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, SCOTUS refuses to challenge qualified immunity; Chicago becomes more critical of its law enforcement; Native American activists protest police brutality; and more!
FEATURED STORY
Bloomberg Law: Supreme Court Rejects Cases Testing Liability Shield for Police
“The US Supreme Court refused to hear two cases testing the scope of a legal doctrine that shields police officers from being held liable when they kill someone on the job, drawing sharp dissents from Justice Sonia Sotomayor.”
Read more here.
NEW YORK
NYC Mayor Eric Adams has praised the NYPD’s new interim commissioner, Edward Caban, as a “consummate professional” and a “strong leader.” What Adams failed to mention is that Caban has also been accused of various misconduct allegations during his 30-year career.
Read more here.
VERMONT
CW: Sexual assault
The criminal case against former Addison County Sheriff Peter Newton is moving forward. The disgraced ex-cop was arrested last June while still in office for illegally restraining and sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman. If convicted, Newton faces three years to life in prison.
Read more here.
MARYLAND
The NAACP of Baltimore is calling on Mayor Brandon Scott to withdraw Richard Worley’s nomination for the role of Police Commissioner, as it wasn’t vetted by the local community. “It is critical that our next commissioner is appointed through a transparent process that…[is] inclusive of community voices to attempt to repair the damages that have been done,” said NAACP of Baltimore President Kobi Little.
Read more here.
ILLINOIS
According to a new report released by a group tasked to monitor the Chicago police, “a survey conducted by the team in 2022 shows Chicagoans have a more critical view of the Police Department than a similar survey found in 2020.”
Read more here
ADDITIONAL NEWS
KEVN: Native American Activists Protest Injustices, Demand Reform
“‘We would like to stop the killing of indigenous people by police. We would like to stop the overcriminalization of protests. We would like to see security resource officers out of the schools. We would like to see more support for native children in the schools, more solutions just beyond criminalizing them,’ said Tom Swiftbird, a protester at the march.”
Read more here.
The New York Times: Opinion: Half the Police Force Quit. Crime Dropped.
“At the very least, the steady stream of Justice Department reports depicting rampant police abuse ought to temper the claim that policing shortages are fueling crime. It’s no coincidence that the cities we most associate with violence also have long and documented histories of police abuse. When people don’t trust law enforcement, they stop cooperating and resolve disputes in other ways.”
Read more here.
Mission Local: DA Brooke Jenkins to Drop Last SFPD Police Shooting Case
“Legal experts have challenged her reasoning in both prior instances, saying Jenkins’ arguments for dropping those cases do not bear on the material facts of the shootings, nor do they answer whether officers were justified in their actions. ‘The pattern suggests that Brooke Jenkins doesn’t have much of an appetite for prosecuting police,’ said Professor George Bisharat of the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, speaking before news of [Sean] Moore’s dismissal.”
Read more here.
The New York Times: Paralyzed by a Police Bullet, He Describes a Life Forever Changed
“[Khalif] Cooper had had past run-ins with the police, and he had been released from prison less than two years earlier after serving time for weapons and drug convictions. But he has not been accused of doing anything wrong the night he was shot. And a gun found about a block from where he fell held none of his DNA or fingerprints, court records show.”
Read more here.
Spread the word for accountability—submit a letter to the editor to your local newspaper.
Stay atop of new state QI updates by signing up for our email list here.