(WSIL) -- Illinois lawmakers are considering a bill that would remove qualified immunity protections for law enforcement across the state.
House Bill 1727, known as the Bad Apples in Law Enforcement Accountability Act of 2021, would remove qualified immunity, a statute which protects police officers from civil rights violations unless the accuser can prove otherwise.
Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Bullard said while there are good ideas to improve law enforcement agencies, 'eliminating qualified immunity is not one of them. Not even close'.
Bullard worries that removing those protections could have unintendend consequences like iving criminals an edge against law enforcement.
"[They could] use lawsuits as a way to fight those battles on the street, not because they actually have a righteous causes in their lawsuits, it's because they're doing it as a way to back off police," Bullard said.
Bullard argues most civil lawsuits are based off hindsight instead of the facts and circumstance of the event in question. Bullard says it's unfair to expect police to follow procedures that hadn't been created yet.
"These civil lawsuits try to interject that the officer should've known this before they used force," Bullard said. "They're taught policies and procedures that are based on laws at the time."
Bullard says it comes down to a lack of knowledge and understanding on what police go through on a daily basis. He hopes lawmakers can exercise empathy before making premature decisions.
"Once we start there, then we can start working," Bullard said.
In February 2021, Jefferson County passed an ordinance that protects qualified immunity for all of the county's police. County board leaders say it will remain indefinitely until they decide to remove it.
HB 1727 was refered to the Rules Committee on March 4 and hasn't seen any movement since. Illinois' spring legislative session ends on Friday.
