Lawmakers are focused on reworking the budget and reforming police practices, but these issues aren’t mutually exclusive. Monday, members of the House budget committee weighed the costs of some of the criminal justice measures moving through their chamber.
BBQ Becky, Permit Patty and Central Park Karen. These are some of the names used to describe white women who’ve made racist 911 calls.
Delegate Alex Askew is backing a bill that would make these kinds of calls a felony hate crime.
“We have seen time and time again throughout the years and even during these past few months a situation where people were targeted by civilians based on their race, which often time end in tragedy or unjust arrest,” he said.
Though the legislation’s financial impact is unclear, it carries a $50,000 price tag. That’s because state policy mandates a minimum cost for legislation that could result in a felony conviction.
Meanwhile, the bottom line was a little more apparent on other initiatives, like a proposal to let civilians sue police officers for misconduct. That would’ve required millions for new staff to handle ensuing lawsuits.
Delegate Robert Bloxom raised concerns about how the state was going to get some of that money back.
“The revenue would be coming from liability insurance that the localities have to pay, so the localities are going to have to pay more,” Bloxom explained.
The bill did not make it out of committee.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.