The nation’s largest police chiefs’ organization is calling on the federal government to re-establish a national law enforcement commission to help restore confidence in local public safety operations.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police said Thursday that recent incidents involving officers’ questionable use of force and abrupt increases in murder and robbery represent strong evidence for a panel, similar to President Lyndon Johnson’s Crime Commission, which would develop a national anti-criminal justice strategy. The panel would address a wide range of topics from police deployment to prison administration.
“We’re past the time when we’ve needed to do this,” IACP President Joseph Carter said Thursday. . . .
The IACP also cited “highly publicized” police incidents, such as the New York City shooting death of 23-year-old Sean Bell after his bachelor party and the death of an 88-year-old woman during an Atlanta drug raid.
I agree that someone needs to look at this problem. And I’ve suggested that we need legislation stripping officers and departments of official immunity in no-knock raids. I’m not sure what I think of this proposal, but at least someone besides Radley Balko is paying attention.