Police Brutality Reform Bill Proposed Following Protests

In response to the recent protests stemming from the death of George Floyd, Democrats in Congress have unveiled legislation to boost law enforcement accountability and change certain police brutality practices.

According to a report in The Washington Post, the Justice in Policing Act of 2020 would put a ban on chokeholds, establish a database to track misconduct by the police, and put a stop to no-knock warrants. The article says that many of these initiatives were created before but have since been put to the spotlight due to the nationwide police brutality protests and the death of Floyd.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has promised a swift passage of the legislation and has urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to take a look at the legislation after it passes the House.

President Donald Trump has yet to see the police reform legislation, but White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany allegedly told reporters that he would be against a change in the immunity standard that would make it easier to file lawsuits against police officers.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler has reportedly been in contact with some Republicans about the legislation, but promised that it would pass, even if that means waiting until next year.

Presidential candidate Joe Biden has stated that recent calls to “defund the police” is not warranted, the article mentions. Biden has said that he would like to spend more money on police in some areas, which would include cameras worn on the body as well as increased funding for programs outside of the police department which would reduce crime.

There are differing opinions as to what “defund the police” means. Some have advocated for the entire abandonment of police departments while others have suggested a more modest approach, such as shifting funding from police departments to other government departments.

The bill put forth by Democratic legislators will ban chokeholds, carotid holds, and no-knock warrants in any drug litigation at the federal level. The legislators also say that state and local governments will have to do their part in enacting laws or the federal government will withhold funding.

Some Republicans have shown their support for legislation to stop police brutality, but time will tell if whether they will support elements of the expansive proposal offered by the Democrats.

The police brutality bill set forth by the Democrats has numerous amenities that would make it much easier to hold police officers liable for misconduct in the courts. One proposal that has been long requested by civil rights advocates includes a change to “qualified immunity,” which currently shields police officers from lawsuits.

Another section of the proposed bill would change federal law so that victims of police misconduct would need to show that officers “recklessly” deprived them of their rights.

The bill would also enhance the Justice Department’s powers to prosecute police misconduct.

According to a piece published by NPR, the Justice in Policing Act of 2020 has more than 200 sponsors and would mark one of the most inclusive efforts to change the way police perform their duties.

The legislation was written by the Congressional Black Caucus, the House Judiciary Committee, as well as Senators Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California. 

Democrats have looked at several proposals that would address policing issues including the use of excessive force and racial profiling. While there is a degree of bipartisan support for looking at the tactics that led to the death of George Floyd, the article says that there may not be enough for legislative action.

The House will be taking up the legislation later this month, but it will become a challenge for the Republican controlled Senate, even though many Republicans have said that there have been “egregious wrongs” in police brutality cases.

Congress has sometimes struggled to address policing issues in a bipartisan manner as some say decisions about policing tactics and strategies should be solved at the local level.

Representative Emanuel Cleaver, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus has said that, in the past, lawmakers have moved away from systematic issues with policing, but he thinks that this is a different moment in time.

Cleaver said that the response to the killing of George Floyd would provide Congress with the opportunity to create uniform standards which would help local officials with guidelines for conduct.

The legislation will place reforms on qualified immunity for police officers to allow individuals to recover damages when their constitutional rights are violated.

In the past, Congress has struggled with partisan legislation on policing issues, as some say that decisions such as these should be held at the local level.

What do you think of the proposed police reform bill? Let us know in the comments section below.

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