Congressman Cohen Reintroduces the Police Training and Independent Review Act

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, today reintroduced the Police Training and Independent Review Act, legislation that would help restore trust between law enforcement officials and the communities they serve by helping prevent police-involved deaths and encouraging independent, impartial investigations into law enforcement officials’ use of deadly force.

Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois introduced a companion measure in the Senate last week.

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

“Too many police encounters on our streets turn deadly. In my community, the death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of the Memphis police prompted protests and prosecutions. The names of Sonya Massey and Tyre Nichols have been added to the list of victims Philando Castille, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice and Alton Sterling: all individuals who were killed during interactions with law enforcement. And those are just the cases that made national news. Further, we know a disproportionate number of those killed are African Americans. To regain the trust of the people, we must ensure that our law enforcement officers have the proper training and the justice system treats all fairly and equally.”

The Police Training and Independent Review Act would create financial incentives for states to require training for law enforcement officials on fair and impartial policing and best practices for working with members of the community who are disabled and have mental illnesses. Additionally, it would encourage communities to use independent prosecutors to investigate law enforcement officials’ use of deadly force. When implemented, the legislation would authorize the U.S. Attorney General to award grants to states that require an independent investigation and, if warranted, prosecution in cases where one or more of the alleged offenses result in death or serious bodily harm.

Senator Duckworth released the following statement:

“From Chicago to Louisville or anywhere in America, we cannot allow ourselves to accept that Black teenagers, men and women are still being unjustly executed at the hands of law enforcement without judge or jury. Laquan McDonald’s death was preventable, and Congress still has yet to do enough to ensure tragedies like his never happen again. In honor of Laquan's 29^th heavenly birthday, I’m proud to lead Senate Democrats in reintroducing this overdue legislation that would help save lives and restore trust between law enforcement and local communities by increasing resources for training to help prevent such incidents, while promoting objective and independent investigations of police-involved uses of deadly force. Families like Laquan McDonald’s that have experienced heartbreak are no less deserving of justice than any other family. It’s time our country acts to ensure accountability within our law enforcement agencies and provide justice to those who have lost loved ones.”

Police in the United States kill more than 1,000 people each year, yet fewer than 3 percent of those killings result in an officer being charged with a crime. In much of the country, the officer's own department investigates a police killing while a local prosecutor—who works alongside that department every day—decides whether to bring charges, an inherent conflict of interest this legislation is designed to eliminate.

The types of independent investigation and prosecution of law enforcement that would be eligible for financial incentives under the Police Training and Independent Review Act include:

• The use of an independent agency, civilian review board or outside law enforcement department, such as the State Police, responsible for independently investigating and prosecuting all officer use of force allegations.
• The appointment of the State Attorney General, or a special prosecutor overseen by the State Attorney General, responsible for conducting the criminal investigation and prosecution.
• The use of an independent prosecutor, who does not reside or work in the same county as the county where the officer’s use of force was committed.

# # #