Michigan is the latest state with a bill that targets qualified immunity (QI). As The Detroit News reports, Michigan House Democrats just unveiled a new police-reform package. Known as Justice for All, this Michigan bill targets QI. If passed, Justice for All would end QI for bad cops who’ve used unreasonable force. Other measures include banning chokeholds and prohibiting no-knock warrants.
Per The Detroit News, Tawanna Gordon and Tamika Palmer were present at the bill’s unveiling. Gordon and Palmer are, respectively, Breonna Taylor’s cousin and mother. Breonna Taylor was the native Michigander whom bad cops killed in March 2020 during a botched raid in Louisville, Kentucky.
As with other similar measures, party lines divide support for Michigan’s bill that targets QI. Overall, Republican support for Justice for All seems “doubtful,” notes The Detroit News. And Robert Stevenson of the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police questioned whether the legislation is necessary.
However, Stevenson did admit that policing in Michigan needs “improvement.” Many state legislators agree. And those who back Justice for All feel that to improve policing, there must be accountability.
MI Legislators on Ending QI
Democrat Felicia Brabec is one such legislator. She believes qualified immunity is an unjust rule that “rubber stamps bad behavior.” Rep. Brabec and other like-minded lawmakers say ending QI is the best bet to establish lasting change.
Others note how repealing qualified immunity will only affect bad cops. The ones who, as Rep. Tenisha Yancey explains, “use excessive force when it is absolutely unnecessary.”
Despite current Republican opposition, Rep. Yancey tells The Detroit News she hopes “we can all reach a common goal, which is making sure that people across the state of Michigan…are safe and protected, as well as police.”
Leaders like Felicia Brabec and Tenisha Yancey know how important it is to keep both the people of Michigan and the good cops safe. That’s why they support the Michigan bill that targets QI. After all, greater accountability leads to better policing. And improving law enforcement is the goal of Justice for All, the new Michigan bill that targets QI.
Read more about the Michigan bill that targets QI here.
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