Guest Commentary Since 1871 the Civil Rights Act has held state and local officials including police officers legally liable for damages if their actions violate a citizen’s constitutional rights. That’s until the Supreme Court punched a huge hole in the law, making it now nearly impossible to hold police officers accountable even for acts that clearly violate the rights of citizens. Such actions multiplied massively under the war on drugs. As part of that “war,” state and local police departments in the 1970s ramped up their acquisition of military equipment and adoption of military-style tactics, including the use of Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams and no-knock drug raids.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. On June 11, just 13 weeks after Breonna Taylor had been shot dead by Louisville police, her mother stood on the steps of Louisville Metro Hall to praise the city s passage of Breonna s Law.
The ordinance banning no-knock search warrants was a testament to her daughter s agenda to save lives as an ER tech who dreamed of becoming a nurse, Tamika Palmer told a crowd of supporters. I knew she was destined for greatness, she said, her smile beaming. She s showing it. She s showing it.
In the eight months since, versions of Breonna s Law, have been proposed in cities and states across the U.S. from Wisconsin to New Mexico, and from Columbus, Ohio, to Pomona, California.
Group pushes for legislation in states to reform police tactics
FILE - In this Sept. 23, 2020, file photo police and protesters converge during a demonstration in Louisville, Ky. A grand jury has indicted one officer on criminal charges six months after Breonna Taylor was fatally shot by police in Kentucky. The jury presented its decision against fired officer Brett Hankison to a judge in Louisville, where the shooting took place. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File) John Minchillo
FILE - In this Sept. 25, 2020, file photo Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor, right, listens to a news conference in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File) Darron Cummings
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PHILADELPHIA After a year marked by police killings of Black men and women and mass civil unrest over racial injustice, some activists are taking aim at police tactics that can lead to deadly middle-of-the-night raids they say are used overwhelmingly in communities of color.
Rather than waiting for direction from lawmakers, a group of academics, policing experts and activists called Campaign Zero has created model legislation around so-called no-knock warrants they hope will be attractive to cities, states and President-elect Joe Biden, as they work to curtail police tactics that lead to both civilian and officer casualties. While Biden has said his administration will support criminal justice reforms, it’s unclear where he will focus.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) After a year marked by police killings of Black men and women and mass civil unrest over racial injustice, some activists are taking aim at police tactics that can lead to deadly middle-of-the-night raids they say are used overwhelmingly in communities of color.
Rather than waiting for direction from lawmakers, a group of academics, policing experts and activists called Campaign Zero has created model legislation around so-called no-knock warrants they hope will be attractive to cities, states and President-elect Joe Biden, as they work to curtail police tactics that lead to both civilian and officer casualties. While Biden has said his administration will support criminal justice reforms, it’s unclear where he will focus.