Bill to Ban Bad Cops Passes California State Senate
The creation of a decertification process and reduced legal immunity for crooked law enforcement officers moved closer to reality on Wednesday as the California State Senate passed SB 2 with a 26-9 party line vote.
This proposal is considered by civil rights groups to be the most impactful criminal justice reform of the year. A coalition of more than 100 civil rights, labor, religious, and other social justice groups pressed for its passage.
Via Courthouse News:
One year after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, the bill’s author said the nation’s most populous state could no longer stall in weeding out violent and racist cops.
“Black and brown people are not afforded the same patience, the same restraint or the same respect and reverence for life,” said state Senator Steven Bradford, a Democrat from Gardena, as he rattled off the names of Californians recently killed by police from the Senate floor. “What happened to George Floyd wasn’t rare.”
California is one of four states lacking a system for preventing disreputable police officers from simply switching locales following termination or suspension.
Doctors, lawyers and even barbers in this state can lose their professional licenses for certain major violations. But there’s currently no equivalent recourse for police.
Legislation addressing this deficiency was approved by the State Senate in 2020 but died in the Assembly on the last day of the session. This is an example of how impactful legislation gets torpedoed by interest groups without causing political consequences for individual lawmakers.
The odds are better for SB 2 this year, as Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins has backed the bill, noting “Here in California, we are delivering on the promises we made to each other and to our constituents on the steps of the Capitol one year ago.”
Officially named as the “Kenneth Ross Jr. Decertification Act,” SB 2 would prevent officers who have engaged in misconduct from ever working in the field again.
Kenneth Ross, Jr, was shot and killed by a police officer while running away. Officers, who were initially responding to a shots fired call, claimed that he failed to follow commands and was ordered to stop several times. Needless to say, Ross was Balck.
Investigators in Gardena asserted that officers found a gun in Ross' pocket. After watching a video of the event, the Ross family disputed that claim.
"They said he had a gun. We have the video of when he fell," said the family's attorney Haytham Faraj. "They then handcuff him to search him. They do search him. They find nothing."
Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey released a report in 2019 clearing the officer from wrongdoing, saying Officer Michael Robbins acted in "lawful self-defense."
What SB 2 does in a nutshell:
A Peace Officer Standards Accountability Division would be established within the Commission on Police Officers Standards & Training with the responsibility of reviewing grounds for decertification, conducting investigations into serious misconduct, presenting findings in decertification procedures, and seeking revocation of certification of peace officers.
Creates a Peace Officer Standards Accountability Advisory Board tasked with hearing evidence of misconduct and making determinations as to the certification or decertification of peace officers.
Update the state’s Tom Bane Civil Rights Act and make it easier for victims to pursue wrongful death claims in state court by reducing legal immunity for officers. (The issue of limiting governmental immunity was a sticking point in the Senate and the language voted for in the Senate was considerably watered down from the original)
Uer the current system, officers within California accused of severe misconduct were typically fired or placed on administrative leave. Critics have pointed out that these actions are not sufficient, as officers are able to find jobs at new departments even days after a fatal incident.
Gardena Sergeant Michael Robbins – the police officer who shot and killed Kenneth Ross – had already shot three other civilians while a member of another southern California police department.”
If SB 2 were to pass, officers like Robbins would be banned from wearing a uniform ever again.
Approximately three dozen law enforcement affiliated groups expressed opposition. Their witnesses testified against the bill.
In a previous committee hearing, dozens of police chiefs and sheriffs testified that removing immunity could lead to hesitant officers afraid to protect the public over fear of being sued. They added the reforms could lead to hiring shortages and hefty civil damages for not just individual officers, but cities and counties as well.
“We are concerned that the language removing employee immunity from state civil liability will result in individual peace officers hesitating or failing to act out of fear that actions they believe to be lawful may result in litigation and damages,” The California State Sheriffs’ Association wrote in opposition.
While the groups against the bill say they’re okay with decertifying bad cops, they don’t like the idea of civilians having a role in making recommendations in one step of the oversight process.
From KQED:
Brian Marvel, president of the Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC), which represents more than 77,000 law enforcement professionals in the state, said a board with that makeup will not be fair or equitable and cannot offer real due process to the officers under scrutiny.
“I can guarantee you that there's probably no license or program in the entire United States where two-thirds of the people that sit on that panel are predisposed to be against the person coming before them,” Marvel said.
One need to look no farther than San Diego, where Marvel was a bigwig with the SDPOA, to see that the very idea of meaningful civilian participation in oversight was repeatedly derailed until voters had the opportunity to weigh in on the subject.
Via the Davis Vanguard:
“Today, my family and I are celebrating another step in the right direction,” Caria Hamilton said—she’s the cousin of Diante Yarber, who was killed in 2018.
“For years, impacted families have been organizing in the streets to get to this moment. Now is the time to pass SB 2 to protect Black children and other youth in our communities by removing cops who harm us from our streets,” she added.
“We aren’t asking for anything radical here,” said Amanda Majail-Blanco, the sister of Erik Salago, who was killed by Officer Rich Henderson. “Just for the police to be held to the same standards as everyone else.”
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On a another note, Republicans introduced a counter-proposal to the Biden administration's infrastructure bill:
https://twitter.com/JoshuaHol/status/1397908816172359681?s=20
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Lead image: James Matthew Daniel - ACLU