President Biden marked the third anniversary of George Floyd’s homicide by urging Congress on Thursday to go laws that may overhaul policing.
Mr. Biden renewed a name for lawmakers to alter policing on the federal stage, saying it’s the solely option to obtain “lasting change at the state and local levels.”
“I urge Congress to enact meaningful police reform and send it to my desk. I will sign it,” the president stated in an announcement. “I will continue to do everything in my power to fight for police accountability in Congress, and I remain willing to work with Republicans and Democrats alike on genuine solutions.”
Floyd was murdered on May 25, 2020, by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on his neck for greater than 9 minutes regardless of Floyd saying he couldn’t breathe. Video of the encounter between Floyd, who was Black, and Chauvin, who’s White, sparked outrage throughout the nation, protests in opposition to police brutality and calls to extend policing accountability.
The House in 2021 handed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which might ban chokeholds, no-knock warrants and create a police misconduct database. The measure died within the Senate.
Mr. Biden stated Thursday that the nation should “recommit to the work we must continue to do every day to change hearts and minds as well as laws and policies.”
The Biden administration plans to bar federal legislation enforcement brokers from contemplating a suspect’s nationality or ethnicity in legal investigations. Under the rules, a suspect’s race and ethnicity can be deemed a “protected characteristic” that would not be utilized by brokers conducting investigations.
The guidelines are anticipated to be launched to coincide with the anniversary of Floyd’s dying and would apply to the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and different federal businesses.
Last yr, on the second anniversary of Floyd’s homicide, Mr. Biden signed an govt order that elevated accountability in federal legislation enforcement. The order bans the usage of chokeholds, restricts no-knock warrants, requires the monitoring of use-of-force information, and mandates anti-bias coaching and physique cameras.
Chauvin and three different former Minneapolis cops — Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane — have been convicted of state and federal prices for his or her roles in Floyd’s dying. All 4 have acquired their federal sentences and are at the moment in jail, whereas Thao awaits his state sentencing.
Chauvin has appealed his state conviction to the Minnesota Supreme Court.
The Minneapolis City Council authorised a settlement settlement earlier this yr with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights that may change the town’s policing practices.
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