MSNBC recently aired a deep dive of two segments highlighting the qualified immunity (QI) doctrine that protects police officers when they break the law. Campaign To End Qualified Immunity Co-Chair Ben Cohen appeared on MSNBC Live With Craig Melvin to discuss the need for accountability in law enforcement and the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
“You can do any kind of training you want, require body cameras, whatever, but if you don’t hold [police] accountable when they break the law, it’s like saying, ‘well we’re saying this stuff but we don’t really mean it’ — and so we think that this is the most critical and important part of reforming policing, to hold cops accountable just like an individual citizen is held accountable,” said Cohen.
Ari Melber, host of MSNBC’s The Beat With Ari Melber, also tackled the qualified immunity doctrine in a twelve minute segment.
“American policing is often simplified into a pretty false choice between what’s good for police or what’s good for people being policed…Fair accountable policing is generally good for everyone. And if no one is above the law, that’s got to especially include the powerful: politicians who write these laws and the police who enforce them with guns,” said Melber.