Title 18 U.S. Code, Section 242 sets out punishments for people who "willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States."
This law, enacted in 1866, sets a nearly impossible bar for prosecuting cops who murder people in the course of their duties. To satisfy the statute, you have to "show beyond a reasonable doubt the officer acted with willful attempt to deny the victim a right."
A single amendment — changing the standard to "reckless disregard" instead of "intent" — would put killer cops on the same footing as anyone else who commits murder in the USA.
The problem is that the statute "has nothing to do on its face with police officers or police violence," said former Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights William Yeomans. "It's about deprivation of rights. So what you're actually proving in these cases is that the officer acted with the intent to [deny the victim rights.]"
This willfulness standard makes it difficult to prosecute police officers. "The government has to show beyond a reasonable doubt the officer acted with willful attempt to deny the victim a right," he said.
"The officer had to intend to use more force than was reasonably necessary," he noted. "Most of these cases are situations where officers are reacting quickly to something, so it can be very difficult to sort out what appeared to be reasonable to the officer at the time."
One Simple Change to the Law Could Make Prosecuting Killer Cops Easier [Zaid Jilani/The Intercept]
