End qualified immunity

As discord continues to roil American cities in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd, U.S. Rep. Justin Amash has proposed new legislation that will remove an unnecessary immunity shield for police and usher in a new era of accountability.

Mr. Amash, a Libertarian from Michigan, with the support of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., hopes to end a legal doctrine known as “qualified immunity” for police.

Established by the Supreme Court in 1967, qualified immunity was meant to shield law enforcement from frivolous lawsuits in cases where they acted in good faith. Since that time, however, qualified immunity has been used to shield police from financial settlements for victims or their families, even when courts determine that officers have violated civil rights.

In a notable case from 2011, 34year-old Johnny Leija was hit with a stun gun and wrestled to the ground by three police officers at a small hospital in Medill, Okla. Leija, sick and disoriented from pneumonia, had refused to return to his room. In the struggle with police, he died. But qualified immunity shielded the officers involved from paying any penalty to Leija’s family.

Noting that the killing of Floyd is merely the latest incident in a long history of egregious police misconduct, Mr. Amash told congressional colleagues that the “pattern continues because police are legally, politically and culturally insulated . ... That must change so that these incidents stop happening.”

Qualified immunity has proven to be overly vague and ineffective at achieving justice for victims. Mr. Amash is right to target the doctrine, allowing people another powerful tool to hold law enforcement accountable. Officers who may have once acted with impunity will now have another reason to think twice before using force.

Progress toward a more equitable justice system will take time, but targeted reforms like Mr. Amash’s proposal will put the country on the fast track toward a fairer system.