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George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021

Floor Speech

Date: March 3, 2021
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Criminal Justice

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Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

I started my career as the legal adviser to the Memphis Police Department. There were many fine policemen, and most of them never used a choke hold, never used their gun, and operated admirably. Some did not.

The disproportionate share that African Americans have suffered from killings by police shows we need to act. You can't think about George Floyd being choked with a knee and killed for 8 minutes. You can't think of Eric Garner being wrestled down like a prize trophy animal and killed in Staten Island, or young Tamir Rice, shot without an officer taking a second to think about it.

Mr. Speaker, these deaths require us to act. This is not defund the police. This is reform the police and save human lives. We need to pass this bill today. We should have passed it 40 years ago when I was a police attorney. Pass it now.

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