Ending Qualified Immunity Act
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleTo amend the Revised Statutes to remove the defense of qualified immunity in the case of any action under section 1979, and for other purposes.
Announced inthe 117th United States Congress
Number of co-sponsors39
Legislative history

The Ending Qualified Immunity Act is a proposed United States Act of Congress introduced in 2020 by Justin Amash (L-Michigan) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Massachusetts) to end qualified immunity in the United States.[1][2][3] Qualified immunity shields police officers and other government officials from being held personally liable for discretionary actions performed within their official capacity (even if those actions violate the civil rights of those affected) unless their actions violate "clearly established" federal law, a precedent requiring both that those actions violate written law and that there be a judicial precedent establishing that such actions are unlawful.[4][5][6]

The bill was re-introduced in the 117th Congress by Rep. Pressley in the House of Representatives[7][8] and by Sen. Edward Markey in the Senate.[7][9]

History

The bill was introduced to the House of Representatives on June 2, 2020. In introducing the act, Amash explained:

This week, I am introducing the Ending Qualified Immunity Act to eliminate qualified immunity and restore Americans' ability to obtain relief when police officers violate their constitutionally secured rights. The brutal killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police is merely the latest in a long line of incidents of egregious police misconduct. This pattern continues because police are legally, politically, and culturally insulated from consequences for violating the rights of the people whom they have sworn to serve. That must change so that these incidents of brutality stop happening.[2]

As of August 22, 2020, the Ending Qualified Immunity Act had 66 cosponsors, of whom Representative McClintock is the only Republican.[10] The bill's sponsorship by members of the Libertarian, Republican, and Democratic parties makes it a tripartisan bill.[11]

Background

Main article: Qualified immunity

Qualified immunity is a legal doctrine in United States federal law which shields government officials from being held personally liable for discretionary actions performed within their official capacity, unless their actions violate "clearly established" federal law—even if the victim's civil rights were violated.[12] The U.S. Supreme Court introduced the qualified immunity doctrine in 1967, originally with the rationale of protecting law enforcement officials from frivolous lawsuits and financial liability in cases where they acted in good faith in unclear legal situations.[13][14] Starting around 2005, courts increasingly[citation needed] applied the doctrine to cases involving the use of excessive or deadly force by police, leading to widespread criticism that it, in the words of a 2020 Reuters report, "has become a nearly failsafe tool to let police brutality go unpunished and deny victims their constitutional rights".[15]

References

  1. ^ H.R. 7085 (116th Cong.)
  2. ^ a b Prignano, Christina (June 4, 2020). "Ayanna Pressley, Justin Amash introduce bill to end prohibition on lawsuits against police officers". Boston Globe. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  3. ^ Sibilla, Nick (June 3, 2020). "New Bill Would Abolish Qualified Immunity, Make It Easier To Sue Cops Who Violate Civil Rights". Forbes. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  4. ^ Millhiser, Ian (June 3, 2020). "Why police can violate your constitutional rights and suffer no consequences in court". Vox. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  5. ^ Morgan, David (June 4, 2020). "U.S. lawmaker prepares bill aiming to end court protection for police". Reuters. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  6. ^ Alpert, Seth W.; Stoughton, Jeffrey J.; Noble, Geoffrey P. (June 3, 2020). "How to Actually Fix America's Police". The Atlantic. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Binion, Billy (March 1, 2021). "Ayanna Pressley Revives Justin Amash's Bill To End Qualified Immunity". Reason. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  8. ^ H.R. 1470 (117th Cong.)
  9. ^ S. 492 (117th Cong.)
  10. ^ Amash, Justin (June 4, 2020). "Cosponsors - H.R.7085 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): To amend the Revised Statutes to remove the defense of qualified immunity in the case of any action under section 1979, and for other purposes". United States Congress. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  11. ^ Binion, Billy (June 11, 2020). "With 1 Republican Cosponsor, Rep. Justin Amash Gains Tripartisan Support To End Qualified Immunity". Reason. Reason. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  12. ^ 63C Am. Jur. 2d Public Officers and Employees § 314-15.
  13. ^ Schwartz, Joanna C. (2017). "How Qualified Immunity Fails" (PDF). The Yale Law Journal. Yale Law School. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  14. ^ Chung, Andrew; Hurley, Lawrence; Botts, Jackie; Januta, Andrea; Gomez, Guillermo (May 8, 2020). "For cops who kill, special Supreme Court protection". Reuters. The increasing frequency of such cases has prompted a growing chorus of criticism from lawyers, legal scholars, civil rights groups, politicians and even judges that qualified immunity, as applied, is unjust. Spanning the political spectrum, this broad coalition says the doctrine has become a nearly failsafe tool to let police brutality go unpunished and deny victims their constitutional rights.
  15. ^ Chung, Andrew; Hurley, Lawrence; Botts, Jackie; Januta, Andrea; Gomez, Guillermo (May 30, 2020). "Special Report: For cops who kill, special Supreme Court protection". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
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