The Virginia Senate’s Judiciary Committee rejected a bill that would have allowed law enforcement officers to be sued for misconduct. The committee voted unanimously to kill the proposal on Wednesday, instead sending it for further study by a conference of the Virginia Bar Association. Qualified immunity is a legal principle that shields Virginia police officers from civil lawsuits. Sen. Joe Morrissey’s (D- Richmond) bill would have done away with that protection – letting people sue police officers for excessive force or other constitutional violations.

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The Virginia Senate’s Judiciary Committee rejected a bill that would have allowed law enforcement officers to be sued for misconduct. The committee voted unanimously to kill the proposal on Wednesday, instead sending it for further study by a conference of the Virginia Bar Association. Qualified immunity is a legal principle that shields Virginia police officers from civil lawsuits. Sen. Joe Morrissey’s (D- Richmond) bill would have done away with that protection – letting people sue police officers for excessive force or other constitutional violations.

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