The Congressional Black Caucus sent an inquiry to the Department of Justice concerning the data on President Joe Biden's 2022 police accountability executive order.
According to WhiteHouse.gov, Biden's order, Advancing Effective Accountable Policing and Criminal Justice Practice to Enhance Public Trust and Public Safety, would create a national database tracking police officer misconduct. It would also provide guidelines for approaching mental health crises as well as initiatives to clean up jails and prisons.
Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., chairman of the CBC, said Attorney General Merrick Garland has received the notice and would be responding, according to The Hill.
The Black Caucus also has been focused on housing and job opportunities, but its main concern has been public safety reform; specifically, police accountability and transparency, reported The Hill.
"People have talked about the brutal, brutal beating of Tyre Nichols, which resulted in his death and is a reminder that we have a long way to go and solving systemic police violence in America," Horsford told The Hill.
Earlier this year, police in Memphis, Tennessee, pulled over Nichols for alleged reckless driving. The situation escalated, and five Black police officers pummeled the 29-year-old, who later died from the injuries.
"No child who goes to a park should not come home," said Horsford. "No one should die in the middle of the night when someone busts through their door in their home."
Horsford insisted the CBC is not targeting "law enforcement as a whole" but rather "bad policing."
"All of us, regardless of party, should agree that bad policing has no place in America. That is why we are working to build consensus," Horsford told The Hill. "This is not a Black, brown or white issue. This is a public safety and accountability issue. It is not a Republican, Democratic or independent issue. It is a public safety and accountability issue."
According to The Washington Post's police shootings database, 51% of victims since 2015 were white, 27% were Black, and 18% were Hispanic. Less than a quarter of victims were in a mental illness crisis. The majority of victims were male and under the age of 39.
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