Washington, DC – Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-CA) released the following statement on the passage of the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act of 2020 (H.R. 7120) in the House of Representatives. The bill will transform and improve policing practices nationwide.
“Now is not the time to be timid in our response to racial injustice. The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act is a step forward in ending police brutality, holding police accountable, improving transparency, and creating structural change that will safeguard every American’s right to safety and justice,” said Congresswoman Brownley. “Reforming the way we police our communities is a start, but we must also make large structural changes across the board, so that we create a foundation where all can succeed, prosper, and expect to be treated equally under the law. Only by working together, collaboratively and constructively, will we succeed. I urge the Senate to take up this bill without delay.”
Background:
This sweeping legislation will take numerous steps to achieve transformative, structural change to stop police brutality and racial injustice, including:
- Banning the use of chokeholds;
- Banning no-knock warrants in drug cases;
- Ending racial, religious, and discriminatory profiling;
- Eliminating the so-called qualified immunity doctrine that is a barrier to holding police officers accountable for wrongful conduct;
- Establishing a National Police Misconduct Registry to improve transparency and accountability;
- Requiring data collection, including mandatory use of body cameras and dashboard cameras;
- Establishing new national standards for the use of deadly force;
- Conditioning law enforcement assistance grants on state and local law enforcement agencies’ adoption of the national use of force standard;
- Providing grants for community-based organizations to help improve policing in their communities.
Read more about the bill, here.
Issues: 116th Congress