SLS 15RS-3827 ORIGINAL
2015 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 224
BY SENATOR PETERSON
LAW ENFORCEMENT. Requests Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and
Administration of Criminal Justice to evaluate current practices used by officers when
interacting with the community to eliminate police brutality and promote peaceful
cooperation.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration on
3 Criminal Justice to evaluate current practices used by officers when interacting with
4 the community to eliminate police brutality and promote peaceful cooperation.
5 WHEREAS, while there are no definitive figures on how many Americans die in
6 police-citizen interactions, existing data indicates differentials by race suggestions that from
7 2010–2012, black men were twenty-one times more likely than their white peers to be killed
8 by police and similar racial disparities hold true among those injured by police; and
9 WHEREAS, an analysis of public records, local news reports, and Guardian
10 reporting found that thirty-two percent of black people killed by police in 2015 were
11 unarmed, as were twenty-five percent of Hispanic and Latino people, compared to fifteen
12 percent of white people killed; and
13 WHEREAS, as of May 31, 2015, eleven people have died in interactions with police
14 officers in Louisiana in 2015; and
15 WHEREAS, many have lost their lives in police-citizen encounters this year alone,
16 to include, Monique Deckard of Anaheim, California, Richard Davis of Rochester, New
17 York, Freddie Gray of Baltimore, Maryland, Charly Keunang of Los Angeles, California,
18 A'donte Washington of Millbrook, Alabama, Walter Scott of North Charleston, South
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SLS 15RS-3827 ORIGINAL
1 Carolina, and Eric Harris of Tulsa, Oklahoma to name just a few; and
2 WHEREAS, while these are instances that have been publicized, they represent a
3 small sample of those who have lost their lives; and
4 WHEREAS, low income communities are disproportionately affected by unjust
5 police actions; and
6 WHEREAS, the militarization of police departments further erodes the trust that
7 should exist between residents and the police who serve them; and
8 WHEREAS, we must acknowledge and counter the effects of systemic racial bias,
9 and ensure our police departments and criminal justice institutions protect and serve all
10 communities in a fair and just manner; and
11 WHEREAS, it is incumbent upon us as leaders of the state of Louisiana to urge and
12 request our law enforcement officials to review and evaluate current procedures used to train
13 officers for community engagement as well as implementing sound community-police
14 collaboration; and
15 WHEREAS, establishing trust requires sustained work on many fronts to build
16 relationships before crises occur and that the over-policing of communities through
17 aggressive traffic, drug, and petty offense enforcement does not help foster effective
18 community-police collaboration; and
19 WHEREAS, building trusting relationships is the key to successful
20 community-centered policing because police and residents who trust each other will be more
21 likely to collaborate on solutions to deep-seated safety concerns and police who understand
22 communities can deploy appropriate resources at critical times, avoid dynamics that can lead
23 to violence, and find community partners to improve safety in a sustainable way.
24 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
25 does hereby urge and request Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and
26 Administration on Criminal Justice to evaluate current practices used by officers when
27 interacting with the community to eliminate police brutality and promote peaceful
28 cooperation.
29 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement
30 and Administration on Criminal Justice shall gather further information relative to police-
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SLS 15RS-3827 ORIGINAL
1 community engagement and determine the best practices to achieve and promote peaceful
2 cooperation and effective community partnerships.
3 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement
4 and Administration on Criminal Justice shall report its findings to the legislature no later
5 than February 1, 2016.
6 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
7 Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration on Criminal Justice.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by J. Ashley Mitchell Carter.
DIGEST
SR 224 Original 2015 Regular Session Peterson
Request Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration on Criminal
Justice to evaluate current practices used by officers when interacting with the community
to eliminate police brutality and promote peaceful cooperation.
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