SAY NO TO ABUSE OF POWER IN D.C. – STOP THE ACTIVE ACT

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Our safety matters, and so do our civil rights. The ACTIVE Act puts both at risk. The D.C. Council is now considering passing the ACTIVE Act, which is not a "public safety" bill. It's an "abuse of power" bill that threatens our fundamental liberties with warrantless searches and expanded pretrial detention.

If passed, the ACTIVE Act would allow police to search certain people without a warrant, and without cause, any time they are out in public – or even at a friend of family member’s house. This bill would open the floodgates for dangerous and ineffective police stops that violate people’s rights, waste resources, and damage community trust in police.  

The ACTIVE Act would also expand pretrial detention – a severe restriction and should be used very rarely in a free society. The tragic truth is that nobody comes out of jail in a better position to take care of themself or their family. And even short periods of unnecessary detention increase a person's risk of re-arrest.

We can stop this “abuse of power” bill. The D.C. Council’s Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety will hold a hearing on the ACTIVE Act on November 8.

Councilmembers need to hear from you! Send a message urging them to stop this bill. 

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Your Message

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Subject

I am emailing today with an urgent request to stop the ACTIVE Act from moving out of committee. I strongly oppose the bill’s provisions that allow warrantless searches and expand pretrial detention because these provisions undermine our civil rights and liberties.

Every District resident deserves safety and security, but this bill is not the way to make the District safe.

Message Body

In its current form, the ACTIVE ACT is not a “public safety” bill. It’s an “abuse of power” bill. With its troubling provisions that undermine our civil rights and liberties, the ACTIVE ACT will not make D.C. any safer. In practice, it could actually make the District less safe.

The search provisions could open the floodgates for dangerous and ineffective police stops that violate people’s rights. In practice, how will a police officer be able to tell who is constitutionally presumed innocent and awaiting trial and who is on a specific term of release that could subject them to a search?

The search provisions also waste police resources and further damage community trust in police. Especially in difficult times, police should not waste their time on broad, unfocused searches that may not even uncover criminal activity. When police officers are allowed to conduct unfocused searches and abuse their power, community members can understandably grow reluctant to interact with officers at all. As you know, distrust of the police has serious public safety consequences.

For these reasons, I urge you to stop the ACTIVE Act from moving out of committee. Instead, I encourage you to pass legislation that advances a comprehensive public safety system that focuses on prevention, effectiveness, and accountability. 

Sincerely,

[First Name] [Last Name]

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SAY NO TO ABUSE OF POWER IN D.C. – STOP THE ACTIVE ACT

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