Only a few of America’s 18,000 law-enforcement agencies are federal; most are
governed by states, cities and counties. But the federal government can do two things to
advance police reform. First, it can change federal law. A bill that passed the
Democratic-led House in June, for instance, made using chokeholds a civil-rights
violation, and withheld federal grant funds from jurisdictions that do not ban them. It
also eroded personal-liability protections for police officers, and conditioned federal
funding on departments banning racial profiling. Joe Biden’s progressive criminal-
justice platform contains many of these measures, but his ability to enact them will
depend partly on whether Democrats control the Senate, which will not be determined
until after two run-off elections in Georgia on January 5th.
Second, the Justice Department can investigate police forces accused of persistent
misconduct that contravenes citizens’ constitutional rights. If it finds such a pattern, it
usually enters into a “consent decree” with that force—an agreement that lays out a
detailed plan for reform, overseen by a federal judge. Barack Obama’s administration
used consent decrees to encourage police reform in at least 20 jurisdictions. Donald
Trump curtailed the practice. Joe Biden has pledged to revive it.
Some governors and state legislators have already sprung into action. Probably more
than half of America’s law-enforcement agencies equip some officers with bodycams,
and at least six states have passed statewide laws; New York joined their ranks in June.
New York also banned chokeholds like the one that killed Floyd, created an independent
office to investigate misconduct allegations, required officers to report gun firings
within six hours and repealed a law that kept police disciplinary records secret. The
state required courts to collect and publish demographic data on low-level offences, so
the public can determine, say, whether police departments stop a disproportionate
number of non-white drivers. Colorado has also expanded reporting requirements. New
Jersey has ordered departments to identify officers punished for misconduct. Other
examples abound, particularly in Democratic-controlled states and cities.
To many activists, this is only the beginning. For all the ink spilled over inchoate
demands to “abolish” or “defund” the police, many proposals are more concrete.
Campaign Zero, a push for reform that grew out of the tragic events in Ferguson,
advocates eight policy changes which it claims could reduce police violence by nearly
three-quarters. The list includes banning chokeholds and shooting at moving vehicles,
requiring de-escalation and warnings before opening fire, and mandating that police
stop fellow officers they see using excessive force and report every time they threaten
or use force.
These are common-sense reforms, but bitterly opposed by many police departments.
The chances of such changes being implemented are far greater in places under
Democratic rather than Republican control.