I'm not a lawyer, but I think qualified immunity should not apply to constitutional violations. Giving an opt-out for those violations is antithetical to the very substance of our (US) constitution.

▲ jopsen an hour ago | parent | next [-]

It's weird to me that courts don't at-least attempt to review if the conduct was in good faith and plausibly reasonable given the facts know at the time.

The idea that officials aren't personally liable for mistakes made in good faith isn't bad. But somehow the US tends to produce a lot of cases where good faith requires a lot of faith :)

▲ jazzypants an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Qualified Immunity should not apply ever. Period. No one should be above the law for any reason ever.

▲ pdpi an hour ago | parent [-]

Let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater.

Qualified immunity, as a concept, makes perfect sense. Police officers are not jurists, and they will make mistakes in enforcing the law. Making those officers personally liable for honest mistakes is, IMO, excessive.

The issue isn't qualified immunity itself, but rather the maximalist interpretation that seems pervasive in the US justice system, and the overwhelmingly broad definition of "honest mistake" that seemingly applies to the police, and the police alone.

▲ jazzypants an hour ago | parent | next [-]

I think you would find that they would make far fewer illegal mistakes if they actually had to deal with the consequences of those mistakes.

Qualified Immunity didn't exist as a concept until the 1960s, and it was put in place to shield policemen enacting racist policies and corrupt cronies of Nixon.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualified_immunity

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hk1337 an hour ago | parent | next [-]

I think we would see far fewer actions at all for fear of being sued.

	▲	jazzypants 43 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		They could just buy insurance. You know, like doctors, lawyers, and a wide variety of other professionals that deal with liabilities in their field. Regardless, the police get sued all the time anyways. It's just that the burden currently falls on the taxpayers.

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an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

[deleted]

▲ wvenable 38 minutes ago | parent | prev | next [-]

"Doctors and nurses will make mistakes in performing medicine. Making those doctors and nurses personally liable for honest mistakes is, IMO, excessive."

How many other jobs can we apply this to?

	▲	ceejayoz 20 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		And does it apply to, say, my tax returns?

▲ isityettime 34 minutes ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> Police officers are not jurists, and they will make mistakes in enforcing the law. Making those officers personally liable for honest mistakes is, IMO, excessive.

Or maybe police training should be longer than a coding bootcamp... in some countries, police work is an undergraduate major and the programs are quite competitive. Similarly, there are countries without qualified immunity as a policy, and it doesn't seem to fundamentally undermine policework there.

▲ mpalmer an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

    Qualified immunity, as a concept, makes perfect sense. Police officers are not jurists, and they will make mistakes in enforcing the law. Making those officers personally liable for honest mistakes is, IMO, excessive.

Your own usage of "honest mistake" is overwhelmingly broad, so it's not at all clear what alternative definition of qualified immunity you are advocating.

▲ balderdash an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

yup, i think a majority of people would agree with you, so why hasn't it happened? I think the answer is that elected representatives are more beholden to public sector unions than their constituents.

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estearum an hour ago | parent [-]

Texas: Famously pro-union

	▲	balderdash 34 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		yeah texas is definitely not pro-union - except that the only public sector unions that are allowed are for police and firemen... with Texas police unions contributing the the 3rd highest amount to politicians (behind CA and NY) - so its a real thing. https://www.pelrb.nm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Public-S... https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2022/06/police-unions-spend...