GOP unveils police-reform bill as Democrats move to advance theirs

WASHINGTON — Greater disclosure of police use of force and no-knock warrants, and financial incentives for local law enforcement departments to ban chokeholds, are the centerpieces of a Senate GOP policing reform bill announced Wednesday.
The Senate bill, and a separate measure being considered in the House, are the congressional responses to the national racial-justice protests that have emerged following the death of George Floyd in the custody of a Minneapolis police officer. The protests, and the video of Floyd pleading with the officer to remove his knee from Floyd’s neck, have spurred a national conversation about police use of force and training standards for officers.

“It’s so important for us to say that we hear you. We’re listening to your concerns. The George Floyd incident certainly accelerated this conversation,” Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) said while unveiling his policing proposal Wednesday morning at a news conference with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other Senate Republicans.