28 THE QUEENS COURIER • MAY 27, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
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Story: Jackson Heights City Council candidate calls for
bilingual education in public schools
Summary: In a neighborhood celebrated as one of the
most diverse in the nation, where nearly 180 foreign
languages are spoken, one City Council candidate
presented his case for bilingual education in every
public school in Jackson Heights and Elmhurst.
Reach: 1,547 (as of 05/24/2021)
Discretion and valor
New Yorkers are returning to the streets
for protests and vigils marking the oneyear
anniversary of the murder of George
Floyd at the hands of police offi cers in
Minnesota.
In the weeks aft er that horrifi c event,
New York saw a wave of new legislation
passed and signed into law to better
“police the police,” from outlawing the use
of chokeholds to making police offi cer disciplinary
records open to the public in the
name of accountability.
With the fi rst anniversary of Floyd’s
murder approaching, state Attorney
General Letitia James introduced on May
21 another reform measure: the Police
Accountability Act. If passed and signed
into law, it would redefi ne the state’s law
protecting an offi cer’s use of force.
Th e bill would reclassify police use of
force against an individual “from one of
simple necessity to one of absolute last
resort,” according to James’ offi ce. Offi cers
would be required, by law, to implement
other means fi rst in subduing an individual,
including verbal warnings, de-escalation
tactics and lower levels of physical
force.
Essentially, it clears the way for prosecutors
across the state to potentially
prosecute an offi cer accused of wrongfully
assaulting or killing an individual.
According to James’ offi ce, the current law
permits the lethal use of force by an offi -
cer based largely on the offi cer’s reasonable
belief that someone committed a crime —
and that oft en acts as a barrier preventing
prosecutors and grand juries from indicting
an offi cer for wrongdoing.
But what exactly will this bill change?
NYPD offi cers are already trained to
use other tactics to de-escalate situations.
We’ve written plenty of stories of police
shootings in which offi cers, while guns
drawn, directed an individual to drop their
weapon — only to fi re when the suspect
refused to do so or even pulled the trigger.
Even more so, prosecutors and grand
juries exercise discretion when considering
a case and the law; they’re not
required to indict anyone unless there’s
proof beyond reasonable doubt that a
crime occurred.
We can’t accept a climate in which an
offi cer is permitted to get away with acting
as judge, jury and executioner — but
we also can’t accept a climate in which an
offi cer winds up being restricted or unfairly
punished for using force when absolutely
necessary.
It’s diffi cult to legislate discretion —
which is why lawmakers must be careful
to allow prosecutors to seek justice against
offi cers who break the law while simultaneously
protecting good cops as they
enforce it.
REUTERS fi le photo by Lucas Jackson
New York State Attorney General Letitia James introduced the Police Accountability Act. If passed
and signed into law, it would redefi ne the state’s law protecting an offi cer’s use of force.
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