Law, Justice and Ethics (LJE) Policy Committee

A RESOLUTION ON REGULATING THE MANUFACTURE AND SALE OF BB AND AIR PELLET GUNS

WHEREAS, BB guns and air-pellet guns have been used to commit acts of violence and have caused great harm and injury throughout the United States, especially in poor and minority communities;

WHEREAS, many BB guns and air-pellet guns have been manufactured to appear identical to real firearms and utilized in the commission of crimes; and

WHEREAS, individuals have been stopped, detained, arrested and killed by law enforcement officials while possessing BB guns and air-pellet guns that are indistinguishable guns from real firearms.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Black Caucus State Legislators (NBCSL) urges Congress to take up legislation that requires BB and air-pellet gun manufacturers to design their products so that they are readily identifiable and distinguishable from real firearms;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL would encourage restricting the sales of BB guns and air-pellet guns to any person under the age of 18 years old;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL would encourage requiring a parent or guardian to be present and sign a certificate of ownership and responsibility for their usage;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL would encourage state governments to collect the names and ages of intended users and have them agree to comprehensive training and certification through a licensed gun safety provider in the use of said guns for all individuals that are under the age of eighteen;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL calls upon all states and territories of the United States to regulate the sale of such BB and air-pellet guns, in retail stores or gun shows; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, Vice President of the United States, members of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate.

• SPONSOR: Representative Brenda Gilmore (TN)
• Committee of Jurisdiction: Law, Justice, and Ethics Policy Committee
• Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Reginald Meeks (KY)
• Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 2, 2017
• Ratification is certified by: Representative Gregory W. Porter (IN), President

A RESOLUTION IN OPPOSITION OF RESTRICTIVE VOTING RIGHTS LAWS PASSED IN THE STATES

WHEREAS, the incidence of actual voter fraud is at a historically low level nationwide;

WHEREAS, several states have passed new laws restricting the right to vote by requiring strict photo ID requirements, cutting back early voting or absentee voting, or by restricting voter registration;

WHEREAS, collectively, the voter restrictions passed by each state are part of a broader movement to curtail voting rights and make it harder to vote; and

WHEREAS, these new voter restrictions passed by several states are either hindering or acting as a barrier to African Americans who want to vote and therefore has a disproportionately negative impact on communities of color and young voters.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) opposes policies and legislation that curtails voting right in the federal, state, and local electoral process;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL opposes newly enacted voter suppression laws passed by several states;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL membership will update their civic engagement programs to include voter education on the impact of suppressive voting laws and how Americans should properly navigate the barriers implemented by these state laws; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NBCSL send a copy of this resolution to the President of the United States, the Vice President of the United States, members of Congress, and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.

• SPONSOR: Representative Brenda Gilmore (TN)
• Committee of Jurisdiction: Law, Justice, and Ethics Policy Committee
• Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Reginald Meeks (KY)
• Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 2, 2017
• Ratification is certified by: Representative Gregory W. Porter (IN), President

A RESOLUTION ON LEGISLATIVE ACCOUNTABILITY TO ELIMINATE WRONGFUL USE OF DEADLY FORCE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT

WHEREAS, some law enforcement agencies devote insufficient time and resources to de-escalation training, which contributes to a police culture that is more volatile than tactful, leading to increased instances of the wrongful use of deadly or injurious force;

WHEREAS, law enforcement’s use of deadly or injurious force should always be the last resort given that the primary role of law enforcement authorities is to serve and protect the community;

WHEREAS, the lack of legal accountability towards law enforcement officers who wrongfully kill or injure unarmed and non-threatening persons is creating an unhealthy mutual fear that is damaging the relationship between police and communities; and

WHEREAS, laws in many states afford law enforcement officers unduly broad discretion in determining what is reasonable presumption of fear, which has led to many exonerations for police officers in wrongful shooting cases, while families of victims are left helpless and without justice.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Black Caucus State Legislators

(NBCSL) will advocate for mandatory de-escalation policies, training and enforced compliance for all law enforcement agencies with the requirement that such de-escalation training take place on at least a quarterly basis;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL will aggressively advocate for and pursue the arrest, indictment and conviction of any and all police officers involved in the killing of unarmed African Americans in the United States;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL will continue to advocate for policies requiring law enforcement personnel to use the minimum amount of force necessary to control or subdue a non-compliant suspect;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL will advocate and call on the U.S Attorney General, the Office of Justice Program Administrator, and the nation’s governors and legislators to eliminate ambiguous language in the law that allows law enforcement to use deadly force under the broadly interpreted “reasonable presumption of fear” and support nationwide, definitive language in the law that raises the level of the use of deadly force to incidents of absolute threats; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NBCSL send a copy of this resolution to the President of the United States, the Vice President of the United States, members of Congress, and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.

• SPONSOR: Representative Brenda Gilmore (TN)
• Committee of Jurisdiction: Law, Justice, and Ethics Policy Committee
• Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Reginald Meeks (KY)
• Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 2, 2017
• Ratification is certified by: Representative Gregory W. Porter (IN), President

A RESOLUTION CALLING FOR GREATER PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION REGARDING LAW ENFORCEMENT PRACTICES

WHEREAS, there has recently been a large amount of scrutiny from the public on law enforcement agencies across the nation that have not followed proper procedures during investigations and arrests;

WHEREAS, law enforcement agencies frequently receive requests from media, lawyers, community groups and members of the public for policies and procedures;

WHEREAS, existing federal and state laws allow for members of the public to request department training, policies and procedures, but there are currently wide gaps in compliance, and community groups and individuals have voiced frustration that these documents are not all currently available online;

WHEREAS, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which many state freedom of information laws base their tenets, currently requires that government records shall be disclosed to the public, upon request, unless there is a qualifying exemption not to do so;

WHEREAS, many state freedom of information laws allow enforcement agencies to create their own regulations, including policies and procedures, training and department general orders, which leads to different law enforcement agencies developing their own models and best practices;

WHEREAS, however, some state freedom of information laws does not require the actual substantive content of these regulations to be made publicly available in a searchable format and kept current online, which makes it inconvenient for some members of the public to access and compare these different models and practices;

WHEREAS, some state freedom of information laws does not provide a member of the public with any way to determine which organization has sought the information, or in what format the information is stored, or even what specific language should be used to ensure that request pursuant to state freedom of information law actually get fulfilled; and

WHEREAS, there should be a uniform standard for state and local agencies that requires state and local law enforcement agencies to post and maintain current police policies and procedures on their public websites and for the public to gain access to footage or data possessed by law enforcement.

THEREFORE IT BE RESOLVED, that the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) calls for a uniform standard for state and local freedom of information act compliance by requiring law enforcement agencies and other state and local law enforcement agencies to post and maintain current police policies and procedures on their public websites;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this resolution will save each agency costs and labor associated with responding to individual requests for this information, create better accessibility to law enforcement information, assist in educating the public about law enforcement department policies and procedures, and allow statewide and local law enforcement agencies to promote the best policies and greater accountability in law enforcement, thereby providing transparency and accessibility while enhancing relations between these agencies and the people they protect;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NBCSL urges each state and municipality to pass legislation that sets uniform standards and provides better access to disclosable information including camera footage; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States; the Vice President of the United States, members of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate; and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.

• SPONSOR: Senator Steven Bradford (CA), Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter (SC), Senator Anastasia Pittman (OK), Delegate Angela Angel (MD)
• Committee of Jurisdiction: Law, Justice, and Ethics Policy Committee
• Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Reginald Meeks (KY)
• Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 2, 2017
• Ratification is certified by: Representative Gregory W. Porter (IN), President

A RESOLUTION ON THE RIGHT FOR INJUNCTIVE RELIEF AGAINST CIVIL RIGHTS VIOLATIONS

WHEREAS, the use of excessive force by law enforcement across the United States causes significant damage not only unto those whose civil rights have been violated, but also unto entire communities;

WHEREAS, the damage caused when law enforcement uses excessive force also inhibits the ability of peace officers to build trust and cooperation with the communities they serve; and by undermining their effectiveness, thereby undermines public safety;

WHEREAS, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 imposes a civil liability on any person, including law enforcement personnel, who deprive persons of their civil rights through excessive force or any other such practice;

WHEREAS, the willfulness standard imposed by the U.S. Supreme Court in the prosecution of law enforcement officers for civil rights violations renders such cases extraordinarily difficult to bring about in practice;

WHEREAS, parties to a civil suit are constrained in their ability to petition for, and be awarded, injunctive relief against future civil rights violations which are part of an established pattern or practice of abuse;

WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Justice is authorized to bring civil suit against law enforcement agencies and departments that violate civil rights in an established pattern or practice of abuse in order to prevent future such civil rights violations;

WHEREAS, the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice has entered into 40 such reform agreements in pattern-or-practice policing cases since 1994; and

WHEREAS, there is no standardized, recurrent report on the objective effects of these reform agreements on the communities in which they took effect.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) encourages the United States Government to analyze and publically report on the extent to which consent decrees and other such agreements entered into by the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice effectively decrease or eliminate established patterns and practices of civil rights violations; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States; the Vice President of the United States, members of the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate; and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.

• SPONSOR: Senator Steven Bradford (CA)
• Committee of Jurisdiction: Law, Justice, and Ethics Policy Committee
• Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Reginald Meeks (KY)
• Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 2, 2017
• Ratification is certified by: Representative Gregory W. Porter (IN), President