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An ordinance amending Chapters 2.44, 2.28; and 2.222 of the Metropolitan Code of Laws pertaining to criminal participation and related actions of employees of the Metropolitan Government.
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WHEREAS, officers and emergency service workers who support or affiliate with hate groups and paramilitary gangs undermine the mission of their agency by allying themselves with lawbreakers and by undermining the department's efforts to ensure equitable policing and earn community trust; and
WHEREAS, several hate groups and paramilitary gangs actively seek to enlist current and former police officers and members of the military to benefit from their social credibility and firearms expertise; and
WHEREAS, when police officers join, support, or advocate for hate groups or paramilitary gangs, they raise questions not only about their own fairness, judgment, and commitment to lawful policing, but also impair the credibility and legitimacy of a department that aims to equitably serve all communities within its jurisdiction; and
WHEREAS, Uunlawful political violence perpetuated by members of such hate groups and militia is the only type of violence and fundamentalism in our nation's history that has been state sanctioned and benefited from deep institutional penetration; and
WHEREAS, the Brennan Center for Justice has documented that since 2000, law enforcement officials with alleged connections to white supremacist groups or far-right militant activities have been exposed throughout the south including Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and elsewhere; and
WHEREAS, the FBI's 2015 Counterterrorism Policy Directive and Policy Guide warns that "domestic terrorism investigations focused on militia extremists, white supremacist extremists, and sovereign citizen extremists often have identified active links to law enforcement officers."; and
WHEREAS, members of hate groups and paramilitary gangs will utilize the knowledge an...
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