Police Reform for Mental Health and Misconduct

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Problem:

As police-led shootings and misuses of force have trending upward, communities of color are disproportionately impacted. Increases in police use of force can be traced to multiple causes, one likely source is the fact that officers have a job that is physically, mentally, and emotionally strenuous, yet they often lack the necessary support to care for their mental health. Consistent stress without appropriate treatment can lead to poor decision making. Another cause is the failure of police departments to provide the records of officers fired for misconduct to other departments, allowing them to be hired elsewhere.

Solution:

Pennsylvania Representative Jordan Harris joined colleagues to champion two police reform proposals to address these serious issues, which passed the PA House unanimously as part of a police reform package in June 2020 and signed into law in July 2020. The bills require officers to be evaluated for PTSD following a lethal use-of-force event, and create a database to track police misconduct to facilitate communication between departments and keep unethical officers from being rehired elsewhere.

Reducing Racially-Motivated Calls to Police

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Problem: 

False phone calls against people of color have been somewhat commonplace for years, but the prevalence of social media today has contributed to increasing awareness of the underlying racism that allows for many of these instances to go unaddressed by the law. Most recently, a specific case that has now inspired the public and lawmakers to address the issue was a white woman calling the police on a black man in Central Park – the caller, who was identified over social media within hours, was charged with a misdemeanor for filing a false report to the police, although the charge was ultimately dismissed. While the caller in this case publicly apologized, no definitive legislative action was taken to ensure that a similar event would not occur again. While social media has led to the identification of such callers and a trial in the court of public opinion, at the very least, little if any action is taken legally, indicating that the systemic and structural changes necessary to address the far-reaching impacts of racist behaviors are still lacking, and that institutional changes are needed.

Solution: 

AB-157 was introduced in response to the surge of false and discriminatory phone calls made on people of color, particularly African Americans.This bill will allow victims to sue the callers in civil court and collect damages. The bill was passed by the Nevada legislature and signed into law by Governor Sisolak as of May 2021, after being amended to include more specific language on what qualified as false calls. Discriminatory false callers that violated the bill would incur a $1,000 fine, as well as any other damages awarded by a jury. 

Brooke Lierman, Delegate (Baltimore, MD), Michael Naft, County Commissioner (Clark County, NV), and Michelle Wu, Mayor (Boston, MA)

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New Infrastructure Plans Rolling Out

Following the signing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, NewDEALers are poised to lead in directing investments to long-overdue projects that will impact the economic vitality of their communities. Many NewDEAL Leaders are already taking action on these priorities. Delegate Brooke Lierman’s Maryland Transit Safety & Investment Act overcame a gubernatorial veto and is set to eliminate the state’s $2 billion public transportation maintenance backlog by spending nearly half a billion dollars each year for repairs and enhancements. In Nevada, Clark County Commissioner Michael Naft celebrated the groundbreaking of a long-awaited bridge project which first received federal funding in the 1990s. “This bridge is an important transportation element and it is also critical for emergency responders,” Naft said. Elsewhere, the Boston Council approved newly-elected Mayor Michelle Wu’s $8 million plan for three of the city’s bus lines to go fare-free, an important step towards making the city’s transportation equitable and accessible. The program will utilize federal funding, and early numbers suggest that ridership will be significantly boosted by the measure.

Loranne Ausley, Senator (Tallahassee, FL)

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‘Foster Children’s Bill of Rights’ in Florida

This week, a Florida Senate subcommittee unanimously passed NewDEALer Senator Loranne Ausley’s bipartisan legislation to codify a bill of rights for children in the state’s foster care system. The legislation compiles the rights of children in the foster care system, ensuring priority is given to their physical, mental, and emotional health. “The purpose of this bill is to place all of the rights that are already in law into one place,” Senator Ausley said. Rebecca Baer, who spent two years in Florida’s foster care system, spoke in support of the bill and “said it felt like she lost about 90% of her rights the day she entered the system,” adding, “at the end of the day, I believe this bill will help youth not go through the same situations that I did.” Read more about the legislation here.

South City Tech Hub: Creating Digital Equity

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Problem

The South City neighborhood in Tallahassee has one of the highest rates of families living in poverty in Leon County (44.8%). Due to COVID-19, almost 800 South City students were unable to experience equal learning opportunities as they did not have the devices, connectivity or technical assistance to fully participate in digital learning.  Students are falling behind in school, parents lack the tech skills to support their students, access employment opportunities, or get medical and other services for themselves and their families.  

 

Solution

The South City Tech Hub provides internet access, technical assistance, and skill building opportunities to Tallahassee’s South Side community by supporting school readiness and success for students and parents. The Tech Hub provides a resource for research, job search, connectivity, tele-health, schoolwork and even legal services.

New Standards for Police Use of Force

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Problem

Over the last year and a half, the over policing of certain segments of our communities, particularly for Black and Brown residents, has reached a point of reckoning. Communities across the county have faced terrible incidents of excessive use of force at the hands of police, and Montgomery County, Maryland has not been immune. Here in Montgomery County the data demonstrates disparities. While Black residents make up about 20 percent of the county, they make up 55% of use of force incidents.  With Latino residents included, that accounts for over 75% of use of force incidents by police.  Unfortunately, we have had incidents of police killing black residents and have also had very public incidents of excessive use of force.  But for cell phone and body cameras, these incidents would not have come to light.  

Solution

We drafted a law to amend the police use of force policy. This policy prohibits a police officer from using deadly force except when absolutely necessary, when no other alternatives are available. This includes prohibiting neck or carotid restraints and striking a restrained individual. The bill bans no-knock warrants and shooting from or at moving vehicles, unless the vehicle is being used as a weapon and the circumstances would authorize the use of deadly force.

The policy must provide guidelines protecting individuals without regard to race, sex, gender identity or sexual orientation. Rules must protect vulnerable community members and populations disproportionately impacted. 

The law requires officers to stop or attempt to stop the use of excessive force or the commission of a crime by another officer.  Officers who intervene must not be retaliated against or disciplined for taking action.

Equal Access to Justice for Victims and Witnesses of Violent Crimes and Human Trafficking

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Problem

The U and T visa programs were created back in 2000 with bipartisan support in Congress to benefit both victims and witnesses as well as law enforcement agencies. Certifications from law enforcement agencies assist victims and witnesses in applying for immigrant protections, and facilitate cooperation with law enforcement from communities that are sometimes wary of law enforcement. Victims and witnesses of crime and trafficking have to submit the certification in order to start the application process. While many agencies and jurisdictions have processes in place for victims and witnesses to obtain certifications, many others do not, and several have not encountered these requests before. As a result, many victims will wait years to get a certification, and many will wait indefinitely, not getting a response at all.

Solution

This idea increases victim and witness participation in the criminal legal system and promotes public safety and assistance to law enforcement by creating a consistent victim certification process for vulnerable immigrant victims and witnesses of crime and trafficking, and standardizes the process for law enforcement, prosecution, and investigatory agencies to provide victims who have been helpful in an investigation or prosecution of serious crimes, described in the federal Violence Against Women Act, the certification form they need to help them apply for a U-visa or a T-visa. It does not require that a law enforcement agency provide certification. It only requires that a decision be made within ninety days. If there are extenuating circumstances, the agency must provide a written explanation for the delay and projected timeline for the issuance of a decision.

Zach Klein, City Attorney (Columbus, OH)

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Achieving Meaningful Police Reform

NewDEAL Leader Columbus, OH City Attorney Zach Klein wrote an op-ed this week, “Calling for police reform does not make you anti-police”. Klein argues that meaningful police reform must both assure accountability and give officers the tools they need to protect and serve the people of his city. “If the community and police come together as trusted partners in this effort, we can succeed in making our city a safer place for all of us,” said Klein. Klein also highlighted some of the impactful reforms already underway in Columbus with support of residents and law enforcement, such as implementing the city’s first civilian police review board, engaging the Bureau of Criminal Investigations to review all CPD-involved shootings, instituting community immersion training for police recruits, changing the way police engage with First Amendment-protected protesters, and more. Check out the op-ed here.

Greg Fischer, Mayor (Louisville, KY)

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Reforming Louisville’s Police Department

After the murder of Breonna Taylor and the protests that followed, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer commissioned an independent, top-to-bottom review of his city’s police department. The results of the review, which conducted over 100 interviews and include a roadmap to reform, were released at a press conference on Thursday, where Mayor Fischer noted that the audit underscored the pain felt in the community and within the department. The roadmap ahead for the police and the city includes the passage of Breonna’s Law to ban no-knock warrants and mandate body cameras, the creation of a civilian police review board, and the creation of a system to deploy social workers for appropriate calls. Read the city’s summary of the report or see the full, 155-page review here.

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