Police reform in the United States is an ongoing political movement that seeks to reform systems of law enforcement throughout the United States. Many goals of the police reform movement center on police accountability. Specific goals may include: lowering the criminal intent standard, limiting or abolishing qualified immunity for law enforcement officers, sensitivity training, conflict prevention and mediation training, updating legal frameworks, and granting administrative subpoena power to the U.S. Department of Justice for "pattern or practice" investigations into police misconduct and police brutality.
As of May 2023, no updated federal police reform legislation has fully passed the United States Congress. The most recent bill, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021, was introduced by then-California Representative Karen Bass in the 117th Congress in response to the murder of George Floyd in May 2020. The bill passed the House of Representatives on March 3, 2021, and was received by the Senate six days later on March 9. The bill collapsed in September 2021 after failed bipartisan negotiations in the Senate.
The history of law enforcement in the United States includes many efforts at police reform. Early efforts at police reform often involved external commissions, such as the Wickersham Commission, that spelled out reforms but left to the police to implement them, often with limited success.
A series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions under the Warren Court led to important changes in policing, with respect to civil rights and constitutional law. Mapp v. Ohio in 1961 and Miranda v. Arizona in 1966 were two highly influential court decisions. Mapp v. Ohio found that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment protection against "unreasonable searches and seizures" may not be used in criminal prosecutions. Miranda v. Arizona required that criminal suspects must be informed of their right to consult with an attorney and of their right against self-incrimination prior to questioning by police. These decisions began to set national standards for policing.
Special commissions, such as the Knapp Commission in New York City during the 1970s, have been used to bring about changes in law enforcement agencies. Civilian review boards (permanent external oversight agencies) have also been used as a means for improving police accountability. Civilian review boards tend to focus on individual complaints, rather than broader organizational issues that may result in long-term improvements. In addition to this, preemptive assessment evaluations can increase the potential of long-term improvement. The ability to identify police officers who are susceptible to behavioral issues and violence in high intensity situations can help leaders in law enforcement in being proactive against misconduct.
In response to instances of police brutality, the United States Commission on Civil Rights suggested in 1981 that police departments enforce early intervention programs. The goal of these programs is to spot potentially risky behaviors within police departments, and to take preventative action to reduce instances of police misconduct. Although not required, many police departments have opted to adopt early prevention programs. However, the methods used to identify problematic police officers were found to be inefficient. The identifiers used often flag officers that in reality pose a minimal threat, while those that would benefit from additional oversight fly under the radar. To offset this, police departments have been using an increased number of indicators to determine risk factors.
The 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act authorized the United States Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division to bring civil ("pattern or practice") suits against local law enforcement agencies, to rein in abuses and hold them accountable. As a result, numerous departments have entered into consent decrees or memoranda of understanding, requiring them to make organizational reforms. This approach shifts the focus from individual officers to placing focus on police organizations.
Some law enforcement agencies in the United States in the early 2000s and 2010s began to emphasize de-escalation as a method of conflict resolution and obtaining voluntary compliance. There are also emphases on community policing to build relationships and community trust in law enforcement; the evidence-based policing approach of using of data to assist with decision-making; and the importance of civilian oversight of police work. Nonetheless, instances of misconduct and brutality have continued to occur. Many proposed reforms have been put forward following the murder of George Floyd.
Early history Some early attempts at police reform involved hiring police officers that reflected the community they were policing. This meant hiring white female police officers to deal with white women, and hiring African American policewomen to work with black women. Georgia Ann Robinson, the first black policewoman hired by the Los Angeles Police Department in 1919, was part of such early reform efforts. She often referred the people she came in contact with to social services, rather than arresting them.
Early efforts at police reform often involved external commissions, such as the Wickersham Commission, that spelled out reforms but left implementation to the police, often with limited success.
1960s: the Johnson Administration and the Warren Court In the 1960s, President Lyndon Johnson created the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice. The commission's final report, issued in 1967, has been described as "the most comprehensive evaluation of crime and crime control in the United States at the time". It laid out reorganization plans for police departments and suggested a range of reforms. Several of the commission's findings related to the poor treatment of juvenile offenders.
A series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions under the Warren Court led to important changes in policing, with respect to civil rights and constitutional law. Mapp v. Ohio in 1961 and Miranda v. Arizona in 1966 were two highly influential court decisions. Mapp v. Ohio found that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment protection against "unreasonable searches and seizures" may not be used in criminal prosecutions. Miranda v. Arizona required that criminal suspects must be informed of their right to consult with an attorney and of their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination prior to questioning by police. These decisions began to set national standards for policing..
1970s and 1980s Special commissions, such as the Knapp Commission in New York City during the 1970s, have been used to bring about changes in law enforcement agencies.. Civilian review boards (permanent external oversight agencies) have also been used as a means for improving police accountability. Civilian review boards tend to focus on individual complaints, rather than broader organizational issues that may result in long-term improvements..
1990 to 2010 The 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act authorized the United States Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division to bring civil ("pattern or practice") suits against local law enforcement agencies, to rein in abuses and hold agencies accountable. As a result, numerous departments have entered into consent decrees or memoranda of understanding, requiring the agencies to make organizational reforms.. This approach shifts focus from individual officers to police organizations.
The Department of Justice also has a component called the Community Relations Service. Over the years, the Community Relations Service (CRS) has helped police departments and communities all over the country come to grips with the difficult task of maintaining law and order in a complex and changing multicultural society. Frequently, these efforts have involved minority citizens' complaints about police behavior, use of force, and hate groups.
In a 2003 document titled Principles of Good Policing: Avoiding Violence Between Police and Citizens, the DOJ Community Relations Service outlines a two-level strategy for reducing potential for violence by police:To reduce the potential for violence, police executives must inculcate the values articulated by policy and procedure into two levels of the police department: the administrative level and the "line" or operational level. To accomplish the task of value-transition on one level without doing so on the other is futile, for no change in police behavior will result. In addition to the two levels of the organization which the police executive must address, two dimensions of law enforcement must also be addressed: the police culture and various community cultures. Thus, to effect change in police-community violence, police executives must take a multidimensional approach. Traditional approaches to reform have been one-dimensional, and have met with little success.
2010 to present Some law enforcement agencies in the United States in the early 2000s and 2010s began to emphasize de-escalation as a method of conflict resolution and obtaining voluntary compliance. There are also emphases on community policing to build relationships and community trust in law enforcement; the evidence-based policing approach of using of data to assist with decision-making; and the importance of civilian oversight of police work.
Police use of force and issues of race
In the 2010s, a series of shootings of unarmed individuals by police officers correlated with calls for police and law enforcement reform, especially regarding the diversity of police officers and the treatment of minorities by the criminal justice system.
In the specific case of the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson in August 2014, an investigation by the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division concluded that, while there were not sufficient grounds to charge the police officer who shot Brown with a criminal offense, the Ferguson Police Department as a whole "was routinely violating the constitutional rights of its black residents." Members of the Congressional Black Caucus indicated their appreciation of U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, and said that while many American police officers serve honorably, the problems found in Ferguson such as the use of fines to generate revenue instead of promoting safety and justice, the use of excessive force, and unconstitutional practices may also be found in other communities in the United States.
President Barack Obama created the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing. The commission issued a report on March 2, 2015, that made numerous recommendations. It did not call for all officers to wear body cameras, but did call for independent prosecutors to investigate civilian deaths in police custody or in officer-involved shootings.