There's
a pandemic of police violence in this country: The police have
forgotten, if they ever knew, that the Fourth Amendment forbids them
from seizing anyone without probable cause of their involvement in a
crime.
This
pandemic will never end so long as cops believe they face no realistic
chance of being held accountable for violating people's rights. Cops
kill over 1,000 Americans per year, and that 1,000 are
disproportionately Black and Native American. That rate has not slowed
one whit with the lockdown.
Cops aren't crazy to believe that. It's incredibly rare for
cops to be arrested or charged for violent crimes, let alone convicted.
And the Supreme Court has made suing them for damages incredibly hard.
Until
1967, suing cops was easier, but that year the Supreme Court blew a
hole in the ability of Americans to sue cops for violating their rights,
by making litigants prove cops weren't operating with a "good faith"
belief that their conduct was lawful - even if it wasn't lawful. Later,
the Supreme Court tightened this even further, making litigants show
that it was "clearly established" that the cops' exact misconduct had
been ruled unlawful by the courts. This set of decisions falls under an
entirely court-invented doctrine called "Qualified Immunity."
Consequently, we are endorsing the new Ending Qualified Immunity Act,
introduced by Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan. It removes the good faith
defense, and the "clearly established" test, allowing people abused by
cops to sue again.
Make certain your representative does, too: Call (202) 224-3121 now!
If your representative is not a co-sponsor,
tell them to become one. If they are, thank them for supporting the
Fourth Amendment. If you don't have time to check, just express your
support for Justin Amash's Ending Qualified Immunity Act!
Part
of the problem here is the mewling cowardice of members of Congress,
who are so scared of seeming anti-cop that they let these 1,000 killings
go on, year after year.
Please
stiffen your Congressmember's spine, if they have one. Call them and
tell them to cosponsor the Ending Qualified Immunity Act, at (202) 224-3121.
This
is not some token press release hashtagging off of Black and Native
people's pain. This is a recommendation for something real that you can
do now, that will help.
Don't miss this chance.
Call (202) 224-3121 Now!
Best wishes,
Alex Marthews
National Chair, Restore the Fourth
@restore_the4th
@rebelcinder
National Chair, Restore the Fourth
@restore_the4th
@rebelcinder
