In the News

California bill to strip badges from 'bad officers' fails

September 01, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A bill that would allow “bad officers” to be permanently stripped of their badges failed to pass the California Legislature on Monday as state lawmakers could not muster enough support to pass one of the year's top policing reform bills.

The measure would have created a way to decertify officers found to have committed serious misconduct. The bill got a late boost from celebrity Kim Kardashian West, who tweeted that the measure is needed so officers are held accountable if they break the law.

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Police help defeat California bill on removing problem cops

September 01, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Police unions and other law enforcement organizations went into overdrive to thwart a measure that would have added California to the majority of states that can end the careers of officers with troubled histories. It failed as lawmakers scrambled to wrap up their work, and while the nation's most populous state still has no way to permanently remove problematic officers, a number of other police reforms passed.

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State lawmakers push bills to ban police chokeholds, require release of discipline records

August 31, 2020

With less than a week left in the current legislative session, California lawmakers are rushing to advance a series of bills on police force, including ones that would ban officers from administering chokeholds and firing tear gas at protesters and others that would boost accountability by making more law enforcement records open to public disclosure.

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CALIFORNIA SENATE OKS STATE REVIEWS FOR POLICE SHOOTINGS

August 31, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California is close to requiring independent investigations any time police kill an unarmed civilian, a move that would strip authority from local prosecutors at a time of heightened distrust between law enforcement and communities of color.

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California Considers Permanently Stripping Badges From ‘Bad Officers’

August 31, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Supporters of legislation allowing “bad officers” to be permanently stripped of their badges were twisting arms and calling out reluctant lawmakers on Monday as they struggled for votes on one of the year’s top policing reform bills.

The measure would create a way to decertify officers found to have committed serious misconduct. It faced an uphill climb on the last day of the legislative session because of vehement objections from law enforcement organizations that the proposed system is biased and lacks basic due process protections.

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Statewide Eviction Protections Approved by State Lawmakers, but Tenant Groups Still Fear Eviction Wave

August 30, 2020

Lawmakers voted to approve statewide eviction protections Monday night, barring landlords from evicting tenants if they miss paying rent because of the pandemic.

Millions of Calfornia tenants who have faced pandemic-related hardship may be protected by this bill.

The vote came right under the wire, as Monday was the last day for the Legislature to approve bills for this year's session.

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California Governor Gavin Newsom Announces Eviction Protection Legislation for Renters and Property Owners

August 30, 2020

August 30, 2020 - SACRAMENTO — Governor Gavin Newsom, Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) on Friday announced that they have reached agreement on AB 3088, co-authored by Assemblymembers David Chiu (D-San Francisco) and Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara) and Senators Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) and Anna Caballero (D-Salinas), to protect millions of tenants and small property owners from the economic impacts of COVID-19.

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California moves to consider reparations for slavery

August 29, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California lawmakers are setting up a task force to study and make recommendations for reparations to African Americans, particularly the descendants of slaves, as the nation struggles again with civil rights and unrest following the latest shooting of a Black man by police.

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Protests heat up across California

August 28, 2020

Protests over racism and police brutality are reigniting across California following the Wisconsin police shooting of Jacob Blake, even as state lawmakers back away from a slate of police reform bills introduced after George Floyd’s death as the legislative session draws to a close.

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Protesters rally in Sacramento demanding police reform, but when will that happen?

August 28, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As a black woman, Meg White said when she first saw the video of Jacob Blake Jr. being shot seven times in the back by police in Wisconsin, she went numb.

"The first thing I feel is anger, then next is powerless, then next is motivated. It’s just a reminder of just how important it is to not stay at home and wait for this to happen to me and my direct family,” White said.

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