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, John Oliver discusses how the news covers policing; Ohio rallies to end qualified immunity; public safety advocates work to improve responses to mental health calls; and more!
FEATURED STORY
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Crime Reporting
Crime reporting makes up a “significant part” of local news programming, noted John Oliver on Last Week Tonight. And the way these stories are framed has a real impact, especially on how “perceptions of crime can sharply be at odds with the reality of it,” due to how the police viewpoint often controls the narrative.
Watch here.
NEW YORK
Joel Capellan was fatally shot Sunday morning during an altercation with the NYPD. Officials say police opened fire on the 28-year-old after he allegedly refused to drop his gun. “If he did anything wrong, then he did something wrong. But he did not deserve to die the way he died,” said Capellan’s grieving mother.
Read more here.
Over the last six years, there have been a staggering 144 civilian complaints against the Nassau County Police Department. Instead of facing up, the officers have closed ranks, claiming that not one of these allegations hold water. “That to me is a screaming red flag that there’s a problem with internal affairs,” said a former Nassau County prosecutor.
Read more here.
In 2019, NYPD officers killed Allan Feliz after he was stopped for not wearing a seatbelt—even though bodycam footage revealed he actually was. Three years later, his family is demanding that the rogue cops finally face accountability. “Life is being taken by those who are put out there to protect us,” said Feliz’s brother. “It doesn’t give us a sense of security when we go outside every day to live our lives.”
Read more here.
MARYLAND
Fighting to uphold Anton’s Law, the Maryland Coalition for Justice and Police Accountability (MCJPA) is challenging the Montgomery County branch of the Fraternal Order of Police, which seeks to block the public from accessing police misconduct records. “Police officers in Montgomery County must be held accountable to the same standards as all other officers who are supposed to abide by this state law. No special treatment,” MCJPA’s Zakiya Sankara-Jabar firmly stated.
Read more here.
ILLINOIS
“When there is messaging that 988 is just going to result in police involvement…[that] damages the efficiency and effectiveness of the aims of 988.” Chicago’s suicide-prevention call line, 988, seeks to reassure residents that calls to the newly streamlined number won’t be transferred to the police—highlighting one of the key issues arising from public distrust in law enforcement.
Read more here.
Parris Moore’s family has filed a civil rights suit against Officer Bradley Lauer. Moore, a high school freshman, was left with permanent brain damage in 2021 after the rogue cop viciously body slammed him headfirst. Moore’s crime? Skipping class. “School officials and police treated a minor, non-violent, disciplinary issue as a violent crime,” said the family’s attorney.
Read more here.
“The police in these similar incidents have been really quick to disclose the body cam, to ease the public a little bit. [But] that hasn’t happened here.” Friends and family of Samuel V. Richmond, who was fatally shot by police under unclear circumstances on October 3, gathered on Tuesday to remember their loved one on what would’ve been his 60th birthday—and demand answers as to why the rogue cops acted with deadly force.
Read more here.
ADDITIONAL NEWS
NewsWatch: A Push to End Qualified Immunity
A rally was held in Columbus, Ohio, demanding justice for Donovan Lewis, the 20-year-old who was killed by police while in bed last August. At the event, Lewis’ family and civil rights activists spoke about their efforts to get an amendment on the 2023 ballot that would end qualified immunity in Ohio.
Watch here.
Cronkite News: ‘We Can Figure This Out’: Police, Public and Policymakers Work to Improve Responses to Mental Health Crises
“There’s no simple set of solutions to this nationwide problem. Experts, advocates and the public say the answer must rely on a combination of efforts: reduce or eliminate law enforcement’s role in behavioral health crisis response, train and equip law enforcement officers when they do need to respond, and improve treatment for psychiatric care.”
Read more here.
Courier-Journal: Kenneth Walker Says on Night of Breonna Taylor’s Death, His Only Crime Was ‘Being Black’
“Walker…detailed the story that upended his life—Louisville Metro Police officers on the scene that night did not identify themselves as police before entering the apartment, he said, and he fired the gun that he owned legally at officers because he thought if they were police, they would have said so before entering the residence.”
Read more here.
The Huffington Post: District Attorney to Review All Cases Handled by Cop Who Planned Charlottesville Nazi Rally
“‘We are acutely aware of the way in which these allegations tear at the fabric of trust which exists between communities and the police departments which serve them,’ District Attorney [Marina] Ryan said in her statement.”
Read more here.
Detroit Metro Times: Detroit to Pay More Than $1M Over Police Brutality Lawsuit After Bloody Summer of Protests
“The protest group Detroit Will Breathe claimed in the suit that police violated their constitutional rights by responding to peaceful demonstrations with ‘beatings, tear gas, pepper spray, and mass arrests.’ Some of the protesters were hospitalized with serious injuries.”
Read more here.
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