Campaign to End Qualified Immunity co-chairs Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield recently appeared on The Tim Black Show to discuss qualified immunity and why the legal doctrine that shields bad police officers must be overturned.
âWhat we say is love the good ones, prosecute the bad ones. Eliminating qualified immunity â the only people that it will hurt are bad cops. So at the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity, weâre clearly saying this is not anti-police: this is anti-bad police,â said Greenfield.
The Campaign To End Qualified Immunity supports a number of proposed bills aimed at holding bad police officers accountable when they violate citizensâ rights. On the federal level, the U.S. Congress has proposed legislation such as the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act to effect police reform and eliminate the qualified immunity doctrine. State legislation has also been proposed in states like Maryland, New Mexico, California and others to close the legal loophole.
âEnding qualified immunity is about accountability. It doesnât matter what kind of reform you put in place: body cameras, training, whatever. If you donât hold cops accountable for abiding by the training, abiding by the body cameras, abiding by the Constitution, youâre just telling them âwell weâre not really serious about itâ â you know, itâs kind of a wink and a nod,â said Cohen.
Watch the full discussion here.