Equality

WTOP |  In the wake of the fatal shooting of an unarmed motorist in Fairfax County, Virginia, a push is underway in Congress to require that federal officers wear body cameras. D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia have introduced a bill that would require not only bodycams, but also dashboard cameras in federal police vehicles. The Democratic lawmakers say… Read more »

Washington Post |  Sen. Charles E. Grassley, who has been pushing for answers in the fatal November 2017 shooting of Bijan Ghaisar by two U.S. Park Police officers, again pressed authorities for information Tuesday. He was joined by Sen. Mark R. Warner in a letter to the FBI. “The FBI’s slow pace and lack of transparency are weakening the trust between law enforcement and the… Read more »

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA) today introduced a bill to require uniformed federal police officers to wear body cameras and have dashboard cameras in police vehicles.  The District of Columbia and Fairfax County both require officers to wear body cameras and have dashboard cameras in marked vehicles.  Norton and Beyer want to adopt… Read more »

Washington Post |  When an Atlanta police officer working on an FBI fugitive task force shot and killed a wanted but unarmed man in January, he hadn’t yet been assigned a body camera. Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields moved quickly to assign cameras to all of her officers on task forces and was told no. Federal agents never wear body cameras, and they prohibit local officers from… Read more »

Washington Post |  The lawyers for two U.S. Park Police officers who shot and killed the unarmed motorist Bijan Ghaisar in 2017 said Friday that they expect a decision on charges from the Justice Department within 20 days. If no charges are filed, they said it would clear the way for the government to defend the officers in a civil suit filed by Ghaisar’s family. The… Read more »

WTOP |  The lawyer for one of two U.S. Park Police officers who shot unarmed motorist Bijan Ghaisar during a November 2017 traffic stop has told a federal judge that after discussions with prosecutors, the criminal investigation into the Ghaisar shooting will “be resolved” within 20 days. During a motions hearing in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, where Ghaisar’s family has… Read more »

Huff Post |  The Trump administration must stop applying a discriminatory policy that denies citizenship to some children born abroad to same-sex couples, 19 senators and 80 representatives said Thursday in letters to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The government treats some children born outside the United States to same-sex married couples as “born out of wedlock” ― a… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer issued the following statement today on reports that the attorney for an officer named as a defendant in a civil suit over the still-unexplained 2017 shooting death of Bijan Ghaisar told the judge in the case that government prosecutors suggested the case would “be resolved” within 20 days: “For 18 months the FBI and Justice Department have shrouded their investigation of… Read more »

Falls Church News Press |  U.S. Rep. Don Beyer, who represents the 8th District of Virginia that includes the City of Falls Church, today issued the following statement after the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Equality Act, a bill enshrining nationwide civil rights protections for LGBTQ Americans:  “This historic vote is the first time a chamber of Congress has… Read more »

Virginia Mercury |  U.S. House lawmakers on Friday voted to approve sweeping legislation aimed at barring discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in spite of broad opposition from House Republicans. In a major step for LGBTQ rights advocates, the House approved the bill, dubbed the Equality Act, by a vote of 236-173, including eight Republican… Read more »