The New York City Council decided to end qualified police immunity on Thursday, making it the first major city in the country to do so.
The measure was approved as part of a broader review of police practices.
Legal doctrine has for decades protected police officers from lawsuits alleging misconduct against those they are arresting, unless the policeman has violated a clearly established constitutional right.
Qualified immunity was first examined during racial injustice and protests against police brutality that rocked the nation in the light of George Floyd’s death.
The city council said in a statement that the bill would protect New Yorkers from irrational searches and seizures and the use of excessive force, as well as banning qualified immunity. The Big Apple unites two states, Colorado and Connecticut, to stem the defense of immunity.
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The bill now goes to the desk of Mayor Bill de Blasio, who must sign it.
At the same time, city lawmakers approved de Blasio’s plan to spend $ 72 million to improve police practices and accountability. This was after the city decided to divert $ 1 billion from the police budget last summer.
Another provision gives the Civil Complaints Review Committee, which investigates police misconduct, resources to investigate racial prejudice in policing and requires the police to collect data on traffic stops, including the race of those arrested.
Another resolution passed by the council requires newly hired police officers to live on the outskirts of New York City.
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New York City Council President Corey Johnson said that qualified immunity was “rooted in our nation’s history of systemic racism” and “should never have been allowed.
Opponents of the bill said it could discourage some from entering law enforcement. “Ending qualified immunity will prevent the best boys and girls in our city from joining the police force,” Councilman Robert F. Holden said when he voted no, according to the New York Times.
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“New Yorkers are being shot and policemen are out on the streets day and night, trying to prevent bloodshed,” Patrick Lynch, president of the Police Benevolent Association, said in a statement, adding that the new project “would cool down the operations of law enforcement. “