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On Saturday, August 12, 2017, a veritable who's who of white supremacist groups
clashed with hundreds of counter-protesters during the "Unite The Right" rally
in Charlottesville, Va. Dozens were injured in skirmishes and many others after
a white nationalist plowed his sports car into a throng of protesters. One
counter-protester died after being struck by the vehicle. The driver of the car
was caught fleeing the scene and the Governor of Virginia issued a state of
emergency. (Photo by Michael Nigro/Pacific Press)(Sipa via AP Images)
Photo: Michael Nigro/Pacific Press/Sipa/AP
Backed by Police Unions, Legislators Stand by Laws to Protect Drivers Who Kill
Protesters
Zaid Jilani, Lee Fang
August 14 2017, 7:10 p.m.
In the aftermath of the murder of activist Heather Heyer in Charlottesville,
Virginia, state legislators who had previously pushed to shield drivers who
killed protesters with a moving vehicle are largely standing by their various
efforts, arguing that their legislation would not have applied in this
weekend’s attack.
Before the killing on Saturday, a swath of bills had been proposed around the
country, largely in the South and primarily in response to Black Lives Matter
and Dakota Access Pipeline related protests. The bills targeted leftist
demonstrators who have increasingly shut down traffic by blocking roads and
highways to bring attention to their cause.
Under the proposed laws, motorists who struck and killed such protesters would
have special immunity in certain circumstances, as long as it wasn’t proven
that they acted deliberately. Heyer was struck by a car allegedly driven by
James Alex Fields Jr., a young man who is a supporter of white nationalist
causes.
None of the proposed motorist immunity bills — debated in half a dozen states
and backed by far-right personalities and law enforcement interests — have been
made into law. Rather than backing away from the policy in light of the events
in Charlottesville, legislators are doubling down.
In Texas, state Rep. Pat Fallon introduced a bill to limit the liability of
motorists responsible for hitting individuals who are “blocking traffic in a
public right-of-way while participating in a protest or demonstration.” The
Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, a statewide coalition of
municipal and county police associations, lists Fallon’s bill among legislation
supported by CLEAT. (Cleats are the spikes on the bottom of athletic shoes.)
In response to criticism over the weekend, Fallon doubled down on social media,
implying that his critics don’t know the difference between legal and illegal
protest (the Facebook status he links to has been deleted):
North Carolina’s version of the immunity bill, HB 330, passed the lower chamber
of the legislature in April. The text of the bill says that a “person driving
an automobile who is exercising due care and injures another person who is
participating in a protest or demonstration and is blocking traffic in a public
right-of-way is immune from civil liability for the injury.” The definition of
“due care,” of course, would be highly debatable.
On Monday morning, the bill’s co-sponsors, state Reps. Justin Burr and Chris
Millis, released a joint statement defending their legislation and claiming it
would not apply in the context of Charlottesville.
“It is intellectually dishonest and a gross mischaracterization to portray
North Carolina House Bill 330 as a protection measure for the act of violence
that occurred in Charlottesville this past weekend,” they wrote in a statement
given to The Intercept. “Any individual who committed a deliberate or willful
act, such as what happened this weekend in Charlottesville, would face
appropriately severe criminal and civil liabilities.”
A spokesperson for North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, said on Monday
that the governor would veto the legislation if it reached his desk.
North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Wayne Goodwin lashed out at the bill on
Monday. “This was a horrible and dangerous piece of legislation when
Republicans introduced it, and it remains an unnecessary bill today,” he told
The Intercept. “The right to peacefully demonstrate is a cornerstone of
American democracy; however, with this bill, North Carolina Republicans are
threatening that right by giving certain drivers a free pass to run over
protesters without any fear of civil liability. After the events in
Charlottesville, when a domestic terrorist murdered a peaceful protester with
his car, it’s unconscionable that Republicans still think this is a worthy
cause.”
Similar bills have been proposed in Rhode Island, North Carolina, Tennessee,
and North Dakota. While it’s unclear if any major interest groups beyond law
enforcement have supported the idea, police union support alone can provide
publicity and legislative traction.
In Florida, state Sen. George Gainer sponsored SB 1096, a bill that limits
liability for motorists responsible for the unintentional injury or death of
protesters obstructing traffic. The Florida State Fraternal Order of Police, an
association that represents 22,000 law enforcement personnel in the state, held
a press conference to support the Gainer bill. The legislative newsletter
sponsored by the Florida FOP features an image of law enforcement officers
standing behind Gainer to pledge support for the measure.
The Florida FOP’s legislative newsletter features law enforcement standing in
support of state Sen. George Gainer’s bill.
The Florida bill, however, died in committee before reaching a vote.
But the violence last weekend hasn’t prevented some law enforcement voices from
continuing to press the issue.
In Massachusetts, a police officer cheered on Heyer’s death over the weekend,
posting on Facebook, “Hahahaha love this, maybe people shouldn’t block road
ways.”
And on YouTube and other platforms frequented by far-right voices, many have
celebrated the effort to crack down on protests that block traffic. Donut
Operator, a YouTube personality known for posting “Blue Lives Matter” videos in
support of law enforcement, has published videos in support of the laws
designed to limit the liability of motorists. In one such video in support of
the North Carolina legislation, Donut Operator ends his monologue with a
gleeful compilation of cars plowing through crowds of demonstrators.
Top photo: A motorist drives into a crowd of counter-protesters during the
“Unite The Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va. on Aug. 12, 2017.