On June 26-28, Howard Friedman attended and spoke at a seminar on law enforcement and the U.S. Constitution. The program was attended by Virginia law enforcement officers. Howard spoke to the group on municipal and supervisory liability for police misconduct under Section 1983, the federal civil rights act. This seminar was put on by the Robert H. Smith Center for the Constitution and James Madison’s Montpelier in Orange, Virginia. The program allowed for interesting discussions with police supervisors on the issues they face performing their jobs and the restrictions placed on police by the Constitution.
The seminar included a review of the Final Report of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. Howard was pleased to see that one of the Task Force’s recommendations is: “Law enforcement agencies should acknowledge the role of policing in past and present injustice and discrimination and how it is a hurdle to the promotion of community trust.”