DENVER (KDVR) — The killing of Tyre Nichols in Memphis has many calling for police reform nationwide. During Nichols’ funeral this week, Vice President Kamala Harris and Rev. Al Sharpton called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
Colorado passed a sweeping bill of police reforms back in 2020 after George Floyd was killed by a police officer. A co-sponsor of that law, state Rep. Leslie Herod, D-Denver, joined the political program “Colorado Point of View” this week.
Gov. Jared Polis signed the Enhance Law Enforcement Integrity Act in June 2020. It led to several police reforms that are still being enacted to this day. That includes requiring officers to wear body cameras and report any use of force that results in injury or death, as well as eliminating qualified immunity for officers.
“It’s basically a shield saying if you knowingly do wrong as a police officer, you no longer have a shield of protection to keep you from prosecution,” Herod said. “We want to make sure that Colorado officers act with the utmost integrity and are held accountable.”
Herod: Colorado law could have stopped Nichols’ death
The law requires officers to intervene if they see a fellow officer using excessive force or violating someone’s rights. Herod said that for her, this is the most important part of that law.
“That’s so very important because that would have stopped this brutal attack on Tyre (Nichols),” Herod said. “It would’ve stopped so much brutality we’ve seen happen where officers are a part of it, or they step back and just let it happen.”
Many law enforcement agencies have struggled with recruiting new officers in recent years. According to the Data Desk, Denver and Aurora police forces were down 7% as of August 2022.
Herod was also asked if her law is affecting police recruitment. Watch her answer to that and much more on “Colorado Point of View” this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. or Sunday at 7:30 a.m. on Colorado’s Very Own Channel 2.