Law Enforcement’s Achilles heel : House Passes New Bill To Abolish Qualified Immunity for all local, state, and federal law enforcement officers
On a largely party-line vote, the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday night approved the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 1280), a massive overhaul of American policing that would make it much easier to sue rogue officers. Among its many provisions, the bill would eliminate “qualified immunity” for all local, state, and federal law enforcement officers. Under qualified immunity, government officials escape any legal liability for civil rights violations unless the victim can show that their rights were “clearly established” at the time.
Thanks to this loophole, federal courts have upheld qualified immunity to Fresno officers accused of stealing more than $225,000 in cash and rare coins, an Idaho SWAT team that bombarded an innocent mom’s home with tear gas grenades, and a Georgia sheriff’s deputy who accidentally shot a 10-year-old boy while aiming for the family’s dog.
“We as a country have a choice: We can either choose police accountability, or choose qualified immunity, but we cannot choose both,” one of the act’s original cosponsors, Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY), said on the House floor. “The purpose of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act is not to second guess officers who act in good faith, the objective is to hold liable officers who repeatedly abuse their power and who rarely, if ever, face consequences for their repeat abuses.”
A nearly identical version of the bill passed the House last summer but never got a floor vote in the Senate. Though the Justice in Policing Act still faces an uphill battle this session, prospects are brighter. Ending qualified immunity is backed by around two-thirds of Americans, including many prominent celebrities like Tom Brady and the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s.
While this only passed the House during the current Congressional session …BUT… a new Congressional session starts in a few weeks. It was just reported today that another patient ( Jessica Fujimaki ) died from losing their pain management resulting from the DEA’s raiding Dr. Bockoff office last month. Not from suicide because their pain meds were eliminated… BUT… from WITHDRAWAL and fatal complication of her existing diseases.This Couple Died by Suicide After the DEA Shut Down Their Pain Doctor
There is already THREE DEATHS directly/indirectly related to the DEA’s raid of Dr. Bickoff’s office… most likely, there will be more.
It seems really hard to tell who is sleeping with who
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I always thought that it would take some sort of legal activity to protect the community. I never considered revoking law enforcement’s “qualified immunity” but The House Representative Rep Karen Bass (D) is now mayor of Los Angles to replace the mayor that got recalled.
However, the community has a bill already written to try and get passed by both Houses of Congress in the next 2 yr session that starts in Jan.
Filed under: General Problems
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