Welcome to the weekly update from the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity! Here, we give you a wrap-up of the latest developments and notable news as we continue our state-focused fight to abolish the unjust rule.
This week, a judiciary subcommittee holds hearing on qualified immunity; New York’s Legal Aid Society releases report on discriminatory policing; a University of Maryland task force recommends public safety improvements; and more!
FEATURED STORY
The Judicial Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties held a hearing on Thursday, March 31, titled Examining Civil Rights Litigation Reform, Part 1: Qualified Immunity. This hearing was secured by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, whose bill H.R. 1470, the Ending Qualified Immunity Act, aims to repeal the doctrine on a federal level.
Watch the hearing here.
NEW YORK
The Legal Aid Society has released a new report on “broken windows policing,” a strategy that targets low-level disorder in the hopes that it will reduce more serious criminal activity. The strategy isn’t working: “Decades of research have shown that this style of policing produces little to no public safety benefit while…exacerbating racial disparities in the criminal legal system,” states the report.
Read more here.
Highlighting the need to protect incarcerated trans and nonbinary individuals from demeaning corrections officers, the ACLU of New York calls on lawmakers to pass the Gender Identity Respect, Dignity, and Safety Act. Among other things, this bill would require that “staff at facilities respect a person’s gender identity in all contexts, including name and pronoun use and during searches.”
Read more here.
VERMONT
The House Judiciary committee held a hearing on Thursday, March 31, to discuss S.254, Vermont’s police accountability bill. Campaign to End Qualified Immunity co-chair Jerry Greenfield was among the public safety advocates who offered testimony in support of the measure.
Watch the hearing here.
MARYLAND
The University of Maryland’s Community Policing Task Force has released a report outlining their recommendations for improving on-campus public safety. Suggested reforms include “annual in-service training for all officers on areas such as de-escalation, anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation.”
Read more here.
ADDITIONAL NEWS
Reuters: Qualified immunity Defense Proposal Dropped by Judicial Panel
“The judiciary’s Advisory Committee on Civil Rules without objection withdrew a proposed rule it had previously backed that would have extended to 60 days from 14 the time officials have to answer lawsuits if they survive initial motions to dismiss.”
Read more here.
Reason: The 5th Circuit Approves a Cop’s Violent Response to a Dispute Over a 7-Year-Old’s Littering
“Because the legal justification for [William] Martin’s use of force was unclear, a federal judge ruled that [Jacqueline] Craig could proceed with her lawsuit against him. But last month, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit concluded that Martin had done nothing illegal. That assessment seems highly dubious even based on the undisputed facts of the case.”
Read more here.
Black Enterprise: Pittsburgh Mayor Calls for Police Reform After Police Killed a Black Man
“‘Jim Rogers deserved to live a long life,’ Mayor Ed Gainey said during a Wednesday press conference…‘He didn’t deserve to lose his life at the hands of city police officers. What his life could have been will stay with me for as long as I am the mayor of this city,’ said Gainey.”
Read more here.
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