ATLANTIC BEACH, FL – Today, in light of the tragic events of the past week, Congressional District 4 Candidate Donna Deegan called for federal legislation requiring law enforcement officers nationwide to have body cameras along with the federal funds to equip them immediately.
Said Deegan: “The outpouring of anger, sadness, and frustration over the past week since the death of George Floyd, and before that of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, has filled the streets of most every major city in America with protests including our own. It has shined a blinding light on the national tragedy of systemic and institutional racism.
The African American community is hurting and has been hurting for a very long time. The bonds of trust between the Black community and law enforcement have been broken, to the extent they ever existed. We have to reform our criminal justice system root and branch, and we must do so now, today.
One thing Congress can do right now is require, mandate, body cameras for every law enforcement officer in this country. And provide the funding to purchase this vital equipment. No excuses. For officers who do the right thing day in and day out, which is the vast majority of our men and women in blue, they will be protected from false allegations and threats. But for those who do not, we will have a record of it. Sadly, it has taken the advent of the camera phone to bring actions like the killing of George Floyd to light and requires us to ask, how many have gone unseen.
Let’s do this now. It’s only a first step but we have to start the journey toward reconciliation and healing.”
