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January 4, 2017, My brother Muhammad Muhammad, Tried to use the Phoenix public toilet. It sacrificed his life.
As Ministry of Justice begins investigation It’s time to demand again from the Phoenix police that police officers, like those who killed my brother, will be held accountable for their actions. A lesser-known federal principle called limited immunity has prevented thousands of infringed Americans from spending the day in court.
The details of this story are about Muhammad, but this fraud can happen to anyone if they do not pass the limited immunity and end the qualified immunity. George Floyd Justice in Police Law..
Restroom break ends with arrest
my brother Was suffering from schizophrenia, And on the day of his death, he temporarily lived in a park near the Maryvale Community Center in Phoenix. That morning, Muhammad entered the center to use the toilet with his service dog, the Chihuahua he named Chiquita. Because of Chiquita, the community center manager refused to allow Muhammad to use the toilet, despite Muhammad’s legal rights.
Editorial Board: Fix limited immunity tragedy where police can unhook after infringing civil rights
Then a community center employee accidentally called 911 Muhammad accuses him of pushing the manager.. Body camera image From the four Phoenix police officers who responded, Muhammad has always shown polite and polite.
Eventually, my brother was allowed to use the toilet, but while inside, officers looked up his name through their database and found that he had. No-show warrant from misdemeanor – Possession of marijuana pipes.
When Muhammad left the public hall, police said he had been arrested and ordered him to drop Chiquita. He never became combative or showed any kind of aggression. Instead, he just asked someone to take care of the dog.
The policemen ignored his plea and tore Chiquita from his brother’s arm. They handcuffed Muhammad and dragged him into a police car. When they got there, they slammed him into the hood of the car and tore his handcuffed arm into his head.
Muhammad screamed bloody-what has plagued me to this day. The policeman then threw him to the ground. And even though he had already been handcuffed and subdued, as many as six policemen got on top of him. Two of the police officers pushed their knees into Muhammad’s back and neck, pushing them down at full body weight.
My brother spent the last 8 minutes and 30 seconds begging for his life. At least five times he told the policeman he couldn’t breathe. He pleaded, “Please help me” and “Please stop.” In fact, Muhammad used the word “please” more than 10 times in his body camera video, but I still can’t stand to see it.
He suffocated For cardiac arrest.. In the video, you can see Chiquita worried about her brother. Muhammad was sentenced to death at a local hospital.
My brother’s murderer avoids justice
Maricopa County Prosecutor Refused to prosecute Officer responsible for Muhammad’s death.So I decided to sue the person in charge For violating Muhammad’s constitutional right to be freed from excessive power. I have been prevented from spending the day in court because of limited immunity.
Qualified immunity begins with the assumption that police officers are unaware of the law and will not be held liable unless they file a proceeding. You can find cases with the same set of facts It turns out that the police are responsible. Without that exact precedent, there can be no trial.The case must be dismissed, even if there are officers Apparently infringed the victim’s civil rights, As in my brother’s case.
This is why limited immunity is a fraudulent reverberation room.
Phoenix police officers responsible for Muhammad’s death (they claim) There is no precedent It would have been particularly noticed that what they did to Muhammad was illegal and violated his constitutional rights. This is the protection that bad cop has for limited immunity.
In the case of Muhammad, it is not unique. In fact, limited immunity is the only biggest hurdle in the United States to hold police accountable. just now, After passing through the house, Senate is in negotiations Justice in police lawThis limits the ability of law enforcement agencies to demand limited immunity in the case of illegal civil proceedings and allows people like me to receive justice against the unconstitutional conduct of bad police officers.
Kimberly Beck: My son was killed by a park ranger. Qualified immunity means that I may never see justice.
Opposition to this law is fierce and is based on the false belief that police officers cannot work without limited immunity. But the truth is that even if the limited immunity is removed, officers have the same rights in civil proceedings as other Americans. Meaningful police officers who brutally killed Muhammad would be eliminated on the basis of free market principles: they would be too expensive to hire.
But above all, we believe that no one in the United States is beyond the law, so the limited immunity should be abolished. This should be especially true for people whose job is to do it.
Mussallina Muhaymin is the HIT Training Manager at the Community Health Center and has been dedicated to the pursuit of justice for his brother Muhammad Muhaymin.By cooperating with Campaign to end limited immunity, She advocates ending the doctrine so that all people are treated equally under the law.
Check out to learn more about limited immunity and how you can help Not responsible Wherever you can get a podcast.
This column is part of a series by the USA TODAY Opinion Team investigating the issue of limited immunity.The project will be partially made possible by grants from Unite..The opinions provided are those of USA TODAY Editorial board.. Stand Together does not provide any editorial input.
You can read diverse opinions from us Contribution Committee And other writers Opinion front page, On twitter @usatodayopinion And in us Daily Opinion Newsletter.. To reply to the column, please send a comment to [email protected].
This article was originally published in USA TODAY: Qualified immunity should not protect police from justice, consequences
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