Vote Yes on California Senate Bill No. 2

I am writing to you today as a concerned constituent of your district to urge you to vote yes on California Senate Bill No. 2, an act to establish a police decertification authority and end qualified immunity for law enforcement statewide. This bill enacts critical accountability measures that civil rights advocates and activists have long demanded to address widespread police misconduct. Across the nation, law enforcement has continued to escape accountability from criminal prosecution, when they commit constitutional violations against the public, and again when victims of police misconduct attempt to seek justice in Section 1983 actions. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1871 during Reconstruction to empower newly freed Black Americans with a cause of action against official misconduct. The Supreme Court then gutted the Civil Rights Act, by inventing the doctrine of qualified immunity in 1967, and imposing an almost insurmountable burden on Section 1983 plaintiffs whose civil rights have been violated, unless they can prove the right at issue in their case was “clearly established” at the time. Qualified Immunity shields police from accountability in civil actions, obstructs the pursuit of justice, incentivizes a police culture of lawlessness, and undermines the constitutional rights of every person in California, but particularly marginalized communities of color that are already overpoliced and underprivileged. Last year, George Floyd’s death shocked the nation, sparking protests against police brutality and systemic racism and triggering widespread calls for policing reforms, including the end to qualified immunity. Please honor the memory of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and all victims of police violence by passing Senate Bill No. 2, in order to restore our civil rights and ensure that no one is above the law. Sincerely,