State senators pass Police Accountability bill

Police officers will face strict new rules about when and where they can open fire on a suspect in the wake of Connecticut police shootings gaining nationwide attention.

News 12 Staff

May 29, 2019, 11:30 PM

Updated 2,018 days ago

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Police officers would face strict new rules about when and where they can open fire on a suspect in the wake of Connecticut police shootings gaining nationwide attention.

The new Police Accountability bill was unveiled Wednesday and state senators voted for the bill Wednesday night. The bill still has to pass the Connecticut House by next Wednesday to become law.

Dashcam video of a police shooting in Wethersfield last month shows an officer placing himself in front of a driver's car as it drove away. The bill would ban moves like that.

In other cases, like a shooting involving Hamden and Yale officers, police would be banned from firing into a car unless someone's life is in danger. That could also potentially apply to police shootings, similar to the death of Jayson Negron in Bridgeport two years ago.

Under the law, use-of-force cases, dashcam and body camera video must be released within four days. And police must keep a record of all pursuits and chokeholds.

This bill comes as a direct result of the New Haven and Wethersfield shootings. Prosecutors are still investigating both cases. In the Negron shooting, prosecutors said the officers' use of force was justified.