Federal judge signs off on SPD reform plan

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Police Department's reform plan passed another major milestone Tuesday as a federal judge signed off on the changes.

A Department of Justice monitor filed the plans a week ago. It's part of the city's settlement with the DOJ over officers' use of force.

The Seattle Police officers' union plans to fight the changes, partly because its not getting a say on how the new rules are implemented.

"What we need to do is to get everyone together: the city attorney, the mayor, both unions, the monitoring team, the Department of Justice," said Rich O'Neil, president of the Seattle Police Officer's Guild. "Let's all get in the same room and let's work it out."

As part of the monitoring plan, SPD has to add more supervisors, require more mandatory training, and change the way the department reacts to claims of too much force.