Minnie Gonzalez

The legislation would have prohibited police from using deadly force on someone in a motor vehicle if the officer can avoid it by retreating from the vehicle’s path. Police would only be permitted to use deadly force if the person poses an imminent threat to the officer or someone else. However, officers would be banned from discharging their firearms at motor vehicles to disable them.

To help restore public trust in law enforcement, police officers who serve in a municipality that is home to 75,000 or more residents, would be required to wear body cameras while on duty. This will not only help promote police accountability, but it will deter officer and civilian misconduct and resolve complaints against law enforcement.

Under this bill, the state’s Division of Criminal Justice would be required to prepare a preliminary status report whenever a police officer uses deadly force in the line of duty.

The report must include the deceased’s name, gender, race, ethnicity and age. The time and location of death, the law enforcement agency involved, a toxicology report and death certificate would also be required in the report. The state’s Division of Criminal Justice would be given 40 days to complete the preliminary status report.