The Secure DC Omnibus Bill Does Not Make Us Safer
The Secure DC Omnibus Bill Does Not Make Us Safer
The Secure DC Omnibus Bill Does Not Make Us Safer
Update as of March 2024:
Unfortunately, Secure DC – the crimnibus – was passed by DC Council 12-0 and signed into law by Mayor Bowser in March 2024. Many of its repressive policies have already gone into effect.
Although the bill passed, our collective efforts around the Us Not Crimnibus campaign led to some important and consequential changes that will help keep our community members safe and minimize mass incarceration policies.
Check out some of the highlights below and learn more 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽
Update as of March 2024:
Unfortunately, Secure DC – the crimnibus – was passed by DC Council 12-0 and signed into law by Mayor Bowser in March 2024. Many of its repressive policies have already gone into effect.
Check out some of the highlights below and learn more 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽
"Drug Free Zones"
A drug-free zone (DFZ) is basically any 1,000 sqft area of public space in DC that the cops can surveil heavily (aka, harass people) for up to 5 days at a time.
How does this impact you?
In a DFZ, cops can ask any group of 2+ people to disperse immediately if they just vaguely suspect them of engaging in drug-related activities. Their excuse could be an action as small as handing something to a friend. And if you don’t disperse, they can arrest you just for that.
As of March '24, people have already been arrested in these zones for refusing to disperse, and there have already concerns about abuse of police power raised in the media.
Mask Ban
You can now be arrested if a cop thinks you’re wearing a mask with the intent to hide your identity while committing a crime. You can also get charged with an extra crime if they think you actually committed the crime while wearing a mask.
How does this impact you?
A cop has no way of knowing whether you intend to commit a crime just by looking at you. So, they will rely on profiling and their biases. Cops have already started making arrests under this new law.
Our advocacy helped win an exception for wearing a mask for religious, health, or safety reasons. However, this still relies on cops determining your intent.
Taking the metro
Not paying a metro or bus fare is considered a civil (not criminal) violation, similar to parking your car in the wrong place or forgetting to use your turning lights. But the crimnibus added a sneaky loophole by creating a new crime: failure to give your name and address to a cop when being cited for fare evasion.
How does this impact you?
If Metro Police stops you for suspected fare evasion, and you refuse to give them your name and address, they can arrest you. They can also fine you up to $100, despite metro fare being typically only $2-6.
As of March '24, riders have already been arrested and citations for fare evasion tripled in the first week of the new law.
Police Violence
The law enables two more forms of police violence: deadly high-speed car chases and neck restraints. Secure DC repealed protections that had been passed just a few years prior.
How does this impact you?
Cops can chase residents and ignore all traffic laws, even if the person they are chasing is likely to be seriously injured or killed, and even if that person doesn’t pose an immediate threat to anyone. MPD can also use neck restraints to control a your movements, which can cause serious head, neck, and spinal injuries and death.
In 2020, George Floyd was murdered when a police officer used a neck restraint. That same summer, DC police officers murdered a young dad - Karon Hylton-Brown – by chasing him as he rode a scooter.
Saved
felony theft
The original crimnibus proposal would have lowered the threshold for a theft to be considered a felony (instead of a misdemeanor) from $1,000 to $500 – even though DC already has the longest average sentence for burglary in the country.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that if someone steals a phone or a bike that is over $500 but less than $1,000, they will not be charged with a felony or punished with up to 10 years in prison, which would only have worsened mass incarceration.
saved
Police Transparency
The original bill would have allowed MPD to hide cops’ names and badge numbers from public notices for police misconduct hearings. This would have given cops more privacy protections than the rest of us, even when they engage in serious misconduct.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that the public will continue to know the names of cops who are reported for serious misconduct, including sexual assault, domestic violence, and abuse of power.
Reduced Harm
Pretrial Detention
The original bill would have permanently expanded pretrial detention – locking up more children and adults before they can have a trial.
Council voted to make the expansion of pretrial detention temporary instead of permanent.
This means the expansion of pretrial detention will end after about 7-8 months. At that point, a study must demonstrate if pretrial detentions actually improve public safety. (Pro-tip: they don’t.)
Reduced Harm
DNA collection
The original bill would have significantly expanded DNA collection in certain cases after a person is arrested (Under the current law, DNA can only be collected after conviction.)
While Council initially voted to remove this section, it ultimately decided to expand DNA collection in certain cases after a person is charged with a crime and there is a judicial finding of probable cause.
The change is still harmful, as it means that the government will have access to people's DNA before they're even found guilty of a crime. But it does move DNA collection to a later stage of the criminal process, so the change will likely impact fewer people than the original proposal.
Although the bill passed, our collective efforts around the Us Not Crimnibus campaign led to some important and consequential changes that will help keep our community members safe and minimize mass incarceration policies.
saved
felony theft
👈
swipe
👉
The original crimnibus proposal would have lowered the threshold for a theft to be considered a felony (instead of a misdemeanor) from $1,000 to $500 – even though DC already has the longest average sentence for burglary in the country.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that if someone steals a phone or a bike that is over $500 but less than $1,000, they will not be charged with a felony or punished with up to 10 years in prison, which would only have worsened mass incarceration.
👈
swipe
👉
saved
Police Transparency
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have allowed MPD to hide cops’ names and badge numbers from public notices for police misconduct hearings. This would have given cops more privacy protections than the rest of us, even when they engage in serious misconduct.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that the public will continue to know the names of cops who are reported for serious misconduct, including sexual assault, domestic violence, and abuse of power.
👈
swipe
👉
Reduced Harm
Pretrial Detention
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have permanently expanded pretrial detention – locking up more children and adults before they can have a trial.
Council voted to make the expansion of pretrial detention temporary instead of permanent.
This means the expansion of pretrial detention will end after about 7-8 months. At that point, a study must demonstrate if pretrial detentions actually improve public safety. (Pro-tip: they don’t.)
👈
swipe
👉
Reduced Harm
DNA collection
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have significantly expanded DNA collection in certain cases after a person is arrested (Under the current law, DNA can only be collected after conviction.)
While Council initially voted to remove this section, it ultimately decided to expand DNA collection in certain cases after a person is charged with a crime and there is a judicial finding of probable cause.
The change is still harmful, as it means that the government will have access to people's DNA before they're even found guilty of a crime. But it does move DNA collection to a later stage of the criminal process, so the change will likely impact fewer people than the original proposal.
👈
swipe
👉
Mask Ban
👈
swipe
👉
You can now be arrested if a cop thinks you’re wearing a mask with the intent to hide your identity while committing a crime. You can also get charged with an extra crime if they think you actually committed the crime while wearing a mask.
How does this impact you?
A cop has no way of knowing whether you intend to commit a crime just by looking at you. So, they will rely on profiling and their biases. Cops have already started making arrests under this new law.Our advocacy helped win an exception for wearing a mask for religious, health, or safety reasons. However, this still relies on cops determining your intent.
👈
swipe
👉
Police Violence
👈
swipe
👉
The law enables two more forms of police violence: deadly high-speed car chases and neck restraints. Secure DC repealed protections passed just a few years prior.
How does this impact you?
Cops can chase residents and ignore all traffic laws, even if the person they are chasing is likely to be seriously injured or killed, and even if that person doesn’t pose an immediate threat to anyone. MPD can also use neck restraints to control a your movements, which can cause serious head, neck, and spinal injuries and death.In 2020, George Floyd was murdered when a police officer used a neck restraint. That same summer, DC police officers murdered a young dad - Karon Hylton-Brown – by chasing him as he rode a scooter.
👈
swipe
👉
saved
felony theft
👈
swipe
👉
The original crimnibus proposal would have lowered the threshold for a theft to be considered a felony (instead of a misdemeanor) from $1,000 to $500 – even though DC already has the longest average sentence for burglary in the country.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that if someone steals a phone or a bike that is over $500 but less than $1,000, they will not be charged with a felony or punished with up to 10 years in prison, which would only have worsened mass incarceration.
👈
swipe
👉
saved
Police Transparency
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have allowed MPD to hide cops’ names and badge numbers from public notices for police misconduct hearings. This would have given cops more privacy protections than the rest of us, even when they engage in serious misconduct.
Council voted to remove this section in the final bill.
This means that the public will continue to know the names of cops who are reported for serious misconduct, including sexual assault, domestic violence, and abuse of power.
👈
swipe
👉
"Drug Free Zones"
👈
swipe
👉
A drug-free zone (DFZ) is basically any 1,000 sqft area of public space in DC that the cops can surveil heavily (aka, harass people) for up to 5 days at a time.
How does this impact you?
In a DFZ, cops can ask any group of 2+ people to disperse immediately if they just vaguely suspect them of engaging in drug-related activities. Their excuse could be an action as small as handing something to a friend. And if you don’t disperse, they can arrest you just for that.
As of March '24, people have already been arrested in these zones for refusing to disperse, and there have already concerns about abuse of police power raised in the media.
👈
swipe
👉
Mask Ban
👈
swipe
👉
You can now be arrested if a cop thinks you’re wearing a mask with the intent to hide your identity while committing a crime. You can also get charged with an extra crime if they think you actually committed the crime while wearing a mask.
How does this impact you?
A cop has no way of knowing whether you intend to commit a crime just by looking at you. So, they will rely on profiling and their biases. Cops have already started making arrests under this new law.Our advocacy helped win an exception for wearing a mask for religious, health, or safety reasons. However, this still relies on cops determining your intent.
👈
swipe
👉
Police Violence
👈
swipe
👉
The law enables two more forms of police violence: deadly high-speed car chases and neck restraints. Secure DC repealed protections passed just a few years prior.
How does this impact you?
Cops can chase residents and ignore all traffic laws, even if the person they are chasing is likely to be seriously injured or killed, and even if that person doesn’t pose an immediate threat to anyone. MPD can also use neck restraints to control a your movements, which can cause serious head, neck, and spinal injuries and death.In 2020, George Floyd was murdered when a police officer used a neck restraint. That same summer, DC police officers murdered a young dad - Karon Hylton-Brown – by chasing him as he rode a scooter.
👈
swipe
👉
Reduced Harm
DNA collection
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have significantly expanded DNA collection in certain cases after a person is arrested (Under the current law, DNA can only be collected after conviction.)
While Council initially voted to remove this section, it ultimately decided to expand DNA collection in certain cases after a person is charged with a crime and there is a judicial finding of probable cause.
The change is still harmful, as it means that the government will have access to people's DNA before they're even found guilty of a crime. But it does move DNA collection to a later stage of the criminal process, so the change will likely impact fewer people than the original proposal.
👈
swipe
👉
Reduced Harm
Pretrial Detention
👈
swipe
👉
The original bill would have permanently expanded pretrial detention – locking up more children and adults before they can have a trial.
Council voted to make the expansion of pretrial detention temporary instead of permanent.
This means the expansion of pretrial detention will end after about 7-8 months. At that point, a study must demonstrate if pretrial detentions actually improve public safety. (Pro-tip: they don’t.)
👈
swipe
👉
"Drug Free Zones"
👈
swipe
👉
A drug-free zone (DFZ) is basically any 1,000 sqft area of public space in DC that the cops can surveil heavily (aka, harass people) for up to 5 days at a time.
How does this impact you?
In a DFZ, cops can ask any group of 2+ people to disperse immediately if they just vaguely suspect them of engaging in drug-related activities. Their excuse could be an action as small as handing something to a friend. And if you don’t disperse, they can arrest you just for that.
As of March '24, people have already been arrested in these zones for refusing to disperse, and there have already concerns about abuse of police power raised in the media.
👈
swipe
👉
Taking the metro
👈
swipe
👉
Not paying a metro or bus fare is considered a civil (not criminal) violation, similar to parking your car in the wrong place or forgetting to use your turning lights. But the crimnibus added a sneaky loophole by creating a new crime: failure to give your name and address to a cop when being cited for fare evasion.
How does this impact you?
If Metro Police stops you for suspected fare evasion, and you refuse to give them your name and address, they can arrest you. They can also fine you up to $100, despite metro fare being typically only $2-6.
As of March '24, riders have already been arrested and citations for fare evasion tripled in the first week of the new law.
👈
swipe
👉
Taking the metro
👈
swipe
👉
Not paying a metro or bus fare is considered a civil (not criminal) violation, similar to parking your car in the wrong place or forgetting to use your turning lights. But the crimnibus added a sneaky loophole by creating a new crime: failure to give your name and address to a cop when being cited for fare evasion.
How does this impact you?
If Metro Police stops you for suspected fare evasion, and you refuse to give them your name and address, they can arrest you. They can also fine you up to $100, despite metro fare being typically only $2-6.
As of March '24, riders have already been arrested and citations for fare evasion tripled in the first week of the new law.
👈
swipe
👉
© Us Not Crimnibus Campaign 2024
© Us Not Crimnibus Campaign 2024
usnotcrimnibus@gmail.com
usnotcrimnibus@gmail.com