Support, Suggestions Given For Police Accountability Legislation In New Jersey

By Bob Pepalis | The Center Square contributor, The Center Square New Jersey

June 2, 2022

(The Center Square) – "A proposal to create a statewide police licensing program by Gov. Phil Murphy could be considered a good idea, but it needs explicit guidelines for discipline and transparency," a representative of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice says.

Murphy and Matthew J. Platkin, the acting attorney general, proposed legislation to require all law enforcement officers to get licensed by the Police Training Commission to work as officers in New Jersey, according to a release from the governor.

“There's no doubt New Jersey needs to increase mechanisms for police accountability," Yannick Wood, director of the institute’s Criminal Justice Reform Program, told The Center Square. "Since George Floyd's murder, we have seen very little movement on this, and New Jersey should do better. We need to pass pending legislation to ban chokeholds and to create civilian review boards.”

Murphy said New Jersey already requires teachers, doctors, electricians and lawyers to be certified or licensed to work in the state, Gothamist reported. Law enforcement is among the few skilled professions yet to require licenses beyond the requirements to complete training with the police academy.

"More than 40 states have established decertification or licensing for law enforcement officers," the release said.

"The proposed legislation would have the PTC establish licensing procedures and qualification standards, which would include passing a psychological evaluation, ongoing professional training requirements and ban officers from conduct such as using social media posts or being an active member of a group that advocates discrimination or the violent overthrow of the government," according to the press release.

"The proposal requires license renewal every three years," the release says.

“Requiring licenses for law enforcement across the state is a fine idea, but the devil is in the details if we want it to be truly meaningful,” Wood said.

If licensing of officers was enacted, he said to achieve meaningful accountability it would need to include explicit discipline guidelines in the bill’s language similar to sentencing guidelines established for a member of the public who has been convicted of a crime.

“Further, any decision to grant, renew, deny, suspend, or revoke a police license should not be solely delegated to a commission comprised of law enforcement," Wood said. "We cannot have police continue to police themselves without transparency."

He said the public must be involved in any licensing commission and on licensing decisions. And licensing decisions – or the lack of decisions – should be made public on a website.

The institute also would want established “a mechanism that requires police chiefs to report misconduct, including the factual background behind any allegations. There should be randomized audits,” Wood said.

Murphy and Platkin’s proposal would increase the number of public members of the PTC the governor appoints from two to four.

"The PTC would get authorization to suspend, revoke, deny or place conditions on licenses after a hearing," the release said. "Law enforcement agencies must tell the PTC why an officer or an applicant was separated from employment," the release said.

"The head of the New York State Policemen’s Benevolent Association supported the licensing proposal," Gothamist said.

The focus of the work of The Center Square New Jersey is state and local-level government and economic reporting that approaches stories with a taxpayer sensibility.