Editorial: Law enforcement mustn’t have blanket immunity from legal accountability

Several years ago, Brownsville police searching for a crime suspect received a call saying that the man they sought had entered a certain house. The call apparently was an intended diversion; the suspect was not there. The person inside, however, had a mental disability and didn’t understand what was happening when officers entered the house, and didn’t respond to their questions and instructions. The officers didn’t know his condition and when the frightened man picked up a screwdriver, he was fatally shot.

Investigators, and a court hearing a related civil lawsuit, recognized that the event was a tragic confluence of misfortune.

Other cases around the country, however, show that sometimes officers act irresponsibly or go beyond acceptable behavior. The names of many victims of excessive and unwarranted police force — George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Michael Brown, to name just a few — are well known, and have become symbols of official abuse and calls for reform.

That’s how it should be.

Two current issues could affect police accountability and might even compromise public safety.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case in which FBI agents also raided the wrong house. They eventually realized their mistake, apologized and left, but the residents filed a lawsuit claiming trespass, negligence, emotional distress and other grievances.

Government attorneys have gone beyond defending the agency of the specific allegations and are arguing that it should have blanket immunity from these kinds of lawsuits.

At the same time, the Texas Legislature is considering a bill that would exempt law enforcement officials from charges related to deadly conduct performed in the line of duty. The Senate already passed the bill and the House is expected to vote on it next week.

Law enforcement agencies understandably hate to defend themselves against accusations of using excessive force. They happen more often than officials would like — many agencies even take out insurance policies to help them pay the costs related to such cases.

Many of those cases are dismissed or weakened after judges and juries determine that suspects’ actions or other conditions made officers’ use of force defensible.

But improper actions do occur, and those bodies need to answer for them.

Immunity breeds impunity. Certainly, most officers always strive to do the right thing, but the few who don’t must always be held to account.

Such accountability helps pressure agencies and training academies to constantly review officer actions, training and policies that better ensure that they do things right.

More importantly, that accountability helps maintain public confidence in those who are pledged to serve and protect them. We never want to create conditions in which people will decide not to report crimes and suspicious behavior because they fear officers can’t — or might not — respond properly.

Law enforcement agencies need to trust that when the use of force is warranted their actions will be deemed justifiable. However, the people also need to trust that officers’ priority is public safety, and that excessive force will be addressed properly.

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