Why do cops continue to kill Black men? Because we taught them they are immune.
Immune legally. Immune culturally. And immune morally.Alex Charns, Durham civil rights attorney
We the undersigned Citizens of North Carolina call on the N.C. General Assembly to begin a process of “True Accountability” for all state law enforcement agencies and police in light of the myriad examples of excessive force and outright brutality engaged in by police, often against people of color, the mentally ill, as well as unarmed and innocent victims.
Toward that end, we ask our state representatives to listen to the stories of their constituents who have suffered violence and unjust treatment at the hands of North Carolina police officers.
Specifically, we call on the N.C. General Assembly to take three steps that we believe will contribute to improved practices and policies to address these serious injustices.
- End Police Brutality
- Demilitarize the Police
- End Qualified Immunity
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End Police Brutality
We call on all state law enforcement agencies and their officers to end unnecessary violence against our citizens, especially people of color. We ask that police opt for greater applications of nonviolent intervention, and drastically reduce the option for the use of deadly force.
Demilitarize the Police
In the wake of the brutal killing of George Floyd in police custody that led to millions of Americans taking to the streets in protest, one image remains clear: the sight of heavily-armed police in riot gear confronting unarmed protesters in cities and towns throughout the nation. Most of these police officers appeared and behaved in ways more similar to soldiers in a war zone rather than public “safety officers” who serve and protect the people’s right to assemble on our nation’s streets to redress grievances. Often, these officers donned camouflage vests, rode in armored vehicles, and used pepper spray, rubber bullets, and tear gas to suppress protests.
We call on all N.C. law enforcement agencies to cease and desist from participation in the 1033 Program. Created by Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, the U.S. department of defense (sic) has provided more than $7.2 billion in weapons and gear to thousands of police agencies, providing tools of war that have no place on our streets.
The marriage of the police and the military is turning America’s cities into battlefields. We urge our legislators to adopt a state version of the new Congressional police reform “Justice in Policing Act,” which would ban chokeholds, no-knock warrants, and the transfer of certain kinds of military equipment to local police including bayonets, grenade launchers, grenades, armored drones, armored vehicles, and silencers.
End Qualified Immunity
Qualified immunity makes it almost impossible to win a police brutality lawsuit in the United States. Police officers are legally immune in civil court from monetary damages if the accused officer believes the suspect has a weapon, or believes the suspect is reaching for the officer’s gun. In such cases, police officers are trained that they can shoot to kill.
Both the law and police internal affairs shield police when they are wrong, even negligently wrong. In criminal court, the immunity for cops is almost total because an elected prosecutor has to have the courage to bring charges.
We call on the General Assembly to enact legislation to reject qualified immunity so police officers who abuse their authority and use excessive force can be held accountable.
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