The Equality in Policing Act, formally kown as The Uniform Reporting Law Enforcement Improvement Act (URLEIA), is a national legislative proposal drafted by ONUS’s CEO. The Act establishes policing standards every law enforcement officer in the nation must follow. Onus is working to make The Equality in Policing Act law.
How The Equality in Policing Act Works. The Equality in Policing Act relies upon computer programs and a national database to monitor the patterns and practices of law enforcement agents in every law enforcement agency in the nation 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. Law enforcement agents use smart devices supplied by the U.S. Department of Justice to enter very specific information about each contact made with a member of the public, including the person’s race, age, gender, and other demographic information. Agents must also identify items seized, vehicles towed, etc. Database programs analyze data entered by law enforcement agents (LEAs) and determine the patterns and practices of each LEA and law enforcement agency. Agencies and LEAs that exhibit troubling patterns are flagged (highlighted) such as officers who appear to disproportionately ticket people of a given race, officers who cause significant injuries during arrest, and officers who appear to be involved in an excessive number of use-offorce events. DOJ Compliance Team members and local attorneys authorized to act on behalf of DOJ will intervene and addressing alarming patterns and practices.
Data Flow—Policing
Data Flow—Other Law Enforcement Agencies
Summary—Transparency
- Creates a national pattern-or-practice database (POP).
- Requires every law enforcement agent (LEA) in every law enforcement institution to use the POP database for incident reporting.
- Tracks the individual actions of every police officer in the nation.
- Tracks the race, gender and age of every person who is the subject of a law enforcement incident or action.
- Deputizes licensed attorneys and empowers them to prosecute abusive law enforcement officers and law enforcement agencies on behalf of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
- Requires compliance teams to scrutinize POP data and take action to ensure law enforcement agents and law enforcement agencies are complying with The Equality in Policing Act.
- Provides data and reports that enable citizens and watchdogs to quickly identify and take action to remove bad law enforcement officers from policing and private-duty security.
Summary—Accountability
- Hands control of the entire investigative process to U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) contract investigative team when there is a “use of force” event.
- Empowers contractor investigators to assemble and present evidence to a newly-selected grand jury.
- Empowers private prosecutors with authority to prosecute accused law enforcement agents on behalf of DOJ when law enforcement officers are indicted.
- Introduces one national use-of-force standard that is applied nationwide.
Summary—Prevention
- Introduces Smart Policing as a core tenet.
- Imposes upon law enforcement agents an Obligation to Preserve Life and Prevent Injury.
- Forever bars “unfit” police officers from working as law enforcement agents anywhere in the United States.
- Allows for speedy and permanent removal of problem law enforcement agents (“unfit” agents) from the national law enforcement landscape.
- Requires the U.S. Attorney General to implement and oversee an Office of Civilian Oversight and Accountability (OCOA), which helps ensure citizens are integrally involved in helping to cultivate high-quality, professional policing.