Harrisburg, PA – Calling them ‘new laws that make progress in keeping every Pennsylvanian safe,’ Governor Tom Wolf today signed House bills 1841 and 1910, which both passed unanimously in the House and Senate. The bills are the first two pieces of legislation from the governor’s comprehensive police reform executive actions announced in early June in the wake of the death of George Floyd when in Minneapolis police custody and subsequent protests in Pennsylvania and across the country.
“A little over a month ago I met with leaders of Black communities in Philadelphia and Harrisburg to discuss ways we can improve law enforcement to make our commonwealth safer for every Pennsylvanian,” Gov Wolf said. “Today, I am signing two bills that will take steps toward achieving this goal.”
Gov. Wolf was joined at the bill signing at the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) by Attorney General Josh Shapiro, members of the legislature and the Pennsylvania State Police, and Keir Bradford-Grey of the Defender Association of Philadelphia.
PCCD Executive Director Mike Pennington welcomed the governor and provided an overview of the commission’s role in police reform.
“As an agency, we answered the call the governor made last month to address reform,” Pennington said. “We’ve created a Racial and Ethnic Disparities Subcommittee under the Criminal Justice Advisory Committee here at PCCD. Keir Bradford-Grey of the Defender Association of Philadelphia will serve as our chair, and we look to have that subcommittee formed and convened within the next month or so.”
“I commend Governor Wolf and the General Assembly for establishing a mandatory, statewide database of police misconduct — a key change sought by reform advocates and a down payment on the improvements we still need to make. Today, Pennsylvania becomes one of the only states in the country to change its laws in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing. I heard the community in October, and worked to bring a breakthrough coalition of law enforcement leaders forward to get this done,” said Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “This legislation would make all Pennsylvanians safer by preventing departments from unknowingly hiring officers with past records of misconduct, and it shows we can make meaningful improvements in our criminal justice system. We won’t stop pushing for change until inappropriate police-community interactions, like what we saw that day in Minneapolis, are as rare as they are unacceptable.”
Read details on House Bill 1841 (requiring background checks), click here
Read details on House bill 1910, (requiring mental health evaluations) click here
