Event: Law Enforcement Accountability: Has the tide finally shifted?
[Moderator] Steven Greenhut, Resident Senior Fellow and Western Region Director, State Affairs, R Street Institute
Jillian Snider, Policy Director, Criminal Justice & Civil Liberties, R Street Institute
Philip K. Howard, Chairman, Common Good, Senior Counsel, Covington & Burling, LLP
Improving public oversight of law enforcement officers has been an uphill battle, given the power of police unions and public concern about crime. For years, those unions have thwarted efforts to open disciplinary records to the public, reform asset-forfeiture laws and create a more rigorous system of removing bad officers. A variety of highly publicized excessive force incidents have sparked reform efforts. Police unions are playing defense for the first time in decades. The goal is to look at practical ways to put the public back in control of public safety policies.