VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach elected officials and law enforcement leaders are criticizing the effort to eliminate qualified immunity - the judicial concept designed to protect officers from frivolous lawsuits and civil liability.
On Thursday, a Virginia Senate committee killed a bill that would have ended qualified immunity, allowing people to sue police officers and seek damages if they believe their rights have been violated. The bill had previously passed the House in a narrow vote.
The argument against qualified immunity is that it can go too far - preventing officers from being held accountable if they violate someone’s rights.
Friday, a group of Virginia Beach leaders said efforts to change qualified immunity are dangerous and harmful for law enforcement officers.
“Recruiting and retaining police officers is already a challenge, but these actions in Richmond will make it difficult, if not impossible," said Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer. "We cannot just hinder these brave men and women from doing their job."
Dyer, Virginia Beach Sheriff Ken Stolle, Vice Mayor Jim Wood, Councilman Michael Berlucchi, Virginia Senator Jen Kiggans and Delegates Jason Miyares and Glenn Davis spoke in support of qualified immunity at a news conference at the Virginia Beach Sheriff's Office Friday.
"[HB5013] makes officers and law enforcement jobs more dangerous, more difficult and harder," said Miyares.
The group of Republican leaders and law enforcement officials said changing qualified immunity could put officers at risk.
“In the end, the people hurt most are the people of Virginia Beach who rely on the brave and heroic actions of the police to keep neighborhood and businesses safe," Dyer said.
Sheriff Ken Stolle said he recognizes there are criminal justice measures that need changing, and even said the application of qualified immunity could be "tweaked," but eliminating the judicial protection would be harmful.
“That’s the crux of this matter, you have to weigh the interests of the police officers being protected to do their job over the constitutional rights of the individuals," Stolle said.
Stolle, along with Vice Mayor Jim Wood, said they expect qualified immunity legislation to return for discussion in the future, and they will oppose it to make sure law enforcement officers' jobs don't become more difficult.
The discussion around qualified immunity often deals with officer accountability.
In qualified immunity cases, when would an officer be held responsible? Stolle said determining the officer's intent is important.
“If the police intentionally do something wrong they ought to be held accountable and I agree with that, if they don’t intentionally do something wrong and made a mistake then they probably shouldn’t be held personally accountable for it," he said.
Stolle thanked both Republican and Democratic state senators who voted against the bill yesterday.