Unlawful Shield | July 1, 2020
On April 21, 27-year-old Carlos Ingram Lopez drew his last breath as police pinned him against the floor of his grandmother’s garage after placing a “spit hood” over his head. Police body cameras record him telling officers that he could not breathe and calling for his grandmother.
Jay Schweikert | June 27, 2020
A good sign that a policy is indefensible is when its proponents cannot bring themselves to describe it accurately. Such is the case with the doctrine of qualified immunity, which is currently the subject of a furious disinformation campaign led by the law‐enforcement lobby (see here, here). The most recent mouthpiece for this campaign was Tucker Carlson, who two nights ago mounted a spirited defense of an imaginary legal rule that he called “qualified immunity,” but which bears only the faintest resemblance to the actual doctrine.
… Continue reading “Tucker Carlson’s Fanciful Defense of What He Imagines Qualified Immunity To Be”
James Craven | June 24, 2020
Antonio Smith wasn’t the man these cops were looking for, but as they pulled up to him alongside a lonely highway in Georgia, he was anxious for good reason. Mere moments after taking his driver’s license, Valdosta police slammed him onto the ground and broke his wrist.
The casual indifference with which these officers approach and subsequently grievously injure Mr. Smith is terrifying. They order him to put his hands behind his back while holding him firmly in a bear hug, then take him down anyway. It speaks to a mindset completely divorced from a world where actions have consequences.
Because of qualified immunity, there may not be any.
James Craven | June 24, 2020
“[I]f the trooper’s conduct was found to be unconstitutional or unethical, he may have been left exposed by his agency to any legal ramifications from that unethical conduct,” frets the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association in baffling new piece.
Jay Schweikert | June 23, 2020
Today, Senator Mike Braun (R-IN) announced that he will be introducing the “Reforming Qualified Immunity Act.” While many other Republicans have already expressed interest in addressing qualified immunity, Senator Braun is the first Republican in the Senate to put forward or join a concrete legislative proposal to fix this egregious doctrine. In contrast to the Amash-Pressley “Ending Qualified Immunity Act,”
… Continue reading “Republican Senator Introduces Legislation To Reform Qualified Immunity”