Transcripts For CSPAN House Judiciary Committee Hearing On Police Reform Part 2 20240712

[gavel] by recognizing myself or five minutes. On may 25, in the twilight of memorial on may 20 five, in the twilight of memorial day, Derek Chauvin held his need to go to floyds neck and pressed his face to the pavement for eight minutes 46 seconds as mr. Floyd pleaded for relief, repeating the words, i cant breathe. Floyd, i am sure you have seen the video. Can you think of any reason why officer chauvin would need to hold his knee on your brothers for over eight minutes . I dont know why he did it, but personally i think it was personal. They worked at the same place. For him to do Something Like that, it had to be premeditated and he wanted to do it. Intentional. Yes sir. We have learned since then that he has faced 17 misconduct complaints during his career. He was named in the brutality lawsuit, he shot and critically wounded a man after a brief and nonviolent confrontation. How do you feel about the history what do you know what do you feel about the history of misconduct . He should have been off the force. Any officer committing an act like that should not be able to get a job in any county after they get fired. To fire enough evidence them, but not enough to arrest them. Ms gupta, does this make any sense . Should we keep officers with long list of conduct complaints on patrol . We should not. Its why the Leadership Conference has pushed for the establishment of a National Police misconduct registry. Its a registry of federal, state, and local Law Enforcement officials that would created create discipline and termination records. I will tell you that there is significant Law Enforcement support for this registry. Prosecutors around the country have asked for this, but it has been said that this is a real problem for chiefs when they dont have this information and they make higher hiring decisions. And thats why we have this in our policing and justice bill area bill. Thats correct. Chief, you manage a large urban police force. Our misconduct complaints a red flag . Yes, they are. What do you think we can do about that . We make it really clear to thatfficers and employees none of them are cats, you dont get nine lives, and we use progressive discipline. Sometimes labor will argue why are you firing someone with progressive discipline and the answer is simple. If the policy violation supports termination and indefinite suspension, thats what we do for either the first or the third offense. A pattern of misconduct cannot and should not be missed cannot and should not be tolerated. Thats whites important to follow a pattern of complaints to look for any type of patterns theres anyo see if commonality and we can take a deeper look at our employees. You think its a good idea to have a National Registry so one Police Department that knew about the misconduct of an officer before Different Police officer hire him . I can tell you in an individual capacity i do support that concept. As an organization weve been busy operationally in the last two weeks and we will start having our deliberation hopefully on friday. And we will come back with an official position. I can tell you that individual chiefs that i have spoken with support it. Having said that, absent a National Registry, it is incumbent upon hiring agencies to do thorough backgrounds of the internal affairs packages, complaint histories, that everything is available from previous departments. Due diligence is important with or without a registry. But i do support that concept. Thank you, my time has expired. Thank you. Mr. Floyd, i dont know that the cameras picked it up or saw it. But when angela talked about her brother dying, i saw a physical reaction from you, you leaned over, i noticed your body even tremble with empathy and care for angela and her brother who passed away. If you could say anything to people who killed pat, what would it be. Life is precious, everyone should be able to live and walk this earth in the journey they want to. Be no one should have to filled with hatred and so much animosity that they want to kill someone. Dr. King said he wanted everybody around the world to be able to join hands together, and i think right now, if he was here he would understand that the world is united right now. Nd we are all coming together . I have a question i would like to ask everyone, i apologize for the crude nature, if you believe we should refund the police, would you please raise your hand. Wonderful that here we are [indiscernible] i did not see anyone to raise their hand, certainly not the republican witnesses. [indiscernible] to go throughng and see where that sentiment may have been reflected. Here are tweets from our two Congressional Colleagues supporting black visions minnesota. And heres that same group that my Congressional Colleagues are raising money or saying we should and the police. And here is same organization retreating rebels come, abolish the police. Heres the same group saying that instead of we need therapists, doctors, and street medics. In your experience, every time someone called 911, would arabist or a medic sufficient or sometimes to people need cops . I dont know how a medic subject whond arm was assaulting his wife, im not sure how that would be of value. Here is the same group saying we need lasers to disorient surveillance cameras and water balloons will with milk to throw people. This is the organization that my Congressional Colleagues are raising money to support. If we can go to the next one. And that same organization, that multiple members of congress are supporting saying it not enough to only abolish police or prisons, we need to abolish ice, the military, the states, the borders. This is what our colleagues are raising money for. Its not just any member of congress, exactly one of our treasured colleagues on the judiciary committee, the gentlelady from washington raising money for the same organization. Miss Underwood Jacobs, your brother is somebody who was part of this Law Enforcement community when he gave his life. When you learned that my colleagues in congress are raising money for an organization that promotes defunding the police, destroying our borders, deep ending our military and taking apart the state, how does that make you feel . I actually find that conduct deplorable. We elect officials to represent everyone and the idea to have our communities without protection and safety is wrong. My response to that would be people to get out and vote and get the right person in office to ensure that we feel protected and our children feel protected. I appreciate that greatly. Mr. Floyd, i appreciate your calls not only today but in the direct aftermath of your brothers killing. You showed grace, and care for your fellow americans. I dont know if everybody is religious, but i do believe god is working through you to call us together. And finally i wanted to thank miss asked for the ledges legislationr the she has introduced. While i think we can finetune elements of that we dont under the police and make communities less safe, i dont think theres a legitimate defense of chokeholds or lynching or bad cops that get shuttled around and you can count on republican cooperation as we hone these ideas and hope lay past them and get them to the president s desk area desk. Ms. Lofgren . Chairman. Ou mr. What a transformational week this has been since the murder of mr. Floyd. Im grateful to my constituents and those around the country who have marched peacefully to raise the issue of justice in our country. I am grateful for the Congressional Black Caucus and you mr. Chairman, for your work in putting this bill together. I think it is important to say at the outset what this hearing is about and what its not about. , and how wehis bill can improve the state of policing in the United States. I have heard several people talk about funding for Law Enforcement. We did that when we passed the heroes act. We provided funds for local governments to address issues in their communities, whether its and ther Public Safety, local communities organize their Public Safety response. Not the federal government. But when there are police, we want to make sure that those police operate in a legal way, that does not use violence against people who pose no violent threats. Thats why i would like to ask if these two questions could be addressed. We have incorporated the peace bill, outlining when the use of deadly force is appropriate. That, coupled with the new ,tandard for unwillfulness which would provide accountability, is my question to you. With those measures help prevent violence against people who are not posing a violent threat . I welcome the opportunity to talk about the funding issue. Let me answer the question you have asked. What is the principal problem his we have found in longstanding systemic issue of Police Violence against unarmed africanamericans the inability to hold officers facing misconduct accountable. This is not just about the individual officers, which some refer to as a bad apple. This is about a system of existtability that must if Police Officers are to understand that they cannot engage in certain kinds of conduct. Unfortunately, all of the legal tools that are available to us to hold officers accountable has been weakened or lack the position of strength and language to allow us to use those. So strengthening the language of the federal criminal statute which does not require such a High Standard to prove intent of the officer conduct is critical. Adding recklessness into that provision is vitally important. On thesuggested earlier civil side is vitally important, in removing that to ensure that officers can be held accountable. Ive spoken to many Police Officers about the culture of immunity around brutality. They know, just as anyone who hasnt been that has been in the system knows, whether they are lawyers, doctors, these officers, that accountability is critical to influencing behavior. Unfortunately, our legal system has failed in providing that accountability. So we need to go into the statutes where the language is not strong, or has been interpreted in such a way that it removes the power of the statute and put the tools back into the hands of the department of justice, private attorneys, and civil rights attorneys to hold accountables to hold officers accountable. Thank you. My time is nearly expired. I would just like to say that for many years, africanamericans have been mistreated in many cases and in many communities by Law Enforcement. The multiethnic broad and peaceful protest that has arisen around the country, which has been met with violence has opened the eyes of americans across the United States about the need for reform. I think this is an important step forward. Thank you mr. Chairman, i yield back. The gentlelady yields back. Thank you mr. Chairman. When in the tv on turned the tv on the day after memorial day and saw the brutal murder of george floyd, it made me sick. Depravity that was exhibited there burned in my soul. Floyd, like to say, mr. Not only am i personally sad and express my condolences to you and your family, but the pain of your brother, i think has become the pain of america. After your brother died, there were a lot of people who theirmately exercised constitutional line to peacefully protest. There are some who came in who did not want to peacefully protest and there was a result of riots, arson, burning, people, protesters and Police Became injured. That, in my opinion, ended up attempting to destroy the legacy of your brother. And the people who did decide to raise mayhem are going to have to account for that sooner or later, whether its in a court of law or elsewhere. But i think we have to recognize one thing. And we have heard about this from some of the written the witnesses. There are good cops and bad cops. If the police end up being defunded, which i think would be a horrible idea lets look at what the consequence will be. First, the consequence will be if there are no police there will be vigilantism. And there will probably be more racism if people take the law into their own hands than if they relied on the police to investigate crimes and protect the public. The second thing is that it will hurt the good cops. 99 of the people who serve in Law Enforcement and put their lives on the line every day of the year. Of the year are good cops. They want to enforce the law. They dont want to harm anyone. They know that their job is to protect the public. These are the cops that if money were taken away, they would end up losing their job or not getting pay raises or even getting takeout pay cats. That would be a travesty of justice. Having said that. I want to turn to my democratic colleagues. A lot of the police union hasvity that we have seen been to protect bad cops. Thisolice unions in country, and my democratic colleagues have more friends in those unions that we republicans do . Republicans do. Are going to have to step up to the plate and be cooperative with communities and getting rid of the bad cops. I have heard that George Floyds assailant had 16 allegations of misconduct against him. Why was he still on the force . Invitation for more misconduct. And unfortunately, mr. Floyd, your brother ended up in the am of that. That as the debate goes on, we have speedier resolutions of getting rid of bad cops. Havingothing wrong with a bad cop database. But having a database is not going to get somebody fired who ought to be fired. The sooner we get the bad cops off the force, the sooner there will no longer there will no longer be bad apples to spoil the whole barrel. I look forward to working with all of you. But you guys on the other of the aisle are going to have to be very proactive in telling Police Unions that its in their interest and the interest of the vast majority of their membership to get rid of bad cops. I yield back. Gentleman yields back. Ms. Jackson lee . Thank you mr. Chairman for the leadership, and the leadership of this committee. And of course the Congressional Black Caucus,. My very deep sympathy miss jacobs, to you. Nobody should die on the streets of this nation. We thank you for your brothers service. Family andk to my constituents from houston, to let you know that george floyd, your big brother, should not have died on the streets of minneapolis. He did not deserve to die. He was an innocent person. And the eight minutes and 46 seconds that we knelt to reflect was so painfully long that the stain and the impact will be in our souls forever. You have to carry this in your heart. So i think today, the good news lawhat the george floyd trust and integrity bill, the name is already incorporated and the justice and policing act is a legislative reconstruct to do what you have asked us to do. To do what those who are on the streets who are young, black, brown, white, asian, crying out. We need to hear them. I want to say that i have heard them. If you would, there are many things you have said. I believe in harmony. But do you believe that race impacted what happened to your brother . , ibelieve yes maam believe that. George, wherever he goes, he impacts a place. He such a gentle giant. So at that club mr. Shaaban ked at mr. Shaaban chauvin work tim, works there, kill him just because he did not like him. It would have to be something to do with racism. We must get rid of the stain of race. There is an emphasis on discerning what Excessive Force is, chief, if you could emphasize the importance of having standards and accreditation of the huge numbers of Police Departments very quickly for us. Thank you, congresswoman. We have 18,000 Police Departments in this nation, with 18,000 sets of rules, policies, and regulations. 18,000 levels of accountability. Once well you that discussed this as a group that we absolutely have to have National Standards. Training regiments. And oversight. To be part ofd that conversation and we look for to the conversation. You have mr. Crump, seen a lot of these cases. Accountable,e taking away this barrier of qualified immunity, but additionally getting back to Consent Decrees. If you can quickly respond to that, i have a question for mr. Butler. Let me thank you for being there from the litany of names, including eric garner and Trayvon Martin we have been together and there was a long list i am not ignoring. Michael brown, but thank you very much. Butler thank you for your leadership. Breeds impunity. Accountability. It allows for all of those names, to keep adding up, adding up. Need to attack this like an epidemic on black people, because that is what we see happening in our communities. This is about misconduct. We know there are good Police Officers, help us understand. How much of that staying permeates into policing when they go into the Africanamerican Community and deal with africanamerican men . Far too often, officers view themselves as warriors and it is though the communities they serve experience them as occupying forces. There has been so much attention to the pandemic and how we are going to find a treatment. For this epidemic of Police Violence, already have a treatment. President obamas commission on 21st Century Policing recommended commonsense reforms, many of which are contained in the justice act of 2020. We dont have to reinvent anything. We know exactly what to do to make Police Departments more accountable and transparent. The question is, will your colleagues have the will to implement these commonsense measures . Rep. Nadler the gentleladys time is expired. To make i look forward changing the bills name to George Floyds bill. I appreciate all of you being here. I know it is very difficult, especially for those of you who have lost loved ones. You have our deepest sympathy. As to all of those families that have lost loved ones in the aftermath. This is a serious issue. A comfort to as lot of us, especially those of us who are christians, to see the way in which you have carried yourself. You have asked for people to refrain from violence. We dont need it to lead to worse violence, but that was atrocious. It is just hard to watch the video and not feel great sympathy for your brother and you and your family. When we getce together and talk about potential solutions. Hopefully the majority will zero more input than the input we have had on the bill so far. But it also is important to look at different proposals. We have heard some say, on television, lets get rid of or defund the police rid of them. Some are saying, lets get rid of the qualified immunity that police have so they dont get sued by every Single Person they come in contact with. As a judge, i had judicial immunity. The thing is, it is a qualified immunity. It is not there if you are violating the law. That is as it should be. , as we look at solutions and it has been brought up by the Police Unions have defended bad apples. If you talk to police, if you know police, they know who the bad apples are. Most of them dont want to have anything to do with them. They dont want to be on patrol with them, they dont want to work with them. How do we get rid of them . I personally have seen where you have a bad apple at the top. Some whistleblower has retaliation against them and the unions have come in and appropriately defended them, but when it comes to eliminating qualified immunity, i have seen what happened with teachers. Or, bill to eliminate to create qualified immunity for teachers, educational immunity. The Teachers Group had never got on board. I was told it was because they make so much money selling Liability Insurance to their members. And im afraid it might be a cash cow for the unions, but that is not what this needs to be about. Let me just ask you, mr. Floyd, if somebody conspires to lynch somebody else, do you think it is in a 10 year maximum sentence would be appropriate . Mr. Floyd no. No. Rep. Gohmert you shaking your head. Mr. Floyd no. Rep. Gohmert i agree with you. Bobby rush, he is a fine man. A wonderful heart, goodhearted man. He had a bill that would make a life sentence, if you conspired to participate and i said, bobby, it should be a life sentence. Why is it now 10 year max . ,e said, i had a that life maximum sentence, but i was told if it was going to pass the house that had to be brought down to 10 years. I think that is an insult. I know the emmett till bill is part of this overall bill, but i would hope he would come together and say, 10 years for conspiring to lynch is not an adequate eczema punishment. Maybe it needs to be lower in a given case, but lets have life in their is a penalty. I would hope to see that. Chuck colson once said, our hope in america will not arrive on air force one. And pastor scott, i have a minute respect for you. Where is your hope for america . My hope for america is the lord jesus christ. I believe that our country was founded on christian principles. That we have invoked the name of god and i believe the hand of god was upon this nation in its founding. Let me say this. When i saw the video of george floyd. Rep. Nadler the time of the member has inspired expired. Rep. Gohmert i guess we will have to have you do it by video. Mike. Adler your 7120 contains a change of qualified immunity. That is important and good. It is an important parts of several rights legislation. Civil rights legislation. The employers have to be responsible as well. Have the a bill to relationship with the employer and make part of that reform, that superior will apply to 1983 Civil Rights Actions. Esther crump, in your experience what having a respondent superior for with an employer effective in seeing that the conduct that was improper change . Mr. Crump absolutely. I think qualified immunity, as i said earlier, allows police to act with impunity. Seeink there is a reason we lack man, mostly, but also black women being killed by police over and over again and nobody ever being held accountable. Or civil. O criminal this qualified immunity, almost as if we are condoning, almost as if black lives dont matter. That is why, hopefully with this moment, you can do something to change that. Thank you, sir. Bill is at of this Different Forum for judging Police Misconduct. An independent prosecutor to determine if a Law Enforcement officer may have violated the law. Youve been a mayor of a major city. The newed clean up orleans Police Department and that was a tough thing to do. A provision,el which we have got in this bill, to have an independent prosecutor would help restore confidence in the public . Think it is an essential element. The relationship between the normal prosecutor, whether it is a states attorney, a District Attorney at the local level and the Police Department is a hand in glove relationship. Friendships are developed a working relationship is developed and it becomes difficult for local prosecutors to investigate and bring charges against Police Departments. Or Police Officers. In the federal system you will find, sometimes the same thing. Where a United States attorney may work closely with the fbi, they work closely with local Law Enforcement on joint task forces to ferret out crime. Forso think it would allow there to be expertise, teams of investigators that understand these cases. It is an idea whose time has come. The record, unfortunately, has been, whether in ferguson with prosecutor mccullough, whether it is been in the eric garner case with the Staten Island District Attorney and you could cite numerous examples of instances where these local prosecutors cannot ring themselves to bring charges, even when the evidence is clear. I think this is a reform whose time has come. I think it is a reform that should not be difficult for people to agree to. Vast think it would be a improvement over the status quo. Rep. Cohen thank you, sir. You also have Police Unions making endorsements. They endorse the da or dont endorse the da and ma contributions. While there is the hand in glove relationship, and witnesses, and a lot of former officers and the investigators for the da. Mr. Morial you are absolutely right. That working relationship is so substantial. Had cohen another bill i that i worked with lacy clay on is, the requirement of reportage of deadly force incidents. It would help me now i tried to do some research myself. Egregious civil rights cases i know of are ones where white officers killed black citizens unlawfully. , shootings,d whatever. Other than st. Paul, minnesota, i did not see any instances where black officers were alleged to do the exact same type of thing. Is it because we dont have statistics or is that something that says about a systemic racism . Mr. Morial we had instances in new orleans were black officers killed black citizens. I can think of an instance where a black officer killed i cant think of an instance. One instance where a black officer killed a white citizen. Rep. Cohen where those lawful actions . Mr. Morial no, not lawful at all. There were acts of misconduct and brutality. There is a great database the Washington Post has that over the last five years can give you chapter and verse on all killings of citizens by police. Member yieldshe back. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Jacobs, itnd ms. Took tremendous courage for both of you to come here today you are still grieving. I hope we can honor their memory by enacting meaningful reforms that prevent future senseless acts of violence and begin a healing process that makes us a stronger, more unified nation. I also want to think the other witnesses for appearing and helping us to determine what changes are to be made. Thatst enact reforms ensure accountability for Police Misconduct, not defund or dismantle Police Departments. I represent the first Congressional District of ohio includes cincinnati. Nearly two decades ago in 2001 i young man named Timothy Thomas was shot you Police Officer in the over the rhine neighborhood. Following protests and civil unrest, including writing ri oting city and federal officials entered into a collaborative agreement with the goal of creating a positive relationship between the cincinnati Police Department and the neighborhoods they serve. Occur the agreement involved everyone putting aside their political agendas and working together. What did the collaborative agreement do . It addressed use of force situations, called for deescalation training for the police, body cameras, and formed a citizen complaint authority, among other things. Once the framework was in place, ike dewine, rob portman, and worked closely together to secure the federal funding needed to implement its provisions. Results have not been perfect, but we have seen a dramatic improvement in cincinnatipolice community relations. Arrests and serious crimes have decreased. Excessive use of force by police has also decreased. As has violence against Police Officers. Most importantly, when problems arise they are handled in a predominantly civil, respectful manner due to years of cooperation and honest communication between the police and our communities. Given the success we have had in cincinnati, perhaps the collaborative agreement could be the starting point for other cities across the country who need to repair relations. The process required to craft such an agreement can lead to better communication, understanding, and if undertaken seriously, greater respect between all parties. Is this the direction you think American Cities ought to move towards if they want to improve policecommunity relations . I think it is a terrific idea. In Martin County where i live has made a concerted effort to do outreach before there was a problem. Those collaborations can and do work. The problem i see during my experience as a Police Officer back in the late 90s is, you can develop all of the relationships you want and they can be productive and friendly. But if they become omnidirectional one way, not omnidirectional. You not going to get anywhere. People are afraid to go to those contacts that they have made an established relationship with because the local drug dealer has them under constant threat and house arrest. Theyre going to get nothing out of that. Let me be clear. It is a terrific idea. There is nothing but positive externalities to be generated. A you cant establish framework of security, it is not going to be a bidirectional relationship. Citizens have to be able to come forward knowing they are not going to be attacked later on or retaliated against. Rep. Chabot thank you very much. Let me conclude with this. We need to find a better way to interact as a society. To work with each other and have the police and communities that they work with Work Together and talk. We need to put aside our differences and listen to each other. And focus on those things that unite us, rather than divide us. Finally, we owe it to our grandchildren,r to the future of this nation, to dedicate ourselves to the principle that all men and all women are created equal. Again, i want to thank miss underwoodjacobs and mr. Floyd for being here today and all of the witnesses. Hopefully we can have both parties working together to accomplish something here and not blame the other side. Lets hope we can do that. Thank you very much. I yelled back. Rep. Nadler the gentleman yelled back. Let me simply note that as members ask questions of remote witnesses, you should mute your mike while the witness answers remotely. Mr. Johnson. Your mic. Holding thisfor hearing and i think the witnesses for being here to help us forge a new path forward. The path to a place where black men and women cannot be murdered with impunity by those sworn to protect them. We grieve know that with you on the loss of your brother and my condolences go to you and your entire family. I offererwoodjacobs, my sincere condolences to you and your family on the loss of your brother. Mayor morreale, we have seen repeated instances where black people often unarmed have been killed by Police Officer a Police Officer and the death results in a use investigation. That investigation is often conducted by the Law Enforcement agency that employs the officer who used the deadly force. That is traditionally the way it works. Rep. Johnson professor butler, we have witnessed these use of force investigations being overseen by the local District Attorney, works handinhand, day after day, year after year the same officer and agency that employs the officer who used deadly force. Isnt that correct . Seenney crump, we have time and again the investigation becomes long and drawn out and at some point, months or even years later, the local prosecutor takes the case before a secret grand jury and out of that grand jury usually comes what is called a no bill, which is a refusal to indict the officer, isnt that correct . Yes there yes or. Yes, sir. Rep. Johnson because the grand jurys are secret the public never learns isnt that correct . Just like the grand jury procedure in Staten Island, we have no idea why that grand jury did not indict that officer for murder. Rep. Johnson it becomes just another justified killing of a black person by police in america. Wouldnt it be fair if the investigation were undertaken by an independent Police Agency . I think important. It would also give Community Members more faith in their legal system if there was an independent investigator. Rep. Johnson wouldnt it be better for the use of force be overseen by an independent prosecutor . Without question. Rep. Johnson professor butler, wouldnt it expire Public Confidence that the law require transparency in the investigation and that the results of the independent investigation be made available to the citizenry within a reasonable period of time, but like in thes later Michael Brown case . Yes, congressman. When an officer dishonors her badge, she should receive the same process as any other criminal. Rep. Johnson attorney i4, do you believe that the justice act should policing withhold funding when the states nothich they operate do require independent Deadly Force Investigations overseen by an independent prosecutor and Police Agency in police use of force deadly use of force investigations . There needs to be an entire over for overhaul for the funding, from the department of justice to local Police Departments. The federal rights act of 1964 [indiscernible] there are independent investigations. Rep. Johnson thank you. Deck, any Police Officers are protected from being questioned and investigations because of coolingoff periods mandated under state law, like in minnesota or under labor contracts negotiated by Police Unions. Prohibitff periods investigators from interviewing officers sometimes as long as 10 days after an incident. They give Police Officers a chance to learn the facts uncovered in the investigation and also to create their storylines, get their storylines straight. Periods can undermine misconduct, isnt that correct . That is correct. Rep. Johnson is a time for federal law to mandate restrictions on coolingoff periods as has been mandated by the department of justice to sink Consent Decrees in seattle, albuquerque, and portland . The Justice Department specifically put those provisions into consent increase because they were a problem, only in individual investigations, but undermined the communities faith in the fairness of an investigation with setting up two different sets of rules. Rep. Nadler gentlemens time is expired. Coming together today, i am reminded everything this committee has done. What the scripture is telling us is, we have been confronted with the problem. The question is, how do we deal with it . Concerning is, as i see this today from esther floyd, the loss and realness in your body language and your voice. The pain of a nation coming to grips with conflicting issues and values, wanting a safe and Civil Society in which all of us we knowg in a way society doesnt. When you see your loved one murdered. When you find out your loved one murdered, and a time in which we are all struggling. It is not surprising to this committee, that it is unfortunate because in the Previous Congress we had a Police Working group in which we went to houston. Chief acevedo was there. We had a good couple of days of meetings. We went to detroit. We went to atlanta. We were beginning these conversations, we didnt continue. When this new congress set in, we didnt do anything. And now we are here again, faced with a crisis of the moment. Unfortunately, lives by this decree. Put it off until we have to have a hearing, and we mourn the loss of the things most precious to us. My question is, what can we do . Ms. Jacobs, he said communities and jobs. Of a lawe who is a sun enforcement officer, i sympathize. One of the most grievous staves of my fathers memory is when one of his own did something horribly wrong and they took him to prison. I remember himd being down. He said, everybody thinks i did. He said, weve got to get rid of that. But what have we done . There are things we can do to help our immunities. This Community Came together on the first step act. Sentencing reform, working to make a difference in our communities. To take the president who signed that, that is what i committee together can do. Weve not done that here. Cummings onh elijah the fair chance act. Givingr chance act was criminals a fair shot at applying for jobs, because we uncheck to the box. Lets see if they can try a new chance in life. It is about making our communities whole again, yet there are things in this bill we can all agree on. There are things i wish we would take a little more time with. Have had tasks forests taskforces. That looked at how we deal with our prison population. A solicitor from my hometown was a part of that. This is a time to find good answers without unintended consequences. Things about this that concern you . Of theu look at some issues around qualified immunity, some of the micromanagement in this bill, what concerns you . Mr. Bongino as the great tomasello says, its not what you do, its asking, and then what . There are serious issues with qualified immunity. There is no question about that. We are in agreement. If you were to repeal qualified immunity, have you considered the, and then what . Have you considered the fact that Police Officers legal bills will be so oppressive that you wont have Police Officers . Have you considered the fact that some of these officers, out of fear of the Litigious Society we live in, will now be afraid . O go and do their jobs has anybody asked that question or are we just guessing that off to create an interesting soundbite . Qualified immunity has issues. You can work around the edges, but the margins matter. Rep. Collins hope we are bringing up is not an issue we dont need to discuss. When we were discussing with our Police Working group, i appreciate what you said, it has to go both ways. Here, and ied appreciate that concern, because this is heading to where i know it always had. This is the hearing, next week we mark up a bill, and we hope the senate does something, and we go back and forth. My hope is we get this right. We did it before. Lets make it happen again and take the comments on both sides. We can work on this. Ive done it before. This committee has a history of working together. Lets get with the president and senate and make a difference so that lives are valued. Rep. Nadler the time of the gentlemen has expired. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thanks for all of our witnesses. Mr. Underwoodjacobs, im sorry for your loss. As to floyd, i am sorry for your loss. We are here today because of the growing list of black americans whose lives were taken from us prematurely at the hands of police. It is why we are here. George floyd is the latest. Bland, taylor, sandra philando castile, Michael Brown, tamir rice, eric garner, and far too many others. We are here today to keep this list from getting one name longer. In this moment, we must dedicate and rededicate ourselves to working toward a more just and inclusive country. And disregard for human life is what people were sickened by when they saw that awful video. Manyact that so representing the true diversity of our country led by young people in the face of a pandemic to speak out to others for others shows just how tired our nation, all of us are. Of seeing black person after black person killed by the police. The thousands of Peaceful Protesters across this nation deserve our attention, deserve action. Is justice in policing act reform that tackles the scourge of police that has plagued communities of color. He tallies that undermine the invaluable contributions of the honorable Law Enforcement officers who are just as heartsick as the rest of us. What we saw in the video of George Floyds order with the complete indifference to pain. Pain,oyd was experiencing and it was indifference to that human suffering, and difference to a death taking place in the plain view, the indifference was cultivated by a culture without consequences. That is why we must provide accountability. We need better Data Collection of least misconduct. We need fair and thorough investigations by civil rights division. It starts with giving them subpoena power to investigate allegations of Police Misconduct. We need to know Police Officers that violate the civil rights of black americans can be held accountable in a court of law. For Breonna Taylor, who was shot inside her home while the suspects were in Police Custody, we need to and no knock warrants. Or sandra bland, found that three days after being stopped for a minor traffic violation, and for philando castile, who was shot during a traffic stop, we need to require Police Officers to wear body cameras. A child who was shot by police while playing in a park the toy gun, we need to help communities perform Public Safety and change the culture of Law Enforcement. Yourric garner yes, for mother george we need to outlaw joe calls. The justice in policing act does all of this. It will provide accountability. For our witnesses, i would like to focus on what happens when troubled officers moved to another. A system where Police Officers avoid sanctions by moving jobs. We dont accept this for doctors who care for us. We dont accept this for lawyers who defend us. We should not accept this for officers to protect us. Have with respect to tamir rices killing by an who lost his previous and was nearby suburb deemed unfit for duty. What would a newly imagined registry that were wire the Law Enforcement agency to report the officers fitness look like in that scenario . If there was a registry of the kind the justice in policing act would recommend, would have a National Registry of all Law Enforcement agents that would record misconduct complaints, disciplined termination reference, it would be conditioned Law Enforcement agencies would need to put those inputs in an order ticket sums and federal funding. In the case of tamir rice, however tell you and many of the cases i remember civil rights prosecutors upset that they did not have access to that kind of information not only for prosecutions, but also chief acevedo spoke to this earlier, about the importance for chiefs to have that kind of Information Available in making hiring decisions. This is our civil rights moment. I pray our committee and body will rise to meet that moment. Rep. Nadler the time of the gentlemen has expired. Thank you, mr. Chairman. George floyds death was senseless and tragic. I grieve for the floyd family. My heart goes out to the family of Patrick Underwood and i think of you for being here. There are a few officers who are attracted to the uniform for the wrong reasons. We want the authority of carrying a badge and gun but cant handle the responsibility. Cops are an extremely small percentage of the Police Officers in this country. There is another side of the story. Terminals prosecuted working closely with Police Officers. I convicted some officers. I was also at the bedside of officers after they had been shot. Ive attended funerals for officers killed. Ive been in the hospital trying to comfort of my employees who learned moments before of the death of her husband, a sheriffs deputy killed in the line of duty. Dont blame the police. It takes a special kind of courage to protect those who cannot protect himself, care for their community so much they are willing to risk their lives to save others. When there is gun violence, conflict, a few brave men and women wearing blue uniforms run toward the danger, while others run away. The police, because they did not create the policies that caused crime. We know the causes of crime. The people watching this hearing no. We commit a grave injustice to those who have died at the hands of police and those who have died at the hands of violent criminals if we dont deal with the root causes of crime. A comprehensive will, as was discussed earlier, must record highs the societal impact of singleparent families. Of substance abuse, of Mental Health issues, and of transnational banks. Gangs. Handcuffing the police has its consequences. After the death of freddie gray, the police were restricted by the department of justice. Alone, the month after six officers were charged for crimes, a jury found they did not commit, baltimore saw 43 homicides. The citys deadliest month in 40 years. A New York Times investigation with baltimore ended 2015 242 homicides. A 62 increase from 2014. Let me repeat that. After Baltimore Police were prevented from doing their jobs, the city suffered a 62 increase in homicides. There are also indirect consequences. In 2017 baltimore had 692 opioid deaths. Chicago recently saw its most violent day in six decades, 18 people were killed on may 31. While police were responding to arrive downtown, residents of chicago saw what happens when police are absent from the neighborhoods. To achieve justice for all, we should support investing in Police Protection. Agree to empower good Police Officers to continue to protect and serve. Everyone deserves to be safe and secure. In their home, on their way to work, walking to school, or throwing a ball in the park. Dont blame the police for our down of society. They are doing their best. No bongino, your thoughts . Mr. Bongino i read an interesting oped. They compared and contrasted parts of the country. That voted for barack obama was largely innercity. Failed, and what is interesting as it wasnt the voting patterns. It was the deeper patterns you are talking about. Broken families. Drug use. Lacks Law Enforcement. Im notnore that suggesting accountability for police and reforms, i wouldnt be here if i did not believe that but if we are going to ignore the societal problems and all of the degradation of the culture and all of that and scapegoat the police, you will get nothing out of this hearing. He wont see one active change. You may get some sound bites, he may get some votes, but you are not going to see a darn thing. Rep. Buck what im hearing you say is it will be counterproductive . Mr. Bongino it will absolutely be counterproductive. Rep. Nadler the gentlemens time has expired. Thank you mr. Chair. There are couple things i want to say. It was said in the Opening Statement that the mayor of los angeles defunded department. I wanted to make note that he absolutely did not. He did reduce the budget and he shifted the funds to deal with some of the real issues that Police Departments always complain about. How do they address some of societys problems . He shifted the funding for that reason. I also wanted to follow up with mr. Moreal. I wanted to point out that one of the reasons you were talking about lynching is because in many of those cases, lawenforcement officers will involved in the direct lynching, either getting the person, killing the person, etc. Like that was the relationship. I also wanted to talk about qualified immunity and ask esther crump if he would respond to that. I believe one of my colleagues was mentioning, it is qualified, it is not absolute. Why would we need to change that . We crump too often what have seen in courtrooms when police have killed africanamericans that the courts have interpreted this qualified immunity to almost give complete impunity to the Police Officers. That is why nobody is every ever held accountable. When you think of those lists of names we often recite to make sure that people know their life mattered. ,f there is no accountability it will keep happening and we pray that george floyd is the last one. If this great body does not act, it is going to happen again. I predict it is going to happen in the next 30 days. Rep. Bass what about some of the other professions that have this . People have raised concern about Child Welfare workers or other people that have qualified immunity. Mr. Crump it only seems to be the police that have this great authority, this power we have given them. And it goes unchecked. , you areer profession kept in check by the laws that govern this, but the courts have, i believe, unconstitutionally given police this absolute, blanket immunity. Especially when it comes to black and brown people being killed. You can count on one hand the people who go to jail for killing black people, id of all of those thousands of people since Trayvon Martin was killed. I think it was almost 1300. You can literally count, specifically, the number of times police have actually went to jail. And it is horrific. Mr. Marielle, having served as a mayor i heard you say you are one of the few folks around who have been involved in addressing this issue with the Police Department. So, i orchestrated a highly successful reform of a very broken Police Department. A city that had 500 murders a year. Inity that led the nation the number of civil rights complaints. Two police has officers on death row. We had to completely rebuild the department. I said at the time that we were going to tear it down, brick by brick, and we were going to rebuild it brick by brick. In the end we had a nationally credited department. We took the murder rate down by 50 . We brought the civil rights complaints down to an infinitesimal number. We instituted communityoriented leasing policing. The idea that somehow if you hold Police Accountable, you are tying their hands fighting crime. Rep. Bass may be misscooped her could conclude on that. Gupta could conclude on that. Just a few weeks ago richard did aeld and joel wallman study that they released in may 2020. Fergusonevidence for spiking. Omicides there has been a lot of statements about that that were very concerning in the aftermath of freddie grays death. There had been no data actually collected and put out. This study is a really important offering that belies that notion. Whennotion that somehow you protest Racial Injustice that increases homicide rates in cities. This evidence says thats not true. Rep. Nadler the gentleladys time is expired. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Adequate words i can say to take away the pain of suffering across our country. Now is the time for understanding. Im committed to listening and learning. First, mr. Ford and the entire florida family and loved ones, i am deeply sorry for the loss of your brother, family member, and friend. Sayctions or words i can will ever make you whole again. Amase know how grateful i for your presence here today and i offer you my deepest condolences. Underwoodjacobs, your brother was probably protecting the community he loved. And i am deeply sorry for your loss as well. Accept my both will heartfelt grease grief. To all of the families, like the floyds and the underwoods, who have had to suffer the tragedy and sorrow of losing a loved one due to needless violence, i also need to add my deep condolences. Today is a day to set our politics aside and focus on sound policy for our country. Havel of the witnesses, i reviewed your testimony. I have heard your verbal testimony. And i have listened to you answer questions from my colleagues. I want you to know that i am listening and im learning and i hear you. I stand ready, and im hopeful, i am hopeful we can find Bipartisan Solutions and policies. Missloyd, and underwoodjacobs, i would like to give each of you the remainder of my time to address the committee. Mr. Floyd sitting here, coming howry to tell you all about i want justice for my brother, i just think about that video over and over again. It felt like eight hours and 46 minutes. My brother plead for his life, watching that officer put his knee on his neck. Just, everyday just looking at him. Being anywhere, that is all people talk about. The rest of my life, that is all i ever see. Video. Y looking at the kids have to watch the video. His kids had to watch the video. It just hurt. For a lot of people. Pain. Of my family, they just cry, cry everyday and ask, why . Why . He pleaded for his life. He said he couldnt breathe. Nobody cared. Nobody. People pleaded for him. They still didnt care. Justice has to be served. Those officers, they have to be convicted. Anybody with a heart, they know that is wrong. You dont do that to a human being. You dont even do that to an animal. His life mattered. Lives matter. Black lives matter. , wish i could get him back. Officers, they get to live. Rep. Roby we grieve with you and appreciate your courage to be here with us today. Time is expired, but miss may miss underwoodjacobs address the committee as well . Rep. Nadler by all means. Ms. Underwoodjacobs thank you very much. I have to say that i am heartbroken. I didnt get a chance to say goodbye to my brother either before he was killed. I am also heartbroken for all of the other people that are in this Country Living every single unsafe just to drive to the store. I also have had the talk with my sun. Today at someone opposite ends of the spectrum, but there is so much commonality amongst the bus the both of us. The heartbreak is an explainable because that is hard to articulate when your entire world has been turned upside down. Know, when i think about all of this, is my brother wore a uniform. He wore that uniform proudly. Wondering, where is the officerfor a fallen that also happens to be africanamerican . So, as i am sitting here and listening to all of you and us, i truly hope that you take your soitions, your offices seriously that you want to Work Together and collaborate, because if you cant get it right, there is no hope for the rest of us. So, when you convene and talk through everything that is going noti hope that we are just people on paper, but the fact you can be able to see our faces and feel our pain and feel it enough that you want to make change for all of the citizens of the United States of america. Rep. Roby again, we grieve with you and thank you very much for your courage to be here with us today. I yelled back. Rep. Nadler the gentlelady yields back. Mr. Richman. Richmond very rarely in at a loss of words. Misst to start with you underwoodjacobs. You have my condolences, my sympathy, and my prayers. Unfortunately, this was the hearing you were invited to. You are not invited to the hearing square hearings where we talk about our Law Enforcement officers that put on blue and black everyday. Moreact that we try to get vests for Police Officers. The fact we wanted to fight sovereign citizens that have killed or Police Officers than anybody else, and the other side father. But they invited you, and i want you to know that we have fought for increased Survivor Benefits for the families of officers and we respect those who serve our communities. Then, mr. Floyd, let me just tell you, i met with you in houston, the remarkable thing is you all asked for two things, neither of which was for you. Justice for george. And a just society. That is why we are here today. Unfortunate part of this process is, we speak and leave. Politiciansd it was has messed up the family unit in america. That could somewhat feature. But for him, how do you ignore the white mans knee on the neck of like people for 401 years and act like that has nothing to do with where we are . Part of the reason i am so encouraged today is more people are recognizing that now. And the systematic racism and oppression that has existed that we are now coming together to establish a solution. It was dr. King in his letter from a birmingham jail that he responded to his critics for the first time. Because he said that he would assume they were people of goodwill, with sincere concerns. Over my better judgment i will assume the other side is people of goodwill and sincere concern in some of these arguments, why we cant or shouldnt pass this bill. But the other part i want you to understand is, the outrage that i have. 1988 1991 when the movie boys came out. The last line in the movie said, either they dont know, they dont share, or they dont care what happens in the hood. If you didnt know, now you know. The Peaceful Protesters are showing you what is happening. But eo footage is showing us what is happening. Then you go to the last line and the question is, do we care . I believe that this piece of legislation is a good piece of legislation that was the ball forward. It is easy to sit on the others and that perfection be the enemy of the good. Or just sit back with inertia and never move the ball forward. We have an obligation to the next generation of kids, to the minimum women walking the streets now to make sure we move the ball forward. You know, every once in a while we have tried it the other way. We are asking you to try our way this time. Lets pass in legislation. Lets hold the bad Police Officers accountable. And we always say, and apples. The saying is, enough bad apples spoil the bunch. Lets make sure that we are talking about it. Mr. Mayor, i know i used up all the ofith i was a beneficiary your reforms. You moved funding in ways i yield back. The disinvestment in those types of programs over the past 20 years, and some of it has happened in this congress, the elimination of a Summer Youth Employment program, the elimination of supports for noldren, baltimore city, Extracurricular Activities in schools. Fix policing with this and do other things to address other systemic issues. I moved to create a summer jobs program, because there was no money. For innercity kids that did not cost a dime that gave kids a chance to work at lsu dental school. Those made great differences. Aboutf this conversation quote unquote dont want to open a pandoras box. Defunding police is not just about defunding police, it is about investing in other things. If you are a middleclass parent in America Today, your kid wants to go to dance class, you pay. Karate, pay. Little league baseball, pay. Innercity kids, no opportunity of it is not provided by the public dollars. 1960s america, immigrants made up the mast the vast majority of American Cities and you had free recreation programs, free summer camps. Watch, somehow, someway, a lot of that has gone away. It is important to understand that this bill is about reforming policing, which is a pillar. There is a second additional discussion that needs to be had about how we do all the other things. I want to work with you all on that. But dont confuse the two. Respectfully, bad family situations did not kill george floyd. That is an outrage. Tois an absolute outrage think that a bad family i am tired of trying to change the issue when we have police , toality, Police Misconduct this rhetoric about bad family situations. And it needs to stop. I sit, i take it, i listen. But not at this moment. Not at this time lets fix policing in america. Lets focus on that. There is ample time to do other things. As i said earlier, it is a moral moment, a time we are called to act. On the others of this capital, there are two Office Buildings named for United States senators, both of whom have a legacy of what we are talking about today. Russell, a manb who led the filibuster against the antilynching law for decades. Other, average mckinley Everett Mckinley dirksen, a republican from illinois who provided the courage to help Lyndon Johnson as the Civil Rights Act of 19 some of pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I am struck today by a lot of the testimony and that we are hearing a lot of similar themes. It is a moral moment. One of the recurring themes we have heard many times this morning from members and witnesses is about the need to rebuild membership. One of the founders said, there are thousands hacking at the branches of people, no one striking at the root. We dont know each other anymore. That is kind of how society has evolved. We all agree on the objective, i think. But i think we need to drill down a little bit. Public policy is one thing but this is a hard issue, we all agree. Besttermine what the methods. I appreciate what he said this morning, we had a little sidebar over here. I wanted to ask your opinion on that because you mentioned that in your remarks about the need to build relationships. In your experiences and everything you have been doing, what are some ways we can do that with members of our communities and Law Enforcement officials . Thank you. I think we have to Work Together at the crux of the matter, it is a lack of trust, i believe, between communities of color and Law Enforcement, because we have to have transparency, which we have not had in the Police Killings of black people. One of the witnesses have said, you go to a secret grand jury hearing like eric garner, Michael Brown metoo mayor price, they come back after this secret grand jury and say, no indictment, we did not find evidence even though we all saw it with our eyes. So you have to have transparency and accountability. That is how you get to trust. It is about transparency, it is about training, and then termination. We have got to terminate police. We dont do it. We dont even fire them when they kill black people. To care. Ve got as representative richman said, do we care . Our actions do not construe that. We have to first get to the core, transparency, accountability, then maybe we can get to trust. We do see it from the other side. Complex,n industrial the school to prison pipeline. Likeont see convictions eric garner or any of these other cases. Johnson i appreciate those comments. And i think it is relationships even in the communities for you can get to Building Trust with Law Enforcement. It is our neighbors, too. I had this neighbor who had the idea to host ymca facilities in our community as a neutral forum where he would invite one black church and one white church, but everyone in the same facility, let them get to know together get to know each other and have fun together. It is really about being good americans and good neighbors. I hope we can get back to that. If mr. Davis is still with us, i am interested in his experience with doj, Community Policing services. I wonder if he could speak to that issue if he is still with us on the idea of building those relationships and Community Policing as a function of that. I am still here. Thank you for the question. I would say that the office has a great opportunity to do that, to facilitate charged to be able to identify best practices, Community Policing, how to engage in or grant program, incentivize best practices. Our hiring process. Thing, a keyy one to that is that there are over 16,000 individual Police Agencies in the country. Most of them are 25 officers or fewer. Without the help of the office or the federal government, it is hard to diffuse these kinds of trainings, information, best practices. The opportunity to [inaudible] , that shouldgoal be the goal today. Steppeday that we have away from a lot of the programs that we were offering at one point. Rep. Jeffries joe colds and other Police Tactic c hokeholds and other Police Tactics such as a need to the neck are inherently dangerous and suffer an unreasonable risk of Bodily Injury or death. That is why the justice in policing act will make such strangulation tactics unlawful pursuant to our nations civil rights laws. President davis of the national Law Enforcement executives criminalizing chokeholds and other tactics as a matter of law, is that correct . Does the Civil Rights Community support criminalizing chokeholds and other practice as a matter of criminal law . We do. There are departments around the country who have already banned them. This is about making this a National Standard. It. Jeffries mr. Butler, is fair to say that the neck should be off stent offlimits during encounters . Use techniques like neck restraints, it prevents blood and oxygen of going to the neck and brain, and causes great risk of death. Rep. Jeffries black lives matter, yet month after month, year after year, decade after decade, the list of tragedies continues to grow. Amadu diallo, dead. Eric garner, dead. Tamir rice, dead. Event smith, evette smith, dead. Stephon clark, dead. Taylor, dead. George floyd, dead. But, at times, police are able to show restraint under difficult circumstances, is that correct . Of course. Jameseffries in 2012, holmes entered a Movie Theater in colorado and open fire on an audience, killing 12 people and injuring 70. Arwas heavily armed with an 15, shotgun, and handgun, yet he was taken into Police Custody outside that very same Movie Theater without incident. James holmes is white, correct . I am not sure of his background. Rep. Jeffries he is white. 2014, dylan roof massacred nine black parishioners in charleston. Mr. Roof was heavily armed with a highpowered glock, 40, 45 caliber pistol, and 88 rounds. The police somehow arrested dylan roof without incident and even treated him to burger king. Bongino,gino mr. Dylan roof is white, is that correct . Mr. Bongino i dont see where you are going with this. Jeffries last year, in el cius, aexas, patrick cru shooting rampage, used an ak47 and was heavily armed. Yet, somehow, he was arrested without incident. Mr. Bond gino, Patrick Crusius was white, is that correct . Mr. Bongino i have no idea. I dont know his parentage. I dont know why youre making a racial rep. Jeffries reclaiming my time. Black lives matter, sir. Mr. Bongino all lives matter, sir. Rep. Jeffries professor butler, you have heavily armed mans murderers in places like aurora, charleston, and el paso. Somehow apprehended by police without incident. That is the point, sir. I arrested those people, you did not. Innocent, unarmed africanamericans are repeatedly killed in Police Encounter after Police Encounter. Say that the difference, which seems explicable, in police behavior, somehow relates at least in part to race . And in police practices, black lives do not have the same value that white lives have. Rep. Jeffries always simply one is for every Single Community regardless of race to be able to breathe the free air of liberty and justice for all. That is what the justice and policing act is all about. I yelled back. I yield back. Thank you, mr. Chairman. We are here because we recently suffered multiple failures of Law Enforcement, beginning with the killing of george floyd. He died because a rogue cop, who had multiple complaints for misconduct, was allowed to didin on a police force, as one of his accomplices. This has become an intolerable pattern in bigcity Police Forces. We need to ask how politically powerful Police Unions and the politicians they maintain an Office Protect the bullies in the system that inevitably lead to atrocities like this. The other failure was the decision to withhold Police Protection from their citizens by mayors and appointed Police Chiefs. That failure killed pat underwood, david dorn, and other victims in the ensuing riots. Tondoning police stations rioters, turning a blind eye to looting, arson, and mayhem all have an incendiary effect. Without Law Enforcement, there is no law. And without law, there is no civilization. An accounting of the death and destruction caused by these acts of dereliction have yet to be counted but it is going to be staggering. Chart aere today to path forward. I think we can look no father than sir robert peel, the father of modern Law Enforcement. When you read this, you realize how far we have drifted from these moorings. Central to our discussion is this seventh principal. To maintain at all times a relationship with the public that gets reality to the historic tradition that police are the public and that the public are the police. The police being on members of the public who are paid to give fulltime attention to duties that are incumbent on every citizen in the interest of Community Welfare and existence. How do we get back to these supposed . To these principles . I think there are many proposals raised in the house, the doctrine of qualified immunity, as it is currently applied, has no place in a nation ruled by laws. For every right, there must be a remedy. Qualified immunity prevents a remedy for those whose rights have been violated by officials holding a public trust. Coppplies as much iia rogue who targets people because of their race as it does to irs and Justice Department officials who target people on the base of their politics. Reforming qualified immunity simply holds Public Officials to the same standard as any other citizen exercising the same powers. Second, Police Records must be open to the public. It is a wellestablished principle that officials work for the public and the public has the right to know what they are doing with the authority the public has loaned them Police Departments should be able to dismiss bad officers without interference by the unions. By preventing apartments from acting on these, we destroy the very foundation of successful policing in a free society, public trust and accountability. Third, turning Police Departments into paramilitary organizations is antithetical to the sixth principle laid down, to use only the minimum possible force necessary to achieve an objective. Weapons made for a battlefield need to be limited to a battlefield. Warrants, theck invasion of a persons home is one of the most terrifying powers government addresses. Every free person in a society has a right to take arms against an intruder in their home. That means the intention of the police must be announced before the intrusion takes place. Areink these four reforms legitimate powers for the federal government to uphold Constitutional Rights of citizens. But it is not within our power to dictate training and procedures for every community in the country. Effective Law Enforcement is a community endeavor and every community has different needs and different circumstances which require different standards. Des areefitsall bromi at best ineffective and at worst dangerous. Dedicated, honest Police Officers, the vast majority of those who serve us, when they are attacked, degraded, demoralized, hamstrung, and withdrawn, those most at risk are the poor and defenseless who live and work in our inner cities. I yield back. Muchescobar thank you so mr. Chairman, and chairwoman, i am so grateful for this piece of legislation and for your leadership. This is Underwood Jacobs, i want you to know that we here and we feel and we see your pain, and we are praying for justice for you and your entire family as well. Our sincerest condolences. Thank you for being here. Mr. Floyd, thank you for your incredible courage. I cannot imagine the strength that it took to be here with us today, but you did it. I want you to know that, for those of us who are mothers, it tore us up to hear your brother call out for your mother. We heard him, and we hear you. And we are going to continue to fight for justice for as long as we can. People are marching in the streets all over this country and all over the world. Marchingfor justice, to force us to rise to this moment. It is our obligation and our duty to rise to this moment. Many of myd from colleagues on the others of the aisle their desire to work in a bipartisan nature on this bill and to achieve an outcome worthy of the American People who have. Ntrusted us in this moment my colleagues, for the remainder of this hearing, the markup next week, let us focus on what is in the bill, not what is not in the bill. I have heard a lot of conversations from this deus about from this dais issues being debated outside this room. Those debates are important, healthy, part of american democracy, but they are not in the bill. If we are truly going to come to a bipartisan agreement and provide for this country the justice it is seeking, lets focus on what is in the bill. Butler,er professor we have heard much about the disproportionate impact that Police Brutality has had on the Africanamerican Community. We have also heard much about the fact that, well, lets focus on family, focus on god. That, as autes country and as a government, we should be making investments in education, health care, community. Of fully coming to grips with what is happening in terms of race and Law Enforcement in this country, we know that unarmed black americans were five times as likely as unarmed white americans to be shot and killed by a Police Officer. To what do you attribute that fact . And your microphone, please. Legacy,er a congresswoman, of white supremacy, a legacy of slavery and jim crow segregation, and an evolution from the old jim crow to the new jim crow. Biases against people of color dont go away, they just take different forms. Rep. Escobar that is correct. Mr. Floyd, i want to ask you, as a black man in america, do you live in fear that you will one day be a target as well . Floyd yes, mama. Yes, maam. Every day i walk around, ask myself, am i next . I dont want to make anyone think i am doing wrong. And trying to live life have faith and hope everything comes out the right way. Basically thats it, just a black man just trying to go to work every day and go back home safely. Escobar thank you, mr. Floyd. If we are truly to come to an agreement on this legislation, we have to acknowledge the truth that is looking at us in the face every day in america. We have to rise to this occasion. We have to do justice. Gentlelady yields back. Lesko iko rep. Would like to point out something, when we started, mr. Floyd spoke first, i was very passionate, but then for some reason you did not have mr. Have miss is Underwood Jacob speak about the loss of her brother. I thought it was very disrespectful. I dont know if that is what you meant but i wanted to say that. I want to say i am sorry for your loss, mr. Floyd and for underwoodjacobs. Two black grandsons. I have not experienced the discrimination you have talked about but i certainly dont want them to be discriminated against. There is another thing going on here. I just want to read some tweets. This is very disturbing to me. Fallon, thee, brian executive director of demand justice and the former press secretary of Hillary Clintons campaign tweeted defund the police. On june 5, representative on omar tweeted, the minneapolis Police Department has proven themselves to be beyond reform. It is time to disband them and reimagine policing in minneapolis. Wemiah allison tweeted, are going to dismantle the minneapolis Police Department. The president of the Minneapolis Council said, we are going to dismantle the minneapolis Police Department. Colors,hat patrice cofounder of the black lives Matter Movement wants to see Police Forces abolished eventually. That he and the chairman of Public Safety or calling to disband our Police Department. I am a survivor of Domestic Violence from a previous marriage. I remember went my neighbors called the police. I dont know why, but i disputed, when police came to the door, i said, i am fine, nothing happened. If we disband, dismantle, defund, reduce funding, what is going to happen to the woman who calls out as a victim of Domestic Violence. What is going to happen to Response Time . I became a Police Officer. Because to be a doctor in a situation without rendering any further embarrassment to people in my family a Police Officer showed up and dissuaded a member of my family of doing something he had been doing. This person was not scared of anything, he was only scared of the police. I was about nine or 10. It was the only thing that brought peace to me that night. This defund the police abomination will lead to a catastrophe like you have never seen. I worked in a largely minority precinct, east brooklyn, it is a tough place to work. The only time i was ever physically attacked by someone was in a Domestic Violence situation. I have the utmost respect for social workers, medics, firemen. But when i walked into that house, make no mistake, that man and forgive me for not saying with youelt empathy for having gone through that. House, iman in that will never forget it. He was not going to be stopped, there was no negotiating. He was not going to be stopped from attacking his wife. There was a five or sixyearold cowering in the corner. I told the story recently on mye it is so tattooed brain i will never forget it. The guy was not going to be stopped. He did not care if we had guns. Do you think he will care if it is a social worker . I am not sure where this ridiculous absurdity of defunding the police came from but i did not come here with a partisan agenda. Including mischaracterizing my comments by mr. Morial. Not that the tragic death of mr. Floyd had anything to do with that. What about black families who are the subject of Domestic Violence. The guy i stopped hit me with an ironing board. The gentleladys time has expired. Rep. Jayapal thank you, mr. Chairman. My deepest condolences for your brothers death. It is one too many deaths that result from centuries old pervasive violence and antiblackness at the hands of the police. I promise you that we intend to honor george floyd with the most sweeping changes to policing this house is seen in recent memory. Banned chokeholds, no knock warrants, making lynching a federal crime, and investing in Community Models that make communities safe for all. We cannot bring him back but we can honor him with real change. I want to bring into this room and,ame of charlena lyles, with her, the many black women across the country who have lost their lives and their children. Three years ago, the seattle Police Department had responded to a call for miss lyles, who had been flagged as someone with Mental Health issues. Officers did know about her Mental Health issues. Yet, before attempting nonlethal methods of deescalation, they fired seven rounds, killing her in front of her children. Twoyearold son climbed onto her body and laid in her blood. It is not enough just to say black lives matter. We have to do the work to seamen to the essential principle to cement the principal. This is why we must pass the justice in policing act. Any amount of crisis training to teach officers how to interact with individuals with Vendor Health issues with Mental Health issues, is that sufficient in itself to overcome what we call the warrior mentality in Law Enforcement . If the culture of Law Enforcement is not shifted away from that warrior mentality, no other reforms would matter. Guardianship is the model that the Obama Commission recommended. If you are applying for a job as a warrior, you will have one resume in one group of skill sets. If you are applying for a job as a guardian, caretaker of your community, you have a different set of skills. Congresswomann lesko, thank you for sharing your story. I heard that story as a failure of policing. Upt if responders had shown who understand what your experience was like as a survivor, it is too often the case that survivors do not go to the police or shun the police because the police will not give them the service they need. Imagine if a guardian had shown up instead, what a difference that made. Rep. Jayapal chicago Police Department, in its eighth year under a Consent Decree, it Excessive Force Excessive Force mostly used against people of color and those chemically or physically impaired. Some changes have occurred. Eight years later, we have run into some roadblocks where reforms recommended by the Police Commission were ignored by city leaders manon inc. And deeply city leaders, not incorporated into police union contract. You talked about a phrase, culture eats policy for lunch. Can you explain what that means to you and what tools and this bill are most important . Think, in the success of any longterm reform effort or Consent Decree is where there is leadership and there is effort to sustain over time the leadership of policing. It does not happen overnight. It requires sustained commitment. I look at the justice in policing act and the provisions that are seeking to ensure accountability. When people feel like theyre Police Department connect with impunity, when Police Officers feel like there is no consequences on the others, the on the others, the culture of a Police Department becomes very difficult to change. A matter how many policies you change, how much you overhaul in terms of a policing manual, the culture piece is the thing that takes the longest amount of time to shift. Andequires constant persistent leadership at the top , and reflecting a system of policing that is much more guardian oriented than warrior. Right now, i think there is a hunger and communities around the country to recognize that people want other options in 11ir communities other than then call 911. The International Association of chiefs of Police Issued a statement recognizing the underinvestment in the kinds of social systems, housing, homelessness, education, and how that has been all placed at the feet of Police Officers. It needs to be a holistic evaluation of communities that have been saturated with a criminal justice response and under invested with resources for jobs and the like. [inaudible] as my time expired . Your time has expired. The gentlelady yields back. Mr. Jordan. Rep. Jordan a lot of important things have been said here today. Maybe the most important and frankly the most specific most succinct was a statement mr. Floyd earlier from a question from mr. Gates when he asked mr. Floyd to respond to something ms. Underwoodjacobs said during her testimony. He said, life is precious. George floyds life was precious. Pat underwoods life is precious. Our country, greatest country ever, started on that premise. The document that launched this experiment in liberty that we call america says, we are all endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. Liberty,se are life, and the pursuit of happiness. It is interesting to think of the order the founders placed the rights they chose to mention. Your goals of happiness if you dont first have freedom . And you can have and can you have liberty and freedom if you do not if the government does not protect your life . Do you agree with that statement, life is precious . Mr. Bongino absolutely. Rep. Jordan and you protected life as a new york city Police Officer every time you did your service, is that right . When you were in the secret service, you protected life. Mr. Bongino obama, president bush. Rep. Jordan when you protected that life, you risked your life, is that accurate . And officers do that every day. Every day. That is why you have been so strong in your language about this concept of defunding the police, abolishing the police, a policy proposal that is not consistent with the best statement made here today by George Floyds brother that says life is precious. I believe in your testimony earlier, you said, if police defunded, abolished, it is not some we are talking about human beings, officers who put on the uniforms and go protect our communities. It will put their lives at risk, wont it . Mr. Bongino no question. Importantly just as , it will put peoples lives at risk in the communities those Law Enforcement officers serve. Is that accurate . Mr. Bongino that is accurate. Anyone supporting this should take notes today to go to the many funerals of the thousands of black lives, hispanic lives, white lives that will be lost in the chaos that ensues. You should take note today to go to the sphere take an oath today to go to those funerals. You want to vote for it, you see the consequences of it. The streets will be chaos. Everyone will know what you did. Rep. Jordan lets protect life. Lets recognize exactly what mr. Floyd said, life is precious. Rep. Nadler mr. Swalwell. To ms. Alwell first, underwoodjacobs and mr. Floyd, my condolences. Ms. Underwoodjacobs, the bay area Law Enforcement Community Grieves with you. My younger brother was working the night he passed. We will work to find his killers. Aboutoyd, we know a lot what happened to your brother because of the citizens video. Lets say we did not have the video, just the report. In that report, a Statement Issued by the middle by the minneapolis Police Department, they say that after mr. Floyd got out, he physically resisted officers. You have watched that painful video. Did you ever see your brother resist officers . Mr. Floyd im too emotional right now to talk about that. Said thewell it also officers were able to get him into handcuffs and set he was suffering physical distress. Did you ever see that . Mr. Floyd we did not. The video, we saw him face down in handcuffs. Rep. Swalwell it said that at no time weapons were used at any time. You had a highly trained Police Officer using his knee. That kneeagree that was a weapon . Mr. Crump absolutely. Used for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Rep. Swalwell too often the decks are stacked against people of color because of statements that are falsely made, police statements, and put out to the public when there were no cameras. , do you believe that in the justice and policing act, by having bodycam requirements, a National Police department registry, will go a long way toward making sure we have no more false statements . Ms. Gupta i think the justice and policing act have a number of provisions very import to reforming policing in america, yes. Rep. Swalwell i was consulting with an africanamerican member of my Community Last week at a church. He said, i feel safe two times during the day. When i wake up in my own home from work come home to my own home. In between, i drive a nice car that i worked hard for. I often see Police Officers pull up behind me and run my license plate, then drive off. What was shocking about that statement was that was a Police Captain of one of our biggest Law Enforcement agencies in the bay area. Howe does not feel safe, can people who do not have the resources he has feel safe . I want to talk about Something Else you mentioned, mr. Floyd. We are here because individual tragedy and institutional tragedy continue to persist. You talked about the officers not listening to your brother. 2009, in oakland california, unarmed oscar grant laid on his stomach before an officer shot me in the back shot him in the back. His last words, you shot me. I have a fouryearold daughter. Garner, in a choke gaspingStaten Island, to say, i cant breathe. On mayother, mr. Floyd, 25, a Police Officer with his knee on his neck, as george floyd said, i cant breathe. I want my mama. I cant breathe. The officers on scene did not hear your brother. Because of the tragedy, the world is listening now. What do you want them to hear . Mr. Floyd i want them to stop hiring corrupted Police Officers. I know it is no way to figure out who is good and who is bad, but we have got to find a way because your heart has to be big if you are an officer. You cant just use the badge to be able to do what you want to do when you want to do it. You are supposed to serve and protect. I did not see anybody protecting and serving that day when my brother was on his chest, hands please,is back, please, please, i cant breathe. Age,wn man, 46 years of crying for his mom. It just hurts, just looking. All the time, people try to show it to you, figuring it out. They lynched my brother. That was a modernday lynching in broad daylight. Please getng please, off, he cant breathe. People were video recording it. Nobody cared. Nobody. Lost his life before eight minutes and 46 seconds. He went unconscious. His life was gone. They just dragged his body across that concrete. His lifeless body. Every day, i am going to have to live with that. My family is going to have to live with that. His kids are going to have to live with that. You just dont know. Weht now, i am happy that are getting one step closer to justice. The time being, i still need time to grieve with my family because i have not had that chance yet. Gentlemans the time has expired. I just want to say thank you to all the witnesses who came. Testified today. ,r. Floyd, ms. Underwoodjacobs it takes an incredible amount of courage to come here after losing a loved one. As leader mccarthy said earlier today, george and patrick will not be forgotten. Everyone in this room agrees who abusee officers their power must be how to cut must be held accountable to their crimes. Must agree that Police Officers choose their work because they want to protect their communities. They put themselves in harms way every day and do it to keep us and americans safe. How the selflessness of the Police Actually save lives. In 2018, 11 jewish worshipers were killed by a hateful, antisemitic madman at the tree of life synagogue in pittsburgh. Police ran into open gunfire. If it were not for their heroic efforts, the tragic loaf of lice the tragic loss of life could have been worse. This is why i am alarmed to hear calls from the left to defund our nations Police Department. I just heard my colleague from arizona go through a litany of statements from those on the left four defunding and dismantling left calling for defunding and dismantling Police Department. I think if anything, the murder of george floyd shows the need to invest more in our Police Departments. We should be focused on training, providing Mental Health care especially for those struggling with ptsd and other jobrelated stresses. We should work to form stronger bonds between Law Enforcement and the communities they serve. We can start by having School Resource officers in our schools. Mustst recognize and we empower good Police Officers while terminating bad actors. With that said, mr. Bongino, do you think that defunding our nations Police Departments is an effective way of addressing Police Misconduct . Mr. Bongino no, it is a disastrous policy. Obviously, the firstorder effects are quite obvious. Less police on the streets means more crime. There is simply no deterrent to crime unless you trust in the goodness of every mans heart. Think about the second order effects. Has anyone on the panel considered the brain drain that will happen . You will have child abuse investigators who have a very time to looky over a child in the eye and know right away noknock what about no right away. What about child sexual abuse online. They can look at an image and tell how people got there and who that child is. What about the print officer who has been taking fingerprints for 20 years. You are going to teach someone that in a social Worker Police academy . That what about the homicide detectives i worked with . When i was a young rookie secret service agent, i could not break a guy in interrogation. We had a guy walk in, experienced, knew how to interview. Within five minutes, we had a full confession. He had done it before. He knew the back and forth. These are skills that will be missing from our street. You dont understand the catastrophe that would follow. I cant emphasize in Strong Enough terms the disaster. This would be. I want to talk about the effect this would have on communities that are most vulnerable. , thoset communities communities which is higher private police firms. There is anecdotal evidence that has already happened in some places. Ironyu talk about the sad we would see, what would happen on the most vulnerable communities . Mr. Bongino the 75 precinct in east brooklyn, a couple of years before i got there, they had more homicides in that precinct than the entire city of baltimore had a few years ago. By the time i got there in the 90s, they had cut that down to such a point. The entire crime rate in new york city was almost the same to baltimore. Not to decrease our police budgets, that is insane. I want to thank chairman nadler and the subcommittee chair for your excellent leadership on this outstanding legislation. We are here because black lives matter. Most republican officials have been unable to say those three words. The president has been unable to say it. The attorney general has not said it. The overwhelming majority of Republican House members have not said it. Why does this matter . As you can fix the problem if you cannot identify the problem. This is not a problem of a few bad apples. This is systematic institutional racism against black americans. Black lives are subjected much higher risks of brutality from police than white ones. That is what the data shows. We know that black americans are killed at a rate twice as high than white americans. It wasnt one broken, who put his knee one rogue cop who put his knee on George Floyds neck, there were an additional two officers who had their knees on george floyd, another officer standing lookout. Then the department issued a misleading statement. And there were other officers at aboutpartment who knew Derek Chauvin and did not take action. It has got to stop. Act is ace in policing critical step to stopping police sanctioned brutality against africanamericans. The first i would like to focus on his training. Will training stop that, from doing bad things . No. But it might stop good cops from doing bad things. In terms of training hours, according to the bureau of justice statistics, new recruits event new recruits spend a total of 1240 hours training. In california, being a licensed cosmetologist requires 1600 hrs. In other words, it takes more training hours to be a hairdresser than a Police Officer. Just important as number of hours is how we train our officers. This legislation requires training in racial bias, racial profiling, and procedural justice. When you testified for this Committee Last year, you talked about procedural justice. Can you explain what procedural Justice Training is an why it is so important . The basic concept of procedural justice is the evidence that shows people comply with the law not because they are afraid of the police, they comply with the law because they are given a voice, they believe the law is fairly and justly applied. , whenw, over the years they get tickets, how they were treated tells more about that process. Ita way to get people should be trained that officers know how to gain compliance, give people a voice, recognize that how they treat people as a greater impact on how they respond to that authority than anything else. Lieu my second question, recently, attorney general bill barr said that he did not think that there was systematic racism in Law Enforcement systems . Do you agree with him that this is just an issue of a few rogue cops . Not only do i disagree with barrbut attorney general pattern and practice investigation throughout the country, he would learn that systemic racism actually exists in Police Departments around the country. It has been fully investigated and found by the department of justice. It is if we want to change culture, if we want to change relationships, then you have to change the rules that govern that system. There are no changes in this country, especially culture end raciale did not discrimination in schools it required law. We did not end the barring of women from different professions by it required a law. It requires law to actually change the context. Look at Public Safety more broadly and make Police Officers accountable within that system. The time of the gentleman has expired. Rep. Cline thank you. Across the street from the capital, above the supreme court, is inscribed equal justice under law. Today, i stand with my fellow americans in condemning the brutal killing of george floyd and so many others who have been denied law. We mourn with you and you have we have you have our sincere condolences for your loss. Mr. Floyd has his killing was an outrageous act of violence with a long record of citizen complaints. I look forward to justice being served and served quickly. The time has passed since mr. Floyds murder, and many have had the spotlight shone upon them, including Breonna Taylor in louisville, who was killed by officers in her apartment when a no knock warrant was served by officers looking for a suspect. Should be served in a court of law but sadly, many of them denied this right, having been killed while being brought into custody. I have atrict office, copy of one of Norman Rockwell passes but freedoms, the freedom of speech. One of the freedoms given to us by our creator and a cornerstone of democracy. As we mourn the death of george floyd, we witness americans who continue to exercise First Amendment rights to peacefully assemble. Process mr. Floyds death and highlight violence across the country and the need for significant real reform. Congress should continue to worked to to Work Together to find a solution to these problems and make sure all americans are afforded access to equal justice under the law. There are many ways we can continue to Work Together rather than put forward policies that divide us. This committee has a long history of working together to find solutions on issues facing our Justice System. Act two years ago reformed our federal Justice System. This included revisions correctional reforms, and improved oversight. Included in the chairwomans bill are ideas that could achieve that consensus once again. Increased Data Collection about off sir involved shootings, outline chokeholds, the military. The militarizing our police these are areas we can find that partisan consensus. Reviewneed to do to we cannot consider the irrational and ridiculous notion of defunding, expanding, or eliminating our Police Departments. The rule of law is foundational in the United States and we must providesolutions that better access to justice while enforcing our laws. We are a nation of laws and not of men. The vast majority who serve and wetect are good people cannot ignore the need to have limit officer and delegations after alleged misconduct, and disciplinary measures. In limit the length of internal investigations. And ensure that laws already on the books are hampering contracts they negotiated. The Law Enforcement act whose effectiveness is diluted because of dojss attempts to conform workaround collectivebargaining agreements. You just said we might not be a will to tell the good comes from the bad, but we should build keep that was from coming back. Time of personal and National Reflection on how to become better neighbors and citizens on the great in the greatest nation of on earth. I hope americans can come together and i hope as legislators, we can Craft Solutions to make our committee safe, strengthen bonds that unite us, and ensure we can without gods direction to act justly, to love, and walk humbly with our god. I yield back. I now recognize the gentleman from maryland for five minutes. Lovehave a brother who i whom i love very much. I cannot imagine your pain right now. My heart goes out to you. You have been a wonderful brother to your brother. And a great citizen today so think you for sticking with us. The whole point of the social contract is we savor inside of it rather than outside of it. The constitution protects life, liberty, and property against arbitrary deprivation by the government. The legislation were looking at today will ban chokeholds, it willholds, criminalize lynching, it will end the militarization of local Police Departments. A National Police department registry, strengthens the standards of Police Account ability. My question is, given you study this for a living and tedious about it, is the social contract working for africanamericans today with respect to policing . If not, will this legislation actually vindicate the value of human life that members on both sides of the aisle have spoken about . Moved by mr. Johnsons introduction, when he talked about the dignity of every human life. Ranking member jordan echo mr. Floyds heartfelt plea that life is precious. The justice act of 2020 reaffirms the sanctity of life and establishes National Standards for when the police can legally kill people and requires officers to employ deescalation techniques. The estimates cops can only kill people at us a last resort, and requires them to deescalate the touation before resulting deadly force. This is common sense. Thank you. Do you agree that we should impose traditional doctrine of let the master answer for the employee on Police Departments that they have the proper incentives to carefully train and supervise and monitor their officers . I do. The mayor spoke of the history of lynching and racism and the cycles of american history. There have been two other moments in history when america moved aggressive aggressively to try and transcend the original curse of violent white supremacy. One was reconstruction, which lasted 12 years after the civil war when it was undone by racism, and the second is the modern civil rights movement, when the blood sacrifice of dr. And evers and bob mosys, and our collie, john lewis, and many others, gave us the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights act of 1965. This second reconstruction also faced a violent act latch. Prospects for a third and enduring reconstruction today . What needs to happen for us to transcend the nightmare of racist violence and injustice that we are in . Every member of this body has to take responsibility for what is happening in this country and that they will put you find them [indiscernible] or for any other news network, they have to decide that they want to get their hands around problem. That means working together to and solve what pieces people in cities in every state in the country have told them over the last few weeks is a problem that people not tolerate anymore. It will take a lot of work to as atogether but this will provision that i believe what i heard today. Repeal does not changing the standard overtime. Read the bill. There is nothing in the bill that should be objectionable to any that for anyone who cares , who caresc safety about this country and who believes that they owe something to the family because police i encourage people andtep up with courage decide they want to Work Together to solve the problem. Thank you. I have a unanimous consent rate west i would like to propose, if that is all right. A number of colleagues have denounced several episodes of violence that have marred the beautiful and massive nonviolent protest that transform America Today and i ask you now to put into the record records of White Supremacists and others exploiting this moment, farright infiltrators and have supremacists white , and facebook removes nearly 200 counts tied to hate groups encouraging members and protests over Police Killings. Without objection. Thank you. Mr. Floyd, i would offer my personal condolence to you in the loss of your brother. I think that is significant enough. I want to give my condolences to you. I cannot imagine the pain you are experiencing knowing that someone intentionally targeted him. My prayers are with you and your family and with smith and with mr. Floyds his family. Libyans 4 13 came to mind. I hope you can reflect on that. This is a dangerous time or Law Enforcement and their families. A conversation with my brother yesterday said he had two deputies quit because of all of the issues they are facing. Homes,econduct their and speaking of Law Enforcement officers, i like to give my condolences to Police Captain david dorn, who was fatally shot last week trying to prevent a pawn shop from being looted during what the left called a peaceful protest. I wish there were a member of his family here represented today. While officers have been targeted and murdered during the socalled protests, it is troubling that many colleagues on the left have failed to condemn the violence and writing in cities and communities across the country. Protests are peaceful. Looting, killing, stealing, destruction, in some very cities, a week ago, is absolute flawlessness. Gathering in the synagogue with 10 or more people. 18 people murdered due to writing in one night. Can you imagine those people would be calling and be there to come to the rescue . That is not america. That is anarchy. Continuing to commit a crime knowing there is no one to talk the safety risk incurred to the officers and those individuals got away. Ensuring bad cops do not get rehired in different agencies. That is an incredible idea. Useing use a fourth of force based on a program i participated in as a senator in the state of florida and i was proud to be a part of the program. If they do not follow training and protocols, they do not get to use the amenity because it is qualified. The doctors do not have immunity to follow protocols, i do not know us and a person to become a long fourth officer in todays world knowing that they may or may not be able to use the training and protocols to apprehend a suspect who was not complying with them. Maybe that is the goal of the majority, to get less and less people to join our Law Enforcement off is. Left, little time i have the militarization of our Police Departments. They use will approve s vests and shields to protect officers who protect our community by stripping them of their ability to use weapons to protect themselves, it is a dangerous path to go down. I do not think our country supports that and mr. Floyd said it best. You said that life is precious. I would agree and i would contend that all legs is precious all life is precious. I yield back. Thank you so much, mr. Chairman. I want to mention our subcommittee chair and the chairwoman for her leadership for thank you to the witnesses for your endurance. It is worth it stop mr. Floyd, my family and i, along with my constituents in florida, join you in grieving the death of your brother, george. I know miss Underwood Jacobs is not here any longer but my emily and i, and my constituents, also join her in the death of her brother, patrick. I have attended many lawenforcement funerals, more than i care to admit. Outraged about both deaths. As lawenforcement officers, we are held, they are held, to a higher standard. Underwood deserved to wear the uniform everybody does not. That is why we are here today. As the motheryou of three beautiful black sons. I also come before you as a former social worker and a former police chief. Many have tried to frame the tragic event as us versus them. That is not what this is. Is is not about the community being against the police or the least being about the community. It is much bigger. This moment is about what is aboutin this moment is what is wrong. Whitenot a black or issue. It is not a democratic issue or a republican issue stop is an American Issue that has turned into yet another american tragedy. We all have to get this right. Lord knows i want to get this right. Onee the actions of brutally murdered, took the life of your brother, mr. Floyd, three other officers did nothing about it. 43 eight minutes and seconds. Ive been on the street and i know it feels like to be waiting for backup to come. Secondsnutes and 46 feels like a lifetime. That is a long time. And while one officer took the life of mr. Floyd, three others stood by and did nothing for seconds. Utes and 46 chief davis. When you talk for just a moment act . An officers duty to in general. An officers duty to act. If a received a call for service, does an officer have the ability to simply refuse to go to that call . And when they the a crime in progress, a wrongdoing, being perpetrated by fellow officer, please talk about their obligation to intervene and also report to this agency, that bad behavior, chief davis. Thank you. I agree with you 100 . Thats the oath of office. Oath tocer takes the the constitution to protect and serve in the have a duty to serve. Duty force the law, and policy requires the duty they were morally obligated, procedurally and legally obligated to intervene with mr. Floyds murder. Legally obligated to respond to calls. We expect them to go to bank robberies. To render [indiscernible] because those are the High Standards of this profession. I yield back. Quite the gentlelady yields back. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Im not sure, 89 right white and 100 world, im not sure to test theserson issues. Far away the closest to north dakota ands hearts. We watched in heart as your brother was brutally murdered. On may 22, our entire state an officer was killed trying to save another officer and wounded commanded and in anything else that is going on in the rest of the country. The next tuesday, we buried the officer added was an incredibly beautiful and tragic funeral all funeral. I watched your brothers funeral yesterday and it is beautiful and tragic. But what i found is that none of it was binary. I agree with the congresswoman. We have done in states like we areakota and i hope willing to work for this because i think youll find a lot of people on my side of the aisle who agree with a lot of concepts on the other side of the aisle stop can do the same way i view the other bill. How does it work on at 2 30 officer, and one the person being detained, but how does it work on the side of the road where backup is measured in hours and not minutes . Concern is always, i do not live in an urban district but that as we recognize intend to do these things, we have a high turnover rate. We have to make sure it can work everywhere. If it comes to holding bad departments accountable, i am all in. Once they watch out everywhere else, they we do not want that. After that, i would hope i could give people hope he does of how this works next week and because regardless of what we mark up and move forward, we should not be done. We should continue to work toward other things. Those things are disparities in sentencing, things we can quantifiably showing just. State6, primarily in court, 88 of the prison population in the nice dates is in state court. Black prisoners serve more on drug crimes than white prisoners. It is hard to pat yourself on the back for something that we foundt exist stop that as we move forward and dont with minimum mandatory sentencing, which was supposed to be to get rid of disparity in foundsentence is, we blacks are almost twice as like the to deal with a mandatory offense. Pretrial release. As we continue through this, states have done this and north dakota has done this, working toward issues that allow for the role based on assessment and not monetary value. This matters on the street. If you know when getting arrested that he will not get out, all of the different likelihoods go up significantly. Policies are racially neutral on their face but have a historically dispersed impact. We have seen this go on year after year. The enhanced its have gone larger and larger. Highlyto be hot urban, densely populated. We need to look at those things and we continue to do that and i will continue to do it with everyone on the other side of the aisle. My point is not to deflect. We heard all of these Different Things today but i want my friends to know we can do this and i know we can do it because we did it and north dakota. If we can do it there, we can do it anywhere. It takes working with both sides of the aisle so the matter how we move forward, i want you to know there are people on our side of the aisle that are made it to working on these issues that will have real positive impact for people all across the country. Not just about what we have going on but how we continue to work in the future. We are to help. Thank you. The gentleman you back. Yields back. Thank you for this important hearing. Thank you for being here today in this difficult moment for you and your family to stop the murder of your brother, george floyd, reminds us all that the and those sworn to protect, cannot assume to always be one of a healthy relationship. In my district, the new ellis island of the United States, we are diverse and always changing. Americans live side, the greatest generation. We have to remember we are not a police state. Officersublic safety and trust cooperation are essential. Hard to bring that trust. Another murder and tragedy. This bill has to become law. When i was in california legislature, this issue kept laughing up over and over again. Resurfaced aain decade ago. Autistic individuals, not capable of following directions this showshis area why this bill must become law. By creating Law Enforcement development programs, best practices among others. In my legislation, improving Community Safety test force, the attorney general to off so establish a task force seeking ways to reduce violent clashes between communities and Public Safety officers stop i would like to submit for the word a letter from brian marvel, president of the Peace Officers Association of california discussing how they support reforms. With without objection. And i want to let you know that your familys loss in your brother will not go forgotten. I have a question for professor butler. First of all, welcome and welcome to all of the witnesses discussould like to arrest disparities. Africanamericans almost four times more likely to be arrested for cannabis possession. For washington dc, you stated that africanamericans are about percent of those who use cannabis, yet they account for 90 of people who are charged with marijuana crimes. Is that correct . Yes. How do you think the legalization of cannabis will help with social justice in this we think it would help create equal justice under the law. We know that for drug crimes, africanamericans not just partially committed those crimes. To the time the addiction issue is an issue of Public Health as is the issue of violence and communities. It is a public Health Issues issue and not exclusively criminal law. Thank you and i yield. The gentleman yields back thank you. I want to join my colleagues in condolence to family. I cannot begin to imagine the pain of having to relive that video over and over again. I want to thank you for having the strength tos week here today, to share georges story and his spirits and his word this committee and also the country. I am sure your brother would be proud of you. Our hearts and those of every thinking and feeling american are with you and your family and we are emitted to making the changes that we need to ensure that you, your family, and other family in the country receives the equal justice and the sick thursday that constitution and most essential American Values demand. We are here to listen and to confront the heart harsh truths about racism in the country and the Law Enforcement practices that for too long have againstthe silence communities of color and especially black individuals. The murder of george floyd, Breonna Taylor, on and on, have once again brought truths to the surface that in action has resulted in a justices that harms black communities and policing practices that disproportionately kill black americans. This is unacceptable. We must change. America must change. Americans have taken to the streets in peaceful protest all across this great nation in big cities and small towns to demand that change. The change must come at federal level. One of the ways that Police Officers can be held accountable is a federal law that makes it a crime to violate someones fit someones rights, including by using Excessive Force by a Police Officer. As very difficult to get anviction because it requires police willfully violated a person with civil rights. Can you explain how changing the statute can require a wreck with standard instead of willful miss will improve accountability . Department, we have one more they can use to prosecute Police Misconduct. It has the highest rate of requirement in criminal law, requiring not only that prosecutors prove that unreasonables Unreasonable Force was used, but also that the officer knew what that he that what he and what they were doing. For years, there have been case after case that the Justice Department had been unable to reach, because of how high the burden is. Able to violate federal right laws accountable. Reckless disregard some more him the it brought language by including its definition from an officers action, any act that was a substantial factor in triggering. I know many former u. S. Attorneys that are eagle to see this change data eager to see this change. I was approached by one of those attorneys saying this was probably a key provision. It looks like time is expired so i yield back. Thank you. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you to all the witnesses. I thank you for the patients. It has been a long day but the topic, more times of discussion before we ultimately vote. I have five brothers. Sometimes, they were helpful. Sometimes, they are brought just brothers. After witnessing the horrific murder of george floyd, i was taught at an early age. George floyd was not treated as a child of god during his final moments on this earth. Family with you and your i stand with the Congressional Black Caucus to lift up its values. We can no longer continue living in america that says during the pledge of allegiance, justice for all, but then not actually black lives matter. I want to get to the topic what e seen is a lawyer, horse the way some of these cases are handled. I served as first chair, the lease independent oversight or. I helped mayor parker put that together. Made me chair for two years. I have seen some of these cases and some of them are tough to make. In your case, i think it was good there was swift action. The Police Officer was arrested. It took a little time before arrested the others. In many cases, the arbery case, he was out jogging. 70 days before an arrest. In the videosaw int was just released williamson county, an incident that happened in march of 2019, delayed, and the video is even more delayed. They just released at last week. March of 2019, a year later. It is sometimes not quick enough and we wonder why. I wanted to ask first, issue andl on with us by video with investigations, are we adequately addressing the need for an independent investigation and the justice and policing act . Yes. Its is one of the most important parts. [indiscernible] abusive are investigated by someone who is independent, not connected with the local Properties Office and can bring fresh eyes to their on the constitutional violation of the law. In legislations run the country, we have seen these incidents were prosecutors had they areted that unwilling to robustly lean into an investigation, unwilling to arrest, unwilling or a case before the grand jury, [indiscernible] presentation was lackluster [indiscernible] will move quickly if we can. [indiscernible] lawyer, i can say this change me because i get it is my. Ife to that what were seeing on the streets of the country all over the entry is a colossal lack of confidence in the Justice System. It is incumbent upon this body in this legislation to put together the means of restoring that confidence. That only comes back of the Justice System is said to be fair, legitimate, and reduce results. When it comes to cases of policing among africanamericans, we do not have those. Thank you. I did have a question but i will submit them in writing. I yield back in time will stop the gentlelady yields back. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, chairwoman. Members of the committee and my fellow members of the congressional black rock is, for your leadership on the issue. I want to stress deepest condolences to mr. Floyd and miss Underwood Jacobs as well. All of us will continue to review and your families in our prayers. What happened to your brother, to floyd, what happened Breonna Taylor, is truly an outrage and i pray that coming together am a meet the moment by honor their memories passing the justice and policing act, not just to honor the memories, but the memories of so many others across the country. Marshall, ahael 15yearold 112 pound black and was killed while enduring the psychiatric episode in jail, he was her strained five deputies for over 30 minutes at which he suffocated on his own vomit and died. Elijah mclean, a 23yearold unarmed black, died after an encounter with the Police Department while walking home one night. After initially not responding to police, the plane was tackled to the ground by officers, placed in a choke hold, and vomited. He was later suffered a heart attack. Clearly hear a lot. He was put in a choke hold by an it is past time choke holds and other harmful have led to an that is why the justice and policing act is so important. Rodvery encouraged by the days of support legislation has received and with unanimous consent, i asked submit their statement of support into the record. Data on policing has been deficient for quite some time. Holdndered our ability to we do not know how many times an officer use a taser, how many times while in Police Custody. This is a slick and critical information in ensuring such actions are regulated. How does the mostly volunteer system we currently have an Data Collection failed to capture these data points and how those requiring state and Law Enforcement to support that data improve accountability . Real shame that in 2020, we do not have adequate Data Collection on use of force in the country. We rely on several years for several years on journalists. Try to more systematically collected collect it. It includes a requirement for states to enforce data to the Justice Department. Technical assistance grants are established to assist agencies that have fewer than 100 employees, which was often the reason Police Agencies were not reporting on this. Collect traffic stops stop local Law Enforcement agencies and to diss aggregate. Be no reason to collect that data. Really important to making sure ithave that and learn from as change policing from it well. Thank you. You underscore why this act is necessary. Thank you to each witness for being here today. Gentlemen save yields back. Thank you. Thank you for being here so long today. Say to you, mr. Floyd, i offer you my deepest condolences because i know exactly how you feel. I know your pain. I cannot sit here and say i can only imagine and know what youre going through. To go to your brothers funeral sorryth carolina, i am so that you are here testifying. Or the loss of your brother. We have come to this hearing a result of a deep and morally painful wound and events that happened in this country again and again and again. With have come to remember george floyd and Breonna Taylor and the many lives that have been lost to violence in the those with a sworn duty to protect and serve. Lost many brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers. Under these instances of Law Enforcement. These tragedies are part of a system of rachel Racial Disparities that have been harming people of color for 400 years. In georgia, where i represent the sixth contrast Congressional District, we recently lost the life of ahmaud arbery, pursued by three men and chased by two pickup trucks and murdered in the streets just miles from his home. As investigators testified last week, a plus skill or used the. Word as he lay dying in the street. Investigators testified that the killers father, a former Police Officer, carried a handgun during the pursuit. A handgun. It was issued to him by his Police Department. That he carried as a Police Officer, still bearing the initials of the department. I grieve every day for these continued losses. I grieve the mother who lost her own child to the very same violence were talking about and tomorrow and next week. Nd next month and next year , by a manson, jordan who called him a thug for simply playing loud music in his car. Shockinglyagedy similar to ahmaud arberys. Being black while being in your own community. Byeel the pain experienced two big families every day and every day it happens, it is like a sucker punch in my heart and my gut. Because when is it going to stop. I pray every single day for our nation. I pray every single day for every family, and i pray that today, we finally do something about it. I know my time will be up so i question do you been a commission i have working on that would study the social determinants and the effects of young black men and boys in the country, the believe that would be justified in creating research and data for the very legislation were talking about today. The kind of commission is the key. Thank you. I know my time is up. That im begging everyone here you i amtaking ,egging you to stand in the gap to speak up, to be a part of. Olving the problem of all the young black men and women in this country who die every single day because if you do not, you are complicit. I yield back the balance of my time. The gentlelady yields back. Mr. Chairman, and thank you for moving quickly to hold this necessary hearing during a time of significant pain for our nation. I want to recognize and take the congresswoman for her leadership to heal the pain. The justice and policing act is mr. Ssential first step for floyd, i offer my deepest condolences to you and your family. I cannot imagine how difficult the last two weeks have been and it is courageous that you are today. Just yesterday, you lay your brother to rest. But his murder is a reminder that he cannot rest. We have work to do so that ,eorge floyd and eric garner walter scott, and tony are say, and too many others, will not have theirn vain and lives for us to action. It has been more than 400 years since an slaved africans first brought to americas sure shackled. We are in the midst of facing a that sinceult truth that moment, there has not been the maximay in which that our founders knew to be self, that all men are created equal, was recognized in our country for black americans. Not a single day in which a single justice under the law has been fully experienced by black americans. There is no greater tragedy in our history and our generation has a choice. We can sustain americas original sin, or we can redeem her. I recognize that the ability to end racism in our country is beyond. We do not have the power to change every persons heart and mind. What we can do is address Structural Racism and enact tangible measures of transparency and accountability in policing that can help make everyone safe. This is a charge that every level of government must pickup, from those of us in congress to everyone who serves on the city council. During my time as the mayor of my hometown, we started a muted whichng trust initiative, earns a recognition from the Obama Administration, the department of justice. We enhanced escalation training for officers. Withwrote the guideline our immigrant community, we put Body Worn Cameras on officers on patrol, and when we saw positive results, we budgeted for every officer on the beat to wear a camera but there is more work to do in every state and every city, every unity in america. Asked thehave distinguished panel specifically about Body Worn Cameras. Research by Arizona State university found that officers wearing body cameras were more aware of their actions. Police officer on patrol in america ought to be wearing a Body Worn Camera stop do you believe oddie worn cameras help make members of the public and Police Officers safer . Absolutely. There would be four killer cops that remained on the police force of minneapolis without body cameras. How can Body Worn Cameras timing for Police Officers . In addition to capturing what happens, it allows the Police Department to look at the everyday encounter, traffic stops, pedestrian stops, and evaluate the conduct. To show that how officers engage men and women of color is , inletely different addition to capturing the critical instances were talking about. They can be expensive to implement, capturing all of the and that means he gets to look at that film. Recognition technology this presents a very serious Privacy Concern for communities, specifically africanamerican communities. We saw film with eric garner. [indiscernible] i do want to flag what happens with that film is the question is a question im purge you all to think about all stop i yield back. Chairwoman,k you, for bringing us together in bringing forward this powerful time of legislation at a when the country desperately needs it. I think all of our witness is today. I pray that our words and actions will be worthy of the moment. If anyone has a doubt as to systemic racism in this country, as to inequality based on race in this country, look no further than between me and my friend and colleague. I am a mother of three white sons. Ive never had to have a talk. You are the mother of beautiful jordan davis. You had to have the talk. Is racism,t there look no further than the inequality of our life experience. Sincerest symptoms sympathy for the loss of her brother. And mr. Floyd. It is hard raking and soul crushing, what we witnessed 2. 5 weeks ago. The depraved reserve your brother. My simple these with you. More, more my words and actions will be with you. The world is watching. I would like to talk about the issue of the National Registry. I remember the horror of tamir rices murder, the anger we all felt, the dismay for that Police Officer who killed a beautiful little boy. That Police Officer had been unstableotionally before joining the Cleveland Police. He never disclosed that in his application. The Cleveland Police never reviewed his previous personnel file before hiring him. Agency from the people we trust with the responsibility of serving but also capability of brutal force to be hired under rigorous stir background checks. Do we know how pervasive it is of not knowing the background of the police we hire . There are some registries of regional associations that have been created but there is no National Registry of the sort being proposed in this important legislation. This is why it is high time this provision and the justice and policing act be passed. It is time to have a National Registry that has this information that can save lives, and frankly, promote community trust. The National Registry would have misconduct complaints, discipline records, records of certification, it contains conditioning for money so agencies have to put inputs before they can access federal money, but it is high time for this to happen. Dean i was talking with my own attorney general josh shapiro about a National Registry, he supports that. He also has attorney general worked with and announced that he wishes to establish and have a legislature in pennsylvania establish estate registry. I think its important my home state is considering that. Should the tracking of disciplinary and Performance Records of Law Enforcement be left to the states alone . Is that sufficient or does it mean we should do both . Gupta it is good that states are standing up because right now is that people are demanding change. But you will end up with a patchwork that will not be sufficient to achieve the bottomline goal of having a registry that will be national. People move around. They look at jobs in other jurisdictions. It is not enough to have this patrick. Its time for congress to create a national rubric. Wouldean mr. Floyd, i like to end with you to thank you for your strength for being here today. We cant imagine the exhaustion, the fatigue, the grief, but we are here with you in the world supports you. I hope it offers you some consolation. And your brother will be remembered worldwide for a very, very long time to come. As your niece and his daughter said, my daddy changed the world, and he has, and im confident he will. I would like to give you an opportunity to tell us not about his death but about his life. What did you know and love about your big rather . What should we know about his life . Mr. Floyd he was a role model for me and a lot of guys coming out of the neighborhood because he was the first one to get a scholarship. We all wanted scholarships and he was the first one, because it was just hard. You had to get either the academic scholarship or get one playing sports, but he had gotten a scholarship and it made everybody else feel like they could get one too. Dean he was a talented athlete. And he was a coach . Mr. Floyd yes. He was a coach. Just so much about him he spoke to a lot of kids. He went to a lot of different places. People. T of different he went to china and played against yao ming. He did a lot of Different Things. He came back and shared information with us. It was exciting to see him every time because he showed us so much, just a gentle giant. He took us to a lot of places. We went to orlando ear and we watched basketball games. He had a lot of athletes friends. He showed us there are other places in life besides being in the neighborhood. Rep. Dean thank you, mr. Chairman and thank you, mr. Floyd. My time has expired. Thank you so much, mr. Chairman. I want to start my five minutes with a video i came across and it struck a chord. His happened in miami the women in the video were worried. They had been threatened by a neighbor who had a shotgun land was making racist slurs. They called 911 for safety and protection. Instead, they were met with force. Are you threatening my life . I just want to please, stop. She didnt do anything. Do not touch me. Do not touch me. Why are you doing this . [screaming] why are you doing this . Shes not doing nothing oh my god. I want to call my kids. My phone is dead. What do you not understand . My kids are sick. Im stressed out. My children conduct like this is never acceptable. The woman was unarmed. She called 911 because she felt threatened. She called 911 hoping that Police Officers would come to protect her. Instead, you saw those images. The officer in this video later lied about what happened on the Police Report and is now facing charges of misconduct and battery. This happened only two months ago. To subjecto reason someone to Excessive Force because of the color of their skin. The reality is people of color live and face these prejudices throughout their entire lives. They face discrimination. Its ingrained in our culture since the founding of the country and we have to confront this headon. Currently now there is no National Standard to require Police Officers to deescalate and avoid use of Excessive Force. We have to eliminate injustices that black men and women and communities of color face everywhere in our government, society and Health Care System and specifically in the police system. Ownn also tell you from my expanse, this is not representative of all Police Officers. I have Close Relationships with some officers in miami. They are part of the community. They have earned the trust of the community. But we have to start by accepting that there is racial bias in our police system. We have to accept that. I continue to hear from members of this administration that there is no racism, no racial bias. That is not true. Racism is systemic and we have to hold the Police Departments accountable and demand transparency. To do that, we have to engage with the community through civilian oversight. Buildan oversight boards bridges between police and communities by giving the people a voice and the policies that affect them. They ensure officer accountability through fair and open investigation. Over time, they build trust. Civilian oversight has to be done correct, however. They have to be independent. They have to have subpoena power. They must have the authority to conduct investigations into Police Misconduct. Most important a, civilian oversight boards have to represent the diversity in the community. The seats need to be filled not by political appointees but local citizens and the leaders of local organizations focusing on accountability. Im proud that this act supports oversight and allows funding to go to building role review boards. To mr. Ron davis, i wanted to ask you, you mentioned the need for police to collaborate with the community to reimagine policing. That includes a new system fostering civilian oversight. Can you explain why this is an important factor in preventing Police Brutality and effective in holding Police Accountable . Mr. Davis yes, congresswoman and thank you for the call. I refer back to one of your nineagues mentioned the principles of Law Enforcement. One of them said the police have used authority with the consent of people. It is with consent you need checks and balances to make sure Police Officers, myself included when i was serving, to have such awesome power, the power to take freedom and life, are held accountable with checks and balances so there is trust and legitimacy and accountability. Civilian oversight provides the extra layer, the same way we and independent prosecutors a civilian board balanced so that the power the police are given by the community is accountable. We are accountable for that. We can police with the consent of the people and that is the only way to be effective. In general, the Core Principles of civilian oversight are built , boths Community Policing responsible, both accountable and that is the best form you can have. Rep. Mucarselpowell thank you mr. Davis. Thank you, mr. Floyd. Thank you for being with us today. Losing someone in a violent manner and having footage of that has to be the most devastating way of losing someone. I share with all my colleagues here today my deepest condolences, you and the family, and we are here for anything you need. Thank you. I yield back. The gentlelady yields back. Mr. Cicilline. Thank you. Line i to give my condolences on the brother, and we will continue to keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers. Floyd you recognize mr. That the brutal murder of your brother has awakened the andcience of your country resulted in people all across america raising their voices and demanding the end to Racial Injustice and the end of police againsty, particularly black americans and communities of color and with a safe and effective policing model for every person in the country that will improve Public Safety and the safety and effectiveness of police work. These are not new problems we are expanding. Your brothers death is only the most recent example of ugly racism and Police Brutality that have been a stain on the soul of this nation since the founding. I think everyone at this hearing brings their own experiences. Before i was in politics, i was a civil rights lawyer. Most of my cases where Police Brutality cases. Many of the hurdles i faced the four were to addressed in the justice and policing act0. I inherited a Police Department under a patterns of practice investigation by the department of justice. They Police Department at war with the community. Crime was on the increase. The public had lost confidence. One of the things that was so effective in turning that around was the participation of the community and partnership with police. We produced the lowest crime in 30 years. Police officers were integrated into the communities they serve. ,uring the Trump Administration they have change policies about the patterns and practices so it was something we were able to use to force change that the chief and department. Administration, the Justice Department opened 25 investigation, signed Consent Decrees for new orleans, seattle, ferguson and open several investigations. The Trump Administration came in and changed positions on that. A, you are gupt informed on that. This legislation not only strengthens the ability to do that but gives the responsibility to state attorneys general. Kenny speak on why thats necessary can you speak on why thats necessary and why it is such a powerful mechanism for reforming Police Departments . Trump doj has essentially abandoned a mandate given by congress in 1994 to investigate patterns and practices of systemic unconstitutional policing in Police Department around the country. Since the administration began, there has been the opening only issue out a very tiny of springfield, massachusetts, compared to 25 in the Obama Administration and many others in republican and democratic administrations prior to that. The that has meant is that tool of these investigations, the Consent Decrees, has been lying dormant. Typically when i oversaw the civil rights division, we had mayors and Police Chiefs in numerous instances that were asking the Justice Department to come in because they needed federal help in bad situations. Jurisdictions have not been able to rely anymore on the Justice Department to support these andrts and i think justice policing does a lot to strengthen the civil rights divisions authority, giving it subpoena power, resources and gives the attorneys general the ability to do these pattern and practices to allow them to do it as well. In this moment, with a Justice Department that is very disengaged from issues, an important thing. Thank you. Im also interested in the accreditation model because i think that is a way to help transform Police Departments across the country quickly. I wonder whether or not you have a view as to whether or not the provisions that provide for training to end racial bias and whether there are high quality accreditation programs to affect systematic change. They are essential. We have gotten away from being tough on crime. Now we want to be smart on crime. The evidence suggests police can do better with appropriate training. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, i have a unanimous consent request. I have an article entitled its official, the Trump Administration will pull back on investigating police abuses. Can we make that part of the record . Without objection. Also without objection. A final article entitled trump and sessions release cops from federal oversight. Now we see results. Without objection. I want to begin with deep gratitude to mr. Floyd for the courage and grace you have shown and for being such an inspiration to us. I only pray and hope my colleagues in the congress and United States will have the same courage and will be inspired to do the right thing and respond in this historic way to change the way communities and police relate and will be done to honor the life and legacy of your brother. With that, i yield back. The gentleman yields back. Without objection, the following materials concerning the justice to which have been submitted the electronic repository will be in the record. The number of leading civil rights organizations, statements by the fraternal order of police, the constitutional center, adobe, third way, the blue dog coalition, and articles in reuters and boston globe will be admitted into the record without objection. The witnessesk for participating in todays floydg, in particular mr. With whom we have the greatest sympathy and thanks. That concludes todays hearing. Without objection, all members will have five days to submit additional questions for their witnesses for additional materials. Without objection, the hearing is adjourned. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] [chatter] [inaudible] [inaudible] cspans washington journal, we are taking your calls live on the air on the news of the day and discussing policy issues that impact you. Morning, alexsday vitelli talks about policing in america. Michael burgess will be on to discuss the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic. Watch cspans washington journal, live at 7 00 eastern thursday morning. Be sure to join the discussion with your phone calls, text messages, and tweets. Live thursday on the cspan networks, at 10 00, the Senate Judiciary Committee Meets to vote on issuing subpoenas in the fbi investigation into russian interference in the 2016 election. At 1 00, the House Administration subcommittee looks at the impact of covid19 on Voting Rights. On cspan two at 10 00, the Senate Continues work on legislation to Fund National parks and public lands. At 9 30 a. M. , social isolation and loneliness during the covid19 pandemic. At noon, the House Oversight subcommittee on coronavirus looks at the impact of covid19 on nursing homes. Theres more live coverage thursday on our website with the a officials testifying about the departments response to the coronavirus pandemic. That gets underway at 2 00 eastern. Its available to watch it cspan. Org. Teamssippi governor tate announced changes to the safe return order in his state. The coronavirus is not gone. He announced that hes lifting curfews for bars and restaurants that serve alcohol as long as they abide by social distancing guidelines and the allowed capacity will be increased for Fitness Centers and sports venues. Good afternoon. Thank you all for being here today. Thank you fowe