(NewsNation) — Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the results of an investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department and the city of Minneapolis, finding the department engaged in practices and conduct that violated people’s civil rights.

Garland began by expressing condolences to the family of George Floyd, who was murdered by MPD officer Derek Chauvin. Floyd was suspected of passing a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes even as Floyd protested he couldn’t breathe, leading to public outcry and the investigation.

“George Floyd should be alive today,” Garland said.

Garland announced the investigation found the city and police department had engaged in patterns and practices of unconstitutional and unlawful policing. He also announced investigators found the city and police had a pattern of discriminating against Black and Native American populations and against those with behavior health problems.

Garland announced the city and the MPD agreed to begin negotiations to enter into a court-enforceable consent decree that would provide a framework for reform.

Department of Justice findings included evidence the MPD had a pattern of using excessive force, including deadly force, and that officers failed to adequately assess situations to determine if there was a legitimate risk of harm to officers or others before using force.

The DOJ found the MPD retaliated against protesters and journalists who were covering those protests, as well as those who were lawfully recording MPD officers or who questioned officers during stops. The department also found the city disproportionately relied on police-only responses to behavioral health calls, although only 0.45% of calls analyzed included reports of a weapon or threat of harm.

Officials also found the MPD disproportionately stopped Black and Native American people at rates higher than white people and were also more likely to use force against those people, even for minor offenses or no offenses. The investigation found Black and Native American people were stopped at rates nearly six times that of white people in situations that did not result in an arrest or citation.

After Floyd’s death, many MPD officers began to omit gender and race data in their reports, though the department required that information be collected. The collection of that date dropped over 35 percentage points, yet in the cases where that data was collected, the DOJ still found there was still a disparity between the treatment of Black and Native American people as compared to white people.

Officials detailed a number of incidents demonstrating the conduct of MPD, including an incident where an officer shot at an unarmed woman who had called 911 because she “spooked him” and one where officers pepper-sprayed a journalist who was displaying press credentials.

Other incidents included an off-duty officer in street clothes pulling his gun and pinning a teenager to the hood of his car for allegedly stealing a $5 burrito and an incident where police failed to call for medical aid for a woman with asthma after having pepper-sprayed her and others. In another incident, an officer used his full body weight to knee a restrained, passive protester in the neck.

Officials did note the MPD had already made some changes, including banning the use of neck restraints, which are considered deadly force, and eliminating no-knock warrants.

The state already conducted a similar investigation and found the department had significant racial disparities when it came to things like use of force and searches. It also found there was a culture that included officers using racist and misogynistic language without fear of punishment.

The department is now under a binding agreement that requires it to make substantial changes to the culture and procedures to avoid racial disparities in policing.

Although the consent decree is still being negotiated, it is likely to include similar requirements to the agreement already in place. An independent monitor will be appointed to enforce the decree.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.