Police Reform

 People have been talking about the need for police reform for many years now. Over the last five years, I've been watching videos and reading news articles about the police nationwide. The problems we are having aren't new, but are instead amplified by the fact that nearly everyone has a smartphone to capture police corruption and violence. 

There are a few trends that have shown themselves over the years. There are some obvious issues that should be addressed by the various legislatures across the country. While activity at the federal level is preferred, some things can be done at the state levels. One thing people also ignore is that they can take action with their local police through activism and voting to remove those who support an abusive or ignorant police department.

Municipalities can also simply not carry insurance for their police officers. Police can, and should, be required to carry their own occupational insurance just as doctors and other professionals are required. This would create an insurance database of payouts made due to police mistakes or misconduct. Insurance companies would eventually price a police officer out of work if they continue to be problematic officers. Police officers with problematic histories would also increase liability insurance costs for municipalities as their high risk of vicarious liability driving premiums to unsustainable levels. 

If a State doesn't have a "Brady List" of police officers, individual judicial districts should create their own. Prosecutors, and "internal affairs", should place officers on this list who have been shown to make fraudulent reports or commit perjury. For transparency sake, this list should be accessible from the clerk's office. Defendants and concerned citizens should know which officers responsible for maintaining law and order are untrustworthy or dangerous. With this mechanism in place, a level of accountability would be reached where accused officer's actions will be known to any defendants they charge.

States Attorneys should stop defending and indemnifying police officers who get sued for civil rights violations. Police officers should have to pay for their own defense as well as pay any portion of the penalties assigned to them by the courts. It is a rare instance where the State determines not to shield an officer from their bad actions. If police officers know that malfeasance will cause them to be held financially liable, bad actors will slowly disappear as the consequences of their actions weed them out of the police forces. Police who make simple mistakes should be defended and supported by their employers, but those who act with malice or negligence should bear the consequences of their actions.

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