Sponsors (3)
The bill clarifies and strengthens explicit protections and enforcement for protest-related use-of-force while removing the federal death penalty from §242—trading stronger clarity and lower litigation costs for concerns about perceived special treatment of protests, loss of a capital sentencing option, and potential effects on deterrence.
Protesters and bystanders — including parents/families, urban communities, and racial/ethnic minorities — gain clearer legal protection because §242 is explicitly applied to use-of-force during responses to protests, which also improves DOJ's ability to investigate and prosecute unlawful force in protest policing.
Law enforcement officers and defendants — removal of the federal death penalty from §242 — lowers the maximum federal punishment for most §242 convictions, reducing capital exposure for defendants.
Taxpayers, victims' families, and defendants — eliminating capital sentences in §242 reduces the likelihood of lengthy, costly capital litigation and associated expenses.
Law enforcement and local governments — explicitly singling out protest responses could create perceptions of special enforcement rules for protests versus other contexts, complicating policing decisions and public trust.
Victims' families and federal prosecutors — removing the death penalty eliminates a sentencing option that some victims' families and prosecutors may view as appropriate in the most egregious unlawful-killing cases.
Communities and law enforcement — lowering maximum penalties for §242 convictions could be perceived as reducing deterrence against the most serious deprivations of rights by officers acting under color of law.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Makes protest-related uses of force by officials explicitly covered by the federal civil-rights crime and removes the statute’s death-penalty option.
Introduced May 29, 2025 by Ilhan Omar · Last progress May 29, 2025
Amends the federal criminal civil-rights statute (18 U.S.C. § 242) to say explicitly that uses of force by officials while responding to a protest fall under the law’s prohibition on depriving people of rights “under color of law.” It also removes the statute’s option to impose the death penalty for violations. The bill changes who can be charged under § 242 in protest contexts and lowers the maximum criminal penalty available under that statute by eliminating capital punishment.