Connecticut Dems Pass Anti-Police Bill That Makes The Job Almost Impossible
The Defund the Police movement has taken a rough turn in Connecticut as Dems have passed a police reform bill that would put police in danger. The bill passed through the State Senate and now has to be signed by the Governor. The most offensive part of the bill has to do with removing police immunity from being sued in civil courts and restricting circumstances in which police can use lethal force.
"Every Republican in the Senate voted against the bill. Some denounced it as “anti-police.” Others were milder and called it well-intended, but rushed, flawed and in need of revision. Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven, said the sense of urgency so keenly felt by Democrats was artificial.
“Social media took over everything, set the tone,” Fasano said. “Shame on us.”
"The bill creates a new “office” of “inspector general” to investigate complaints against police, requires body and dashboard cameras, and restricts circumstances in which police may use deadly physical force.
The most contentious section of the bill alters the concept of qualified immunity, which prevents police officers from experiencing personal financial damages due to civil lawsuits related to their work.
Sen. Dan Champagne (R) said the bill would bar police from pressing motorists to search a vehicle unless they had probable cause to do so, a situation that would likely cause officers to recoil for fear of being sued."
"Champagne sees the legislation as flawed, particularly its limits on the doctrine of qualified immunity that long has protected police officers, good and bad, from liability in litigation over police brutality and other misconduct. The bill actually maintains significant protection for police officers in civil cases, specifying that officers will be indemnified against loss unless a jury enters a judgment against them for “a malicious, wanton or wilful act.”
But Champagne said he sees only pitfalls, traps for well-intended police officers and invitations for frivolous lawsuits..."Could someone who got a speeding ticket sue? What about the officer who confronts an armed man, fires and mistakenly hits a bystander? Would regional SWAT teams still be possible?"
This bill will likely pass in the blue state making the job as a police officer near impossible. I bet we will be seeing police retire/resign in droves. The job is tough enough putting your life on the line for your community and now to add to that they will be facing financial ruin.