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, the cops who killed Tyre Nichols face federal charges; Baltimore officials invest in tech to track problematic policing; a Louisiana prison is under fire for violating children’s rights; and more!
FEATURED STORY
WTVF Nashville: ‘We About to Kill This Man’: Memphis Officers Federally Indicted After Death of Tyre Nichols
“‘When I announced this investigation back in January, I said I wanted this city to be a place where justice is done,’ said U.S. Attorney Kevin Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee. ‘This indictment alleging civil rights violations is an important step in ensuring that justice is done for Tyre Nichols…I’m proud of our team and proud of their commitment to protecting the civil rights of all Americans.’”
Read more here.
NEW YORK
Criminal summons for minor offenses, such as public drinking, have surged in New York City under Mayor Eric Adams, raising concerns from public safety advocates. “I think there are directives to increase the numbers,” said former City Council member Jumaane Williams. “It looks like [the authorities] are trying to find reasons to engage with folks more and more. So these low-level summonses seem to be the way they’re doing it.”
Read more here.
MARYLAND
In an effort to build public trust in law enforcement, Baltimore officials have implemented an analytic system that uses metrics to review policing patterns. This system, said Deputy Commissioner Eric Melancon, will “help make sure we’re getting in front of officers’ behavior through direct intervention, before something manifests itself as misconduct.”
Read more here.
ADDITIONAL NEWS
NPR: Memphis Police Pressured to Change Culture After High-Profile Killings and Beatings
“The [Tyre Nichols] case has brought new scrutiny to a police force that had been under court orders in the past to address unconstitutional abuses of power. Now there are civil lawsuits and new federal investigations. Activists say a reckoning with an out-of-control police culture is long overdue.”
Read more here.
CNN: Police Officer Who Fatally Shot Eddie Irizarry Faces Murder, Other Charges
“Despite claims by [Officer Mark] Dial’s attorney that his client heard someone saying ‘gun,’ the publicly released police body camera videos of the shooting do not appear to show Irizarry with a gun…The word ‘gun’ is not readily audible in either of the body camera videos provided by the district attorney, according to CNN’s review. The only guns visible in the videos are those held by police officers.”
Read more here.
Reason: A Cop Jailed Her for 2 Years on Fake Charges. Will She Ever Get Justice?
“The groundless charges against [Hamdi] Mohamud were ultimately dropped, but not until she spent about two years in federal prison….When Mohamud sued, [Officer Heather] Weyker was denied qualified immunity….Yet the 8th Circuit in 2020 overturned that decision, citing Weyker’s position on a federal task force. Government employees at the federal level receive an even more muscular immunity.”
Read more here.
KIRO 7: Video Shows SPD Cop Laughing, Joking About Pedestrian Killed by Officer a Day Earlier
“Seattle Police Officers’ Guild Vice President Daniel Auderer…can be heard speaking to SPOG President Mike Solan, as he talked about the incident where 23-year-old exchange student Jaahnavi Kandula was fatally hit by Officer Kevin Dave. Shortly after saying ‘she’s dead,’ Auderer laughs and says ‘it’s a regular person,’ referring to Kandula. He then says ‘just write a check—$11,000, she was 26 anyway, she had limited value.’”
Read more here.
Mother Jones: Louisiana’s Notorious Angola Prison Will No Longer Hold Children
“These conditions are overly punitive for children who are not even criminals, but are rather deemed ‘delinquents’ and held in civil detention. ‘Arbitrarily transferring young people’ to ‘a place with thousands of people convicted of crimes…is clearly punishment…and violates young people’s due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment,’ the attorneys wrote in their complaint.”
Read more here.
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