New York county lawmakers have passed a bill allowing police to sue protesters
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Lawmakers in a Long Island county passed a bill allowing police to sue protesters.
The bill would deem police officers a protected class under Nassau County's human rights law.
Civil rights activists have argued that the law violates the First Amendment.
Lawmakers in a county on New York's Long Island passed a bill on Monday that would allow police officers to sue protesters who harass or injure them for financial damages.
The bill, passed by Nassau County's legislature, would allow police officers other first responders to sue anyone who harasses or injures them at a protest, NBC New York reported. Those found liable for the harassment or injury could also be fined up to $25,000.
The bill allows police officers and other first responders at protests to be a protected class under a human rights law - a status usually given based on religion, race, gender, and sexual orientation.
No other profession is included under the human rights law.
Civil rights activists have denounced the bill, arguing that it would violate the First Amendment, and is retribution for the 2020 anti-police-brutality demonstrations after the death of George Floyd.
Civil rights activists have denounced the bill, arguing that it would violate the First Amendment, and is retribution for the 2020 anti-police-brutality demonstrations after the death of George Floyd.
"This is intended to evoke fear in the community," civil rights lawyer Frederick Brewington said Friday, according to NBC New York. "This is payback. It's not right. It's not acceptable and it is against the law."
It's still unclear if Nassau County Executive Laura Curran will sign the bill, according to WABC.
She told Newsday she would be "making an inquiry to the Attorney General's Office to review and provide some advice."
Newsday reported that the lawmakers passed the bill with a 12-6 vote, and the public meeting where the vote occurred lasted a whopping eight hours.
The newspaper also reported that the head of the county's police union supported the bill, and said officers were being "targeted" due to their professions.
Read the original article on Insider
