George Floyd Death: US lawmaker proposes ending 'Qualified Immunity Act' in Senate

In the light of George Floyd's tragic death in Minneapolis last month, the United States Representative Justin Amash has tabled a proposal in the senate to end the Qualified Immunity Act, a legal doctrine which can protect police officers from civil lawsuits over misconduct. This comes in reaction to Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis law enforcement raising a question on the qualified immunity provided to law enforcement agencies.

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The US Supreme Court had introduced the qualified immunity doctrine originally with the rationale of protecting law enforcement officials from unwarranted lawsuits and financial liability in cases where they acted in good faith in unclear legal situations. However, in the light of the excessive police force in the recent past, the doctrine itself is in the question of being revoked.

On Thursday Minnesota Governor Tim Walz endorsed various proposed police reforms. These reforms include banning the use of restraints and chokeholds. According to an international media report, 14 Minneapolis police officers signed a letter of support for the reforms on Thursday.

Walz's endorsement comes at the time when Minneapolis Police Department announced it would withdraw from its police union contract on Wednesday. A veto-proof majority of the Minneapolis City Council signed a pledge on Sunday to replace the police department with a community-based public safety model.

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SC calls for reviewing the doctrine

Two judges at the US Supreme Court have called for re-examining the qualified immunity doctrine. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, considered as one of the most liberal justices, has repeatedly disagreed when her colleagues have excused police misconduct in cases of police brutality, as per reports.

In one such argument, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the court ‘willingly’ reverses lower court orders, when they refuse to grant qualified immunity to police officers. In a contrasting statement, she wrote, the court ‘rarely intervenes’ when lower courts wrongly grant qualified immunity to police officers. This ‘one-sided approach’ transforms the doctrine into ‘an absolute shield for officers.’

On the other hand, Justice Clarence Thomas, one of the more conservative members, has also called for reviewing the qualified immunity doctrine stating that it was created by judges without any 'historical basis'.

The legal battle over qualified immunity may now have reached an inflection point in the United States after George Floyd's death in Minneapolis. Presently, there are eight qualified immunity cases pending before the Supreme Court.

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