Lakewood, Colo. – An original cosponsor of H.R. 7120, the Justice in Policing Act, U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CO-07) today voted in support of the sweeping legislation which will address systemic racial discrimination by law enforcement by holding police accountable, improving transparency of police misconduct and use-of-force, and improving police training and practices.

“Every incident of excessive police force against an unarmed African American or person of color – anywhere – is wrong. Every person in this country, regardless of the color of their skin, should be able to live without fear of discrimination or violence. Sadly, for decades there has been a tinder box of racial and social injustice in our country. Tensions have understandably exploded, and it has ignited some real emotions and desire for justice as communities of color have faced criminal, economic, and social injustice for too long,” said Perlmutter. “Without justice, there can be no order. This transformative legislation is the first of many steps forward as we work together to address the inequality and injustice that exists.”

Perlmutter made additional remarks about the Justice in Policing Act in the House Rules Committee on June 24, 2020:

This sweeping legislation will take numerous key steps to achieve transformative, structural change to combat the pattern of police brutality and racial injustice, including:

• Banning all chokeholds;
• Banning no-knock warrants in drug cases;
• Ending racial, religious and discriminatory profiling;
• 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; and more.

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