Police Use of Force and Community Relations

On June 16, 2020, Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, submitted testimony to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee about police use of force and community relations. Clarke noted that police accountability is the key to police reform, and police encounters with African Americans disproportionately result in civil rights violations, death, and other tragic circumstances. Racism and discrimination affect every aspect of policing, causing devastation for marginzalied communities. 

The Lawyers’ Committee has endorsed a host of legislation that is aimed at reforming how police departments and officers across the country operate, including:

• The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act;
• The End Racial & Religious Profiling Act;
• The Police Exercising Absolute Care With Everyone Act (PEACE Act); and
• The Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act.

Clarke also explained that police unions and contracts, state laws, ineffective disciplinary structures, and legal doctrines that insulate officers from liability are the four key areas which prevent officers from being held accountable. 

• Research has shown police unionization is associated with increased violence by the police force, and an increase in civilian deaths, which are disproportionately Black men and women;
• There is no national database for police misconduct records, and state certification requirements are not independently reviewed and monitored, which allows officers to move from one department to the next without repercussions;
• Complaint processes are sporadic and incomprehensive between jurisdictions, and civilian complaint review boards are rarely given disciplinary authority; and
• Qualified immunity blocks individual officers from accountability. 

Read the full testimony here.