Ranking Member Cohen: SC Police Shooting of Unarmed Man Stresses Need for Public Reporting of Law Enforcement's Use of Deadly Force
Press Release
A bill introduced earlier this year by Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice, would close a loophole in federal law that makes it easier for local law enforcement agencies, including one in South Carolina where an officer has been charged with shooting an unarmed man in the back, to hide police shootings from the public. Congressman Cohen's National Statistics on Deadly Force Transparency Act (H.R.306) would ensure that adequate, comprehensive national data regarding justified and unjustified fatal interactions with police is reported and made available to the American people.
"Without clear video showing that he shot an unarmed man in the back 8 times, North Charleston police officer Michael Slager might not have been charged for the murder of Walter Scott," said Congressman Cohen. "But because of a loophole in federal law, it's also possible that we would have never even heard about this shooting at all. Right now, we can't tell the American people how many lives were ended by police officers this year, or any year. Before we can truly address the problem of excessive force used by law enforcement we have to understand the nature of the problem and that begins with accurate data. Congress must pass my National Statistics on Deadly Force Act so our nation can begin to fix these racial disparities and other problems in our justice system."
In February, FBI Director James Comey stated that it is "ridiculous that [he] can't tell you how many people were shot by the police last week, last month, last year." Director Comey also suggested that police departments nationwide should be required to report shootings that involve police officers so that these numbers can be tracked. Without accurate and comprehensive data, racial disparities, abuses, and instances of excessive use of force are difficult to identify and unlikely to be fixed.
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