Long Island county advances bill that would allow police to sue protesters for harassment
Mary Altaffer/AP
FILE - This photo from Tuesday April 20, 2021, shows Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder as he speaks in West Hempstead, N.Y. Ryder said he wonât resign over comments to Newsday blaming the lack of diversity in his police department on Black and Hispanic âbroken homes.â (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
and last updated 2021-08-03 16:10:33-04
Lawmakers in Nassau County, New York â a county that encompasses a large swath of Long Island â approved a bill Monday that allows law enforcement officers to sue protesters who harass them about their job.
False choices on policing
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Nassau lawmakers pass bill targeting bias against first responders
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The legislature for Nassau County, New York, approved a bill Monday that says anyone who harasses or injures a first responder which includes police officers can be fined up to $50,000 while giving first responders the ability to sue the person directly.
After a heated, five-hour public testimony period, the legislature on Long Island voted 12-6 to put the bill into law. It goes into effect immediately.
This law comes as states and localities try to put limits on the rights of protesters after more than a year of protests supporting the Black Lives Matter movement.
While the Nassau County law does not specifically name Black Lives Matter, it does cite civil unrest since the close of May of last year, which is when protests erupted in response to the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.