position, william barr. we're taking a look back at an important action by the last person in that office, jeff sessions, on his final days of being attorney general, jeff sessions signed a last minute order limiting the use of a tool for criminal justice reform called consent decrees. more than a dozen cities have it to improve police departments. the order from sessions prevents more concept decrees it also sent a signal the doj is not a partner for reform. ferguson, missouri, is one of the places under a...

Reluctantly agreed to reforms, oversight, and independent monitoring. >> it was really important to have federal intervention, the department of justice kind of came in and was able to say, no, this is a problem, you're pulling too many people over, the racial disparities are alarming and you need to stop it. and having kind of the weight of the justice department in that decision legitimized it and made further the push for reforms. >> reporter: months later donald trump became president. jeff sessions became attorney general. the dismantling of police reform began across the country. >> law ...

Ferguson to reform its courts and police. there are a number of people, including former attorney general jeff sessions who say that the consent decrees are unnecessary. what do you say to that? >> i would question the credibility of the former attorney general with respect to this particular issue. >> reporter: wesley bell is the newly elected prosecutor of st. louis county. he will be the first african-american to hold that office. he unseated bob mccullough the 27 year incumbent who refused to prosecute the officer who killed michael brown. >> broad reforms in the country and i would rather...

That the consent decrees are unnecessary. what do you say to that? >> i would question the credibility of the former attorney general with respect to this particular issue. >> reporter: wesley bell is the newly elected prosecutor of st. louis county. he will be the first african-american to hold that office. he unseated bob mccullough, the 27-year incumbent who refused to indict the officer who killed michael brown. >> we wanted to implement some of the most broad reforms in the country and i would rather the former attorney general just support what we're doing as opposed to using this as a p...