Viola Klocko
Detroiters held a vigil in honor of Tyre Nichols at the Spirit of Detroit Plaza on Saturday.
Michigan lawmakers have failed to pass any meaningful police reform measures since the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police in May 2020.
For nearly three years, Democrats in the state Legislature have introduced numerous bills aimed at addressing police brutality. But under Republican control, the legislation went nowhere.
That could soon change.
Following the brutal beating death of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Black lawmakers and activists are calling on the Legislature to revive the stalled bills.
“Enough is enough,” Rep. Amos O’Neal, D-Saginaw, said at a news conference Tuesday with other members of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus. “Change must be made, not lip service, not rhetoric. This extreme violence must end.”
With Democrats now in control of the state House and Senate, lawmakers plan to reintroduce bills that would cover use-of-force, no-knock warrants, anti-bias training, police unions, and accountability measures for abusive cops.
Another bill would require officers to intervene when they observe their colleagues using excessive force, and they would be barred from using chokeholds “except to save a life.”
One bill calls for the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) to create guidelines for independent investigations of officer-involved deaths. Each police department would be required to develop a policy based on those guidelines, and MCOLES would have the authority to revoke the license of abusive cops who use excessive force that causes serious injuries or death.
Another bill would require MCOLES to maintain separation records of officers who use excessive force.
Police departments would also be required to develop use-of-force policies that include a verbal warning and the exhaustion of all alternatives before using deadly force.
Under the legislation, it would be more difficult for abusive cops to get another job if they’re fired for use-of-force violations.
State Sen. Erika Geiss, chairwoman of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus, said lawmakers are going to consider other measures.
“We are going to have to have some hard conversations,” the Taylor Democrat said. “We are going to have to in some ways change the system because that system is not working for everybody.”
Members of the caucus said they plan to move with urgency.
“Today is a new day, and we demand action on the polices we have introduced year after year after year,” state Sen. Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing, said. “Until every man, every woman, and every child can make it home alive after an interaction with law enforcement, our job is not done,” she added.
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