LANSING, Mich. (AP) - A Michigan lawmaker is proposing legislation to create a central database of disciplined police officers to boost accountability and help departments vet prospective new hires.
State Rep. Tyrone Carter, a Detroit Democrat and a former executive lieutenant at the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, says he is seeking support for the idea and is open to suggestions on provisions in the bill being drafted, The Detroit News reported over the weekend.
Critics say what’s needed is more and better training, as well as more money and staff to enforce current Michigan laws mandating information sharing about why officers left a department.
Carter pointing to the case of George Floyd, who died after a Minneapolis officer pushed his need into George’s neck for minutes. He said training wasn’t always a solution.
“You don’t need more training in situations like that - you need more accountability,” he said.
Robert Stevenson, director of the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police, says the emphasis should be on boosting staff who oversee existing laws requiring information sharing about officers who are fired, quit or leave a department for other reasons.
“We already have enough rules, regulations and laws,” he told The Detroit News. “We don’t need any more.”
James Tignanelli, president of the Police Officers Association of Michigan, agreed, saying current law already provides for the information about disciplined officers other departments might need.
He is also concerned a central database would maintain disciplinary records of officers for acts that are comparatively minor, such as calling in sick too often.
“I think you’d go crazy trying to track all officer disciplines,” he said. “If you’re going to do this, you’d need to focus only on abuse and unprofessional behavior.”
The proposed database would include officers who were disciplined but stayed on the job. Currently, information is shared about officers who left a department.
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