WASHINGTON, D.C. – This evening, Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán voted to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to transform the culture of policing in America, reduce police violence and make policing more accountable and responsive to the needs of communities.
“Exactly 30 years after Los Angeles and the world saw Rodney King brutalized by police officers, I joined my colleagues in passing comprehensive legislation to curb police brutality, end racial profiling, hold law enforcement accountable for excessive violence, and build greater trust between the police and the communities they serve,” said Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán.
“We pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act not just in memory of George Floyd, Breanna Taylor, Eric Garner and the countless others who were wrongfully killed by acts of police brutality – but as a proactive response to their deaths and to say, ‘no more.’
“Just last summer, in my district, Andrés Guardado, an 18-year old Latino was shot in the back multiple times and killed by a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy after the deputy approached Andrés, seemingly without reason, at his job as a security guard. Black and Latino residents of my district must know that they can be safe from those meant to protect them when they are walking down the street, at work, or at home.
“The time for change is now. I proudly joined the Congressional Black Caucus and my colleagues to once again pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to deliver the urgent, critical reforms needed to address systemic racism while increasing transparency and holding police accountable.”
The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act will take numerous key steps to achieve structural change to combat the pattern of police brutality and racial injustice, including:
- Prohibiting federal, state, and local law enforcement from racial, religious and discriminatory profiling, and mandates training on racial, religious, and discriminatory profiling for all law enforcement.
- Banning all chokeholds;
- Banning no-knock warrants in drug cases;
- Eliminating the qualified immunity doctrine that is a barrier to holding police officers accountable for wrongful conduct;
- Establishing a National Police Misconduct Registry to improve transparency and prevent problematic officers who are fired or leave one agency, from moving to another jurisdiction without any accountability;
- Requiring data collection, including mandatory body cameras and dashboard cameras;
- Establishing new standards for policing and the Public Safety Innovation grants for community-based organizations to help reimagine policing in their communities;
- Making lynching a federal hate crime.
Full text of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act is available here.
A fact sheet on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act is available here.
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Nanette Diaz Barragán is proud to represent California’s 44th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Carson, Compton, Florence-Firestone, Lynwood, North Long Beach, Rancho Dominguez, San Pedro, South Gate, Walnut Park, Watts, Willowbrook and Wilmington