What Does “qualified Immunity” Mean for the Police?
One of the most frustrating things about police killings that have caught the attention of the country in both recent weeks and years past is how rarely a police officer faces any consequences for taking someone else’s life. One of the reasons for this is the qualified immunity that protects government officials and, in particular, police officers from prosecution for a wide range of constitutional violations.
Ordinary people – doctors, lawyers, teachers, or salespeople – are expected to abide by the law. If they violate someone’s rights, they can be held accountable. They can be sued. They may be charged with a crime. Those with qualified immunity enjoy much greater protection in this regard. And this is a problem when it comes to the use of force by police officers.
Qualified immunity protects civil servants
Qualified immunity was originally designed to protect law enforcement officials from unfounded legal claims and financial liability, especially in difficult situations when they are forced to make decisions in a split second. In practice, this means that public officials, including police officers, are subject to much lower standards of conduct: they can only be held responsible for constitutional violations that fall within the scope of “well-established” case law. When it comes to defining these “well-defined” standards, there is a striking lack of precedent, a fact that led to catch-22: since the legal precedent is small, there are very few cases challenging qualified immunities, so the law has now set precedents. The snake always eats its tail, and blacks continue to be killed in the streets.
As UCLA law professor Joanna Schwartz said in an interview with ABC News :
“In order for the plaintiff to lose qualified immunity, he must find a previous case, which declared the incident unconstitutional with facts almost identical to the one cited by the plaintiff. And over the past 15 years, the court has made it more and more difficult for the plaintiffs to stand trial. ”
An example of this is what happened when a Special Forces squad destroyed Shaniz West’s home . The team asked to search the house, thinking West’s ex-boyfriend, who had a warrant for his arrest, was inside. West said yes and gave them the key. The SWAT team then proceeded to smash her windows and use so many tear gas cylinders inside that the toxic gas infiltrated her property and damaged her walls and ceilings, leaving her homeless for three months while repairs were carried out.
When West filed a lawsuit, the court ruled that the officers’ actions were subject to qualified immunity. Their decision was based on the premise that since there were no previous cases where the landlord gives consent for the police to enter his house, this consent prohibits them from knocking out windows and using chemical weapons, willy-nilly, these things fell under qualified immunity.
There are other examples of questionable actions by police officers protected by qualified immunity. These include officers from Dallas, Texas, who shot a cyclist 17 times, killing him if mistakenly identified; an officer in Heber City, Utah, who threw an unarmed man to the ground after pulling him through a cracked windshield, resulting in brain damage; and the Maryland officer who shot and killed a man who was mentally disordered while trying to stab himself.
The protection of police officers has been strengthened by the courts.
A recent Reuters analysis found that in recent years, police protection in the presence of qualified immunity has been reinforced by a growing tendency for courts to rule in favor of officers, making it difficult to challenge qualified immunities altogether.
From 2017 to 2019, the police won 56% of cases in which they required qualified immunity, a sharp increase over previous years, when the police won 43% of cases. Officers are also granted immunity before all the facts have been presented and an opportunity for immediate appeal, which is not available to other litigants.
Tee doctor, if your constitutional rights are violated by a police officer, you have very little remedy to bring justice.
How can qualified immunity be lifted?
There is a chance the Supreme Court will do its part in the fight to end qualified immunities , as it is at the heart of the eight pending cases they can take up. Judges Sonia Sotomayor and Clarence Thomas called for a revision of the doctrine.
Meanwhile, Congress discussed legislation restricting the use of qualified immunities, including the Police Fairness Act issued by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, which would prevent law enforcement officials from raising qualified civil rights immunities. cases. Meanwhile, the law representative Justin Amasha “On termination of the qualified immunity” and would not allow the officials of the state government to act in defense of qualified immunity in cases involving the violation of civil rights.
To learn more about your rights when dealing with the police, watch this video: