Holden’s ‘George Floyd Law’ Clears Senate Public Safety Committee

Assembly Bill 26, police reform legislation authored by Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena), on Tuesday passed the state Senate Committee on Public Safety.

Dubbed the George Floyd Law, AB 26 establishes clear guidelines for police responsibility and accountability when witnessing excessive force being used by another member of law enforcement.

“We are calling for responsibility and accountability,” Holden said. “Instituting these core values are paramount to building public trust that has eroded between law enforcement and communities across California.”

State law requires police officers to intercede when observing another officer using force that is beyond that which is necessary, but there are no universal measures used to determine that an officer has in fact interceded.

In the case of Floyd, who was murdered by convicted former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin on May 25, 2020, a lawyer for one of the accused junior officers at the murder scene argued that there was intervention because the junior officer asked the supervising officer if they should turn Floyd on his side.

If AB 26 becomes law, police officers would be required to intercede when witnessing excessive force under the updated guidelines and report the incident in real time to dispatch or the watch commander. The officer’s due process rights would be protected as the employing agency would review evidence and determine if the offending officer met the standard for intervention. Retaliation against officers that report violations of law or regulation of another officer to a supervisor would be prohibited.

Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s policing advisers released their recommendations which included legislation to “Require officers to intervene to prevent or stop other officers from engaging in excessive force, false arrest, or other inappropriate conduct.”

The legislation will next be considered in the Senate Appropriations Committee.