Gov. Evers Wants Bans On Chokeholds, No-Knock Search Warrants
MADISON, WI — Citing a need to reform police departments across the state, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes unveiled a raft of proposals aimed at increasing police accountability.
The proposals call for establishing statewide use-of-force standards for all law enforcement agencies, deescalation training, funding for conflict mediation, a ban on chokeholds, and a bill aimed at penalizing people who call police in order to discriminate against others.
The governor's announcement comes on Juneteenth Day. Juneteenth Day, held every year on June 19, is recognized as the oldest commemoration of black liberation in the United States as the Emancipation Proclamation was enforced for the first time on June 19, 1865 in Galveston, Texas.
The announcement comes after more than three weeks of protesting and demonstrations in Wisconsin following the death of George Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis.
“Our country promises the opportunity of justice and equity, and it’s time for us to deliver on that promise,” said Gov. Evers in a statement Friday. “We know we don’t have all of the answers—no one does. This legislation is a first step toward dismantling the systems we’ve created, but it can only be a first step.”
Studies suggest that Wisconsin is ranked one of the worst states in the country for racial disparities, from infant mortality to child poverty, educational attainment to employment, and homeownership to incarceration.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated disparities in health outcomes as Black Wisconsinites only make up 6.7 percent of the state’s population according to the U.S. Census Bureau but account for nearly a quarter of Wisconsin’s COVID-19 deaths.
“We continue to lose far too many Black lives, be it from inequities in criminal justice and policing, in health care, or in economic well-being,” said Lt. Gov. Barnes in a statement Friday. “The social and economic consequences of these deep-seated inequities reach every community in our state and eliminating them will require action at every level of government. Passing these bills is one piece of how we move closer to accountability, equity, and justice for all.”
Gov. Evers and Lt. Gov. Barnes today also called for bipartisanship in addressing racism and increasing law enforcement accountability in a letter to the Wisconsin Legislative Black Caucus.
“[C]alling another special session where legislative leaders come in and gavel in and gavel out risks us losing this incredible moment in history where we can and should be able to work together to get something accomplished,” Evers and Barnes said in a joint statement. “We should not need a special session when people across our state are demanding we take action.”
The package of legislation announced by the governor and lieutenant governor includes:
Establishes statewide use of force standards for all law enforcement agencies that includes that the primary duty of law enforcement is to preserve the life of all individuals; that deadly force is to be used only as the last resort; that officers should use skills and tactics that minimize the likelihood that force will become necessary; that, if officers must use physical force, it should be the least amount of force necessary to safely address the threat; and that law enforcement officers must take reasonable action to stop or prevent any unreasonable use of force by their colleagues;
Prohibits discipline of a law enforcement officer for reporting a violation of a law enforcement agency's use of force policy; and
Requires the Law Enforcement Standards Board to develop a model use of force policy for law enforcement agencies.
Requires each law enforcement officer to annually complete at least eight hours of training on use of force options and deescalation techniques.
Creates a $1,000,000 grant program, administered by the Department of Justice, to fund community organizations that are utilizing evidence-based outreach and violence interruption strategies to mediate conflicts, prevent retaliation and other potentially violent situations, and connect individuals to community supports.
Requires law enforcement agencies to develop policies prohibiting the use of chokeholds.
Requires each law enforcement agency to not only prepare a policy regarding the use of force by its law enforcement officers, but to make it available publicly online.
Creates a civil cause of action for unnecessarily summoning a law enforcement officer with intent to infringe upon a right of the person under the Wisconsin Constitution or the U.S. Constitution; unlawfully discriminate against the person; cause the person to feel harassed, humiliated, or embarrassed; cause the person to be expelled from a place in which the person is lawfully located; damage the person's reputation or standing within the community; or damage the person's financial, economic, consumer, or business prospects or interests.
This bill would require that the Department of Justice publish an annual report on use of force incidents, including incidents where there was a shooting, where a firearm was discharged in the direction of a person (even if there was no injury), and where other serious bodily harm resulted from the incident; and
Requires certain demographic information to be collected about each incident and reported annually by DOJ on its website.
Prohibits no-knock search warrants.
Law Enforcement Standards Board Bill
Makes certain changes to the responsibilities of the Law Enforcement Standards Board, including requiring the Law Enforcement Standards Board to also regulate jail and juvenile detention officer training standards and regulate recruitment standards for the recruiting of new law enforcement, jail, and juvenile detention officers;
Requires each law enforcement agency to maintain an employment file for each employee; and
Requires each potential candidate for a position in an agency, jail, or facility that is or has been employed by a different agency, jail, or facility to authorize their previous employer to disclose his or her employment files to the hiring entity.
This article originally appeared on the Milwaukee Patch
