CALIFORNIA, USA — California Assemblymember Chris Holden was one of the millions shaken by video footage that emerged of Minneapolis Office Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd's neck.
"What I took out of that -- other than what everyone else did in terms of Chauvin's illegal actions -- was really the other officers and how they basically stood there and did not intervene," said Holden. "Yet, there are no guidelines or principles of how they would know when to intervene."
That's why he created Assembly Bill 26.
If passed, the bill would ensure all law enforcement agencies in California have specific rules written into their policies, including that officers present during a use-of-force incident that is "clearly beyond what's necessary" step in and intervene.
The bill also includes specific policies on officers on-scene of an excessive force incident immediately report it to a superior officer as well as specifies when an officer may draw a firearm and point it at someone.
When ABC10 reached out to multiple law enforcement agencies in the Sacramento area about AB 26, they expressed a similar message: They already have these regulations in their policies.
"Sacramento Police Department officers are currently required to intervene if they observe another officer using force that is clearly beyond what is reasonable for the circumstances," the Sacramento Police Department said in their written response. "Our officers are also required to report any unreasonable force that they observe to a superior officer or our Internal Affairs Division."
That's why Stewart Katz, an attorney that's specialized in police misconduct cases, says while he approves of the bill he believes true change needs to happen within the agencies.
"Overall there are some significant changes and developments [in AB 26]," Katz said. "The problem is getting the people who actually are supposed to enact these things to do the right thing."
Katz said the most significant part of the bill, in his opinion, is how it explains excessive force in "terms of what's necessary rather than what might be arguably justifiable."
He also noted the importance of the bill's policy creation to training officers, a position where an officer is in charge of teaching/training the next generation in their line of duty.
Holden specifically proposed this piece of the bill from the influence of Floyd's death.
"One of the things we found fascinating was that Chauvin was a training officer. So he was really the commanding officer on the scene," said Holden. "How can someone who is a training officer be training officers and then themselves be more freelance in terms of how he was applying?"
That's why part of the bill's proposal to law enforcement's policies would be that an officer with an excessive force complaint filed against them would be unable to become a training officer for three years.
It's something that could be relevant and implement change directly within the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office. In an ABC10 investigation in August of 2020, we found that a Sacramento County Sheriff's Deputy with two shootings of unarmed individuals within 90 days then advanced to become a training officer.
When we asked Katz if this bill would directly change this circumstance, he said it depended on whether or not the agency would implement it. Something he believes is questionable.
"The problem is always what the departments are going to do," said Katz.
Holden said that by creating more transparency around training and overall law enforcement, this bill would create change.
"Having it in law means that it's something that is established, that not only does the public has greater access to that information but it also is clear that if it's going to change it's going to be as a result of the legislature writing a new bill. So I think there's clarity, there's predictability and ultimately there's accountability by having a bill that addresses all the important ingredients," said Holden.
Holden hopes AB 26 will pass in August 2021. So far, it's cleared a hearing in the Assembly of Public Safety and is on its way to the Assembly of Appropriations Committee.
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