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 federal lawsuit exposes qualified immunity’s inherent flaws; Vermont embraces police transparency; Ben Crump demands justice for Ronald Greene; and more!
FEATURED STORY
The New Republic: Qualified Immunity Faces an Existential Threat at the Supreme Court
“The Supreme Court has signed off on [qualified immunity] over and over again despite widespread criticism from legal scholars, judges, and even some of the justices themselves.
But qualified immunity may be built on an even shakier foundation than many of those critics previously thought. And a new lawsuit at the high court hopes to force the justices to confront how qualified immunity may be not just misguided but also outright unlawful.”
Read more here.
NEW YORK
A new program designed to keep tabs on police misconduct reveals that, of the 362 NYPD officers flagged between January and March of this year, 106, or 29%, were flagged again in April and June. One of the program’s biggest problems, critics note, is that although it identifies problematic cops, it doesn’t discipline officers.
Read more here.
Matthew Pontillo, the NYPD’s chief of risk management, expressed his concerns over the massive surge—a nearly 600% increase—in aggressive police vehicular pursuits. Instead of listening to Pontillo, his superiors forced him to resign.
Read more here.
VERMONT
A new police accountability measure has taken effect in the Green Mountain State, Act 30, which mandates increased transparency for Vermont’s 14 sheriff’s departments. The bill calls for sheriffs to maintain a record of their work schedules and produce financial disclosures for their departments.
Read more here.
MARYLAND
In Baltimore, the cost of police misconduct keeps escalating: Since January, the city has shelled out over $8 million to settle excessive-force suits. “The more bad policing we have, the more we pay for the consequences of bad policing,” said University of Maryland legal scholar Michael Pinard.
Read more here.
ILLINOIS
Between 2019 and 2021, Chicago spent over $91 million of taxpayer money to resolve police misconduct suits, according to a new analysis. A Washington Post investigation also determined that Chicago has the highest rate of misconduct claims involving cops named in multiple cases between 2010 and 2020.
Read more here.
ADDITIONAL NEWS
WBRZ: High-profile Attorney Calls for Federal Civil Rights Investigation into Ronald Greene’s Deadly Arrest
“[Ben] Crump, who has worked on several high-profile civil rights cases across the U.S., held a news conference alongside Greene’s family in north Louisiana on Tuesday to discuss the case, according to KTVE. ‘We know the federal charges have more latitude to look at more things than Louisiana law looks at,’ Crump said. ‘The Department of Justice Civil Rights division can look at a multitude of things.’”
Read more here.
The Center Square: Group Vows to Continue to Fight to End Qualified Immunity in Ohio
“The Ohio Coalition to End Qualified Immunity wanted to end what it calls a legal loophole–qualified immunity—by putting the proposed amendment before voters on the 2024 general election ballot. The group said immunity has led to a lack of accountability for law enforcement officers and has stopped citizens from ‘seeking justice’ for the misconduct of rogue officers.”
Read more here.
Capital B: After 17 Deadly Police Bullets and No Charges, a Grieving N.C. Family Won’t Give Up
“[Rick Iwanski’s] next steps bypass the criminal justice system in pursuit of justice for his granddaughter. Instead of only pursuing a civil lawsuit, which could leave taxpayers footing the bill for police misconduct, Iwanski is turning to the state legislature. He’s leading an effort to get local lawmakers to fix the criminal legal system that acts as a gatekeeper to accountability and transparency for law enforcement.”
Read more here.
Insider: Police Officers Are Getting Raises for Wearing Body Cameras—at the Expense of Taxpayers
“In Worcester, Massachusetts, officers were granted an annual $1,300 stipend for complying with bodycam requirements, The New York Times reported. ‘I cannot imagine that when community members called for police transparency and justice, beyond body cams, that they envisioned that it would come with a reward,’ the outlet reported Etel Haxhiaj, one of three Worcester city councilors who opposed the stipend during a vote in May, said.”
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.