California Cops Reject Bill That Would Limit Use Of Lethal Force
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.com
Thu, 06/21/2018
California law enforcement organizations are in staunch opposition to a new bill which would restrict the circumstances under which police officers can use deadly force in the line of duty, reports Alexei Koseff of the Sacramento Bee.
Assembly Bill 931 would increase the state mandated standard for the use of lethal force from “reasonable” to “necessary” in order to become law. While the bill passed through its first policy committee on Tuesday, it faces an uphill battle in a state legislature that typically doesn’t cross law enforcement.
“We agree that more training can result in better outcomes, but there is a fundamental disagreement about raising the standard above what the Supreme Court has said,” Jonathan Feldman, a lobbyist for the California Police Chiefs Association, told The Bee. -Sacramento Bee
Two cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1980s set a legal precedent that police officers can kill suspects if a “reasonable” officer in a similar situation would have done the same. AB 931 – introduced this spring following the South Sacramento shooting death of Stephon Clark – would restrict police to using deadly force only in situations where they have no available alternatives to protect themselves or others.
Clark, 22, was shot 20 times while holding his cell phone on March 18, sparking a public outrage.
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