A civil rights attorney speaking with PBS said the upcoming executive order on policing will create national standards for use-of-force as well as for tracking police misconduct.
The President’s executive order on police reform contains five main components, according to civil rights lawyer, S. Lee Merritt who will be at the signing and will testify before the Senate this week.
Mr. Merritt represents black families who lost loved ones, killed by police, including Antwon Rose and Botham Jean. He says the order is incremental but a step in the right direction. The incremental part is disturbing. We don’t want our police nationalized.
The five key points in the order:
- a statement acknowledging that some law enforcement officers have gravely misused their authority and have caused communities and particularly black communities to mistrust them; rumors circulated that he would “acknowledge systemic racism in policing.” This does not appear to be the case.
- an order to establish a national certification and credentialing system for law enforcement agencies;
- an order to create a federal database to track officers accused of wrongdoing like excessive use-of-force [federal databases are usually just paperwork]
- a directive to the secretary of Health and Human Services to work on encouraging police departments to involve mental health officials when dealing with issues of mental health, homelessness, and addiction [doesn’t sound like a good idea];
- a directive to encourage Congress to pass legislation related to policing. (Democrats and the Congressional Black Caucus introduced the Justice in Policing Act last week (it’s a disaster).
Anything that puts the national government in charge of police, as Democrats want, is dangerous, but we’ll see. President Trump’s judgment has been good and he is perceptive so we’ll trust him on this.
President @realDonaldTrump‘s upcoming executive order will focus on solidifying the relationship between law enforcement and citizens—and delivering resources that promote safe, peaceful communities. pic.twitter.com/aaMoaogYfy
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 15, 2020
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