The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 1280)
Link »
Redefining the "Deprivation of rights under color of law"
Replaces "willfully" with "knowingly or recklessly" before "subjects any person...to the deprivation of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution".
Strikes the phrase "or may be sentenced to death" from punishments for offenders who cause an individual's death.
Adds "For purposes of this section, an act shall be considered to have resulted in death if the act was a substantial factor contributing to the death of the person".
Revocation of Qualified Immunity
Enhanced federal authority to investigate state/local police
As well as $100,000,000 for State Attorney Generals to invesitigate and prosecute "pattern-or-practice" cases against local police.
$750,000,000 to enact an "independent investigation" program of police uses of force
Federal development of uniform police standards in consultation with NAACP/ACLU and other orgs
Including use of force procedures, traffic/pedestrian stop procedure, hiring, retention, and training
Requiring 5 percent of law enforcement grants to be used for developing new standards
New federal grant program for "community organizations"
Community organization such as the NAACP and ACLU will be paid by the US Attorney General to study and implement new police standards
Pilot program for new "reformed" police training
Traning for police will include "disproportionate contact by law enforcement with minority communities", "interactions with multicultural communities", and "bias awareness"
Recruitment, hiring, retention, and promotion of non-white police officers
Elimination of school-based arrests and referrals to law enforcement
Instead, schools will use "preventative measures and alternatives such as restorative justice and healing practices".
These policies gained attention after the Parkland shooting, as their use by Broward County schools allowed the mass murderer to slip through disciplinary cracks and avoid consequences for previous offenses.
$3.3 billion for "conflict resolution" expenses of the DOJ Community Relations Service
The office is intended to act as a peacemaker "for community conflicts and tensions arising from differences of race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion and disability."
$5 million to establish an Attorney General-appointed "Task Force on Law Enforcement Oversight"
The Task Force shall be appointed from various offices of the Civil Rights Division, consult with community-based organizations and labor organizations, and will coordinate the process of of "detection and referral of complaints regarding incidents of alleged law enforcement misconduct"
Federal data collection on law enforcement interactions by race, ethnicity, and gender
Establishment of a National Police Misconduct Registry
Federal approval required for all hiring of local police officers
Detailed reporting of every police use of force instance to the federal government
Reports must include:
- suspect's national origin, age, race, sex, English language proficiency, and housing status
- date, time, location, and whether open or concealed carry is allowed there
- whether or not suspect was armed, type of weapon if so
- type of force used, type of weapons used
- the reason force was used, and descriptions of injuries
- number of officers and suspects involved
- type of force used by all involved persons
- "legitimate police objective necessitating the use of force"
- resistance encountered by each officer
- efforts by officers to de-escalate the situation in order to avoid and minimize the use of force
Redefining proof of "racial profiling" as "disparate impact", and subjecting police to civil suits for it
If police do not arrest the same proportion of all races, they will be considered to be engaging in racial profiling, and subject to lawsuits over it, with the plaintiff's attorney's fees covered.
Required training and data collection for federal, state, and local police on racial profiling
As well as participation in an "administrative complaint procedure or independent audit program" that gains federal approval
Federal takeover of all police administrative complaint procedures
$5,000,000 for a "hit-rate" data collection program
Data will be collected to determine out of how many "stops" officers find drugs, a gun, or something else that leads to an arrest. Data will be disaggregated by race, sex, and national origin.
Required annual use of 10% of police grants to develop best practices to eliminate racial profiling
Must include the "development and acquisition of feedback systems and technologies that identify law enforcement agents...at risk of engaging in racial profiling or other misconduct"
Mandatory, federally developed "racial profiling, implicit bias, and procedural justice" training for all law enforcement
Training will be developed in collaboration with organizations such as the NAACP and ACLU. Training will be mandatory for all federal LEOs, and a requirement for receiving federal grants for all state and local police forces.
Ban on No-Knock Warrants in drug cases
Ban on Chokeholds and Carotid Holds
State/local police will be ineligible for federal grants if they are not explicitly banned.
Chokeholds also to be designated as civil rights violations
Restrictions on use of less-than-lethal and lethal force
Less than lethal force may only be used if all reasonable alternatives have been exhausted.
Lethal force may only be used as a last resort, if reasonable alternatives have been exhausted and there's no risk of injury to a third person
Federal agents must give verbal warning prior to using force, and identify themselves (when feasible)
Verbal warning must include a request that the suspect surrender
Federal guidelines for use of force
Guidelines devleoped with groups including the NAACP and ACLU.
LEOs must use minimum force against certain groups including "pregnant individuals", people with limited English proficiency, people who are drunk, and people under the influence of narcotics, hallucinogens, or other drugs.
Mandated for federal LEOs, mandated for any state/local police receiving federal grants.
Limitation on justification defense for LEOs
Limitations on transfer of military equipment to state/local police
Military equipment may no longer be requested for counterdrug and border security activities, only for counterterrorism purposes
Required notification of the public that the military equipment has been acquired
Required approval from the city council or other local governing body before acquisition
Prohibition of transfer of firearms, ammunition, bayonets, grenade launchers, grenades of any type, vehicles other than passenger vehicles or bucket trucks, drones, controlled aircraft with no commercial flight application, silencers, long range acounstic devices, or items in the Federal Supply Class of banned items
Use of law enforcement grants for "Local Task Forces on Public Safety Innovation"
"Administrative entities created from partnerships between community-based organizations and other local stakeholders" will develop "new strategies for public safety, including non-law enforcement strategies" to "enhance just and equitable public safety".
Crisis Intervention Team funding from law enforcement grants
Social worker first responders reporting for duty.
Grants to encourage officers to live in high-crime areas they serve
Federal LEOs required to wear body cameras
Exceptions include "risk to national security" and "protective detail assigned to a federal or foreign official"