The Justice Department has reportedly reached an agreement with the city of Meridian, Mississippi over the its multiple violations of juveniles’ rights to due process.

On Friday the Department of Justice Department announced a consent decree with Meridian Public School District to address how the district disproportionately suspends, expels, and arrests black students for minor offenses.

“Today, together with the school district and private plaintiffs in the case we are filing a proposed consent decree that addresses claims of racial discrimination in student discipline in Meridian County schools,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. “As part of efforts to enforce a longstanding desegregation decree we investigated complaints that the district implemented a harsh and punitive discipline policy that resulted in the disproportionate suspension, expulsion and school-based arrest of black students in Meridian public schools.”

Samuels said Meridian disproportionately punished minorities “even when students were at the same school, were of similar ages, and had similar disciplinary histories.” These patterns, documented in an investigation by DOJ, will be addressed by the agreement reached with the city.

The consent decree limits arrests, suspensions, and expulsions for minor infractions, but most importantly it forbids the school district from getting the police involved.

Kids had previously been arrested for infractions as minor as dress code violations. This created a school to prison pipeline, which is why the Justice Department began investigating the city.