"An intricate web of laws, policies, and customs protects U.S. police officers even when they abuse their power, according to this searing indictment. UCLA law professor Schwartz casts a harsh light on nearly every aspect of the justice system, from Supreme Court decisions to federal juries that 'disproportionately exclude people of color, poor people, people with criminal records, and people who have had negative experiences with the police.' According to Schwartz, the strongest police protection is qualified immunity, which shields officers from being sued for monetary damages even if they’ve violated the Constitution. Debunking the claim that if officers faced threats of litigation and bankruptcy for split-second mistakes, no one would serve in law enforcement, Schwartz notes that in 44 of America’s largest police jurisdictions, taxpayers carried the financial burden for 99.98% of settlements and judgments awarded to victims of police misconduct. (The city of Chicago paid almost half a billion dollars in such lawsuits between 2010 and 2020.) The author’s solutions include requiring officers to pay a portion of settlements entered against them, and better educating the public about the failures of the criminal justice system. Rigorous research, in-depth analysis, and poignant case studies make this a must-read study of an urgent social issue."
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I'm the author of Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable. In this video, I explain a bit about the book, what inspired it, and what I hope readers will get from reading it. Order Shielded at bit.ly/ShieldedBook - in stores 2/14/23.
Tony Timpa died after a police officer kneeled on his neck for 14 minutes. A court originally denied his family the right to sue.
Civil rights attorneys say that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals – which hears appeals from federal courts in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana – is where righteous police misconduct cases go to die.
But earlier this month, the Fifth Circuit issued a decision in a case, Timpa v. Dillard, that offers renewed hope that people whose constitutional rights have been violated can get justice in court.
Tony Timpa called the Dallas police in August 2016 to ask for help. The 32-year-old, white, college-educated executive was off the medication he usually took for anxiety and schizophrenia, as he told the police dispatcher.
But when five Dallas police officers arrived on the side of the road where Timpa was, they did not give him the help he needed. Instead, they handcuffed him behind his back, zip-tied his feet, and Officer Dustin Dillard put his knee and bodyweight on Timpa’s back.
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