The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act

On May 25, 2020 George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer.

On June 25, 2020 the House of Representatives passed the The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

To date, the Senate has not voted in favor of The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

Our country is in a tailspin right now, but we cannot afford to ignore the fact that the Justice in Policing Act has not passed in the Senate. The passage of time often reduces one’s passion or vigor for justice. Whether it is because some other horrific act has consumed us or our mind has simply transitioned into coping/complacency. If our goal is a better and safer society, we must continue to be mindful of things taking place around us. We must fight against complacency. It seems the Justice in Policing Act is a reasonable step in the right direction for a society that says “all lives matter” because the Justice in Policing Act will ensure that safeguards are put in place for the black lives that have often been marginalized and devalued. What better way to begin evening the playing field?

So, what is the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act?

Here are some of the highlights of the legislation

1. establishes a national standard for the operation of police departments;
2. mandates data collection on police encounters;
   1. Creates a nationwide police misconduct registry to prevent problematic officers who are fired or leave one agency, from moving to another jurisdiction without any accountability.
   2. Mandates state and local law enforcement agencies to report use of force data, disaggregated by race, sex, disability, religion, age.
3. reprograms existing funds to invest in transformative community-based policing programs; and
4. streamlines federal law to prosecute excessive force and establishes independent prosecutors for police investigations.
5. Bans Chokeholds & No-Knock Warrants
   1. Ban chokeholds and carotid holds at the federal level and conditions law enforcement funding for state and local governments banning chokeholds.
   2. Ban no-knock warrants in drug cases at the federal level and conditions law enforcement funding for state and local governments banning no-knock warrants at the local and state level.
   3. Require that deadly force be used only as a last resort and require officers to employ de-escalation techniques first. Changes the standard to evaluate whether law enforcement use of force was justified from whether the force was “reasonable” to whether the force was “necessary.” Condition grants on state and local law enforcement agencies’ establishing the same use of force standard.
6. Works to End Racial & Religious Profiling
   1. Prohibits federal, state, and local law enforcement from racial, religious and discriminatory profiling.
   2. Mandates training on racial, religious, and discriminatory profiling for all law enforcement.

Knowledge is Power! Now is not the time for complacency.

Much Love,

Tonza