State legislature passes police accountability bills

(JUNE 26, 2020) The Oregon legislature are the lawmakers of the state. They are meeting this summer in a special session in Salem. One of the issues they have discussed is the public demand for police reform. Today, the state legislature passed an historic package of police accountability measures.

Some of the measures that passed the legislature today were:

• To establish a committee that will look closely at police policies and make them visible to the public, including the use of force
• To outlaw the use of respiratory restricting restraints, unless in self-defense; an example of this is physical force that stops breathing or blood circulation, such as pressure to the throat or neck
• To require police officers to report other police officers who behave incorrectly
• To make police discipline records visible to the public
• To stop police from using tear gas for crowd control, except in special circumstances

“Today we proclaimed that Black Lives Matter,” said Senator James Manning. He is a Democrat from Eugene. “We shared the current and historic experiences of Black and Brown people in nation and across Oregon. I am former law enforcement, and I know what we are doing today is the beginning of ongoing work and lasting change. I am proud of what we accomplished.”

“For the people marching on the streets today, for everyone who wants to feel safe in their own communities from police harassment, for the future generations who deserve to live in a better world, today is an historic day,” said Representative Akasha Lawrence Spence. She is a Democrat from Portland. “We know that even amidst our celebration of what the POC [People of Color] caucus and our legislature has been able to accomplish that there is so much more work ahead of us.”

All of the measures now go to Governor Kate Brown for her approval.