For far too long, corrupt officers have only received paid administrative leave or were placed in a new department due to bad behaviors. However, New York legislators announced Saturday are hoping to crack down on that process, preventing fired police officers from taking up the same job in new jurisdictions.
According to CBS News, New York council members are proposing the bill on a city-wide, as well as a state-wide level.
Brian Benjamin, a New York senator, is sponsoring the bill, which he collaborated with New York City Council member Francisco Moya and New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson.
“If you have the power and the privilege to enforce the law, you must be held to a higher standard. That standard has to include making sure that cops know that they can’t just do whatever they want to do,” Benjamin told CBS News.
New York lawmaker announces bill to prevent fired police officers from being rehired in other jurisdictions https://t.co/PEbQBqhJPb
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 25, 2021
If the bill is passed, it will also affect fired police officers who seek work elsewhere in the state of New York.
Benjamin told CBS News that he’s confident in its passing, referring to the recent conviction of Derek Chauvin and community unrest following recent police shootings as evidence of a coming change.
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Rev. Al Sharpton was in attendance at Saturday’s announcement to support the New York legislators in their bill proposal.
“We’ve seen police officers fired from their posts for their actions, and then go work for the police force in another jurisdiction,” Sharpton wrote in a press release.
“This is not right. The family of Eric Garner never even saw a courtroom. This family never got a chance to hear if their son’s killer was ruled guilty. In this moment, following the trial of George Floyd, New York needs to stand up and legislate, and that’s what these leaders are doing.”
