Alabama parliamentarians advance the draft law that would make it harder to give the police that use excessive force more difficult.

Montgomery, Ala. (AP) – divisive legislation that would extend the legal immunity for police officers who use excessive force or kill someone in the line of service advanced in the Alabama legislature, on Wednesday, arousing the crises among lawyers and civil rights who say it will make the functional functional and civil.

The law existing in Alabama already offers increased legal protection for the law, but the supporters of the “Back the Blue” bill say that the officers will increase and keep the police safer.

Police and civilians are currently having the right to a “stand Your Ground” hearing in criminal cases in which a judge can determine if the defendant has acted in self -defense. The new draft law would allow an additional hearing of immunity to officers accused of criminal offenses, where a judge will decide whether a file can continue on the basis that the officer has recklessly acted outside the field of application of law enforcement.

As the draft law is currently written, even if the judge initially denies the officer’s immunity in a criminal case, defense lawyers for officers can repeat their argument for immunity in front of a jury.

Unlike civilians, the police are also protected by civil liability, unless an officer acts “will, bad, fraudulent, bad faith, beyond his authority or under a wrong interpretation”. The new draft law would limit the continued liability to reflect the standards used to hear criminal immunity.

Norma Sanders, the president of the NACP of Lee county in the eastern part of the state, said, in a public hearing, in February, that the organization receives regular complaints regarding the brutality of the police, but that it is already difficult to obtain legal responsibility in accordance with the current legislation.

“We know that many of the police receive a small punishment or without any punishment when they commit a crime, because they hide behind the badge and say they are afraid of their lives,” said Sanders.

The bill is one of the A few of Alabama, Governor Kay Ivey The crime package he said is a priority for this legislative session.

Republican representative Rex Reynolds, who sponsored the draft law, said it is essential for the safety of the officers.

“We need the same confidence in our officers to fulfill their duties – sometimes at 21 years – and they can put them in a situation where in three seconds they have to make a discretionary authority decision,” said Reynolds.

The Democrats of the State Chamber of State of the representatives claimed to have made functional immune officers of criminal prosecution and shown toward more High profile police killings in the state that did not lead to guilty verdicts.

Former Alabama police officer, Jim Taylor, confessed to the February meeting that the draft law has the potential to undermine a relationship already tense between some citizens and law enforcement.

“The confidence in the application of the law is conditioned by the ability to respond to officers for their actions. This creates confidence in our communities with our representatives of law enforcement, ”Taylor said.

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Safiyah Riddle is a member of the body for Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America It is a non -profit national services program that places journalists in the local news rooms to report on undercover issues.