WMAL Interview - Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard - 08.28.20

Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard joined WMAL's morning-drive radio show "Mornings on the Mall" in Washington, D.C. on Friday to discuss the extreme anti-police measures moving through the Virginia Assembly during special session. Some of the bills include lowering the punishment for assaulting a police officer and banning police from using tear gas and rubber bullets.

INTERVIEW - Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police VP and Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard

https://www.herndon-va.gov/public-safety/about-the-chief

https://www.vachiefs.org/

TOPIC: Virginia legislative special session has had a lot of anti-police nonsense

ASSAULTING A POLICE OFFICE

- Virginia Senate passes bill allowing assaulting a police officer to be a misdemeanor 

Bill removes mandatory jail sentence

RICHMOND, Va. – A controversial bill is moving forward during the current Virginia General Assembly special session.

On Wednesday, the Virginia Senate voted 21-15 to pass Senate Bill 5032, which would allow an assault against a law enforcement officer to a misdemeanor if the person attacked is not hurt.

Here’s the summary of the bill:

Eliminates the mandatory minimum term of confinement for an assault and battery committed against a judge; magistrate; law-enforcement officer; correctional officer; person directly involved in the care, treatment, or supervision of inmates; firefighter; or volunteer firefighter or any emergency medical services personnel and provides that such crime can no longer be committed as a simple assault and must result in a bodily injury.

Summary of Senate Bill 5032: The bill also removes mandatory minimum 6-month jail sentence for assaulting a police officer.

https://www.wsls.com/news/virginia/2020/08/26/virginia-senate-passes-bill-allowing-assaulting-a-police-officer-to-be-a-misdemeanor/

BANNING POLICE USE OF TEAR GAS AND RUBBER BULLETS

- Va. House panel backs ban on tear gas, rubber bullets 

Lawmakers in the House of Delegates gave a preliminary thumbs up Tuesday to legislation banning police from using tear gas and rubber bullets — so-called nonlethal weapons that departments around the state and country have deployed in response to recent widespread civil unrest.

“It’s currently legal for police in Virginia to use chemical weapons against civilians that we don’t even allow our troops to use in warzones,” saidDel. Dan Helmer, D-40th, who represents parts of Prince William and Fairfax counties, who sponsored the legislation.

And rubber bullets and beanbag rounds, he said, “are known to pose significant risk of death and permanent disability.”

The bill, dubbed the Best Equipment for Law Enforcement Act, passed the House’s public safety committee on a party-line vote, with Democrats supporting and Republicans opposing. In addition to reining in crowd-control tactics, it also limits what kinds of military equipment police can obtain.

Law enforcement groups opposed the legislation, arguing rubber bullets, also called kinetic rounds, are an important law enforcement tool, especially in stand-off situations where someone is armed with a knife or other non-projectile weaponry.

“The way these munitions are used on a regular basis is not in civil disturbances,” said Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard, vice president of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police. “I spent four years commanding a SWAT team. I can tell you, these munitions save lives.”

As a compromise, she suggested limiting the ban to protests and riots, where their deployment has caused brain damage, loss of sight and other disabilities.

Herndon also defended the use of a federal grant program that distributes military surplus to local departments around the country, arguing the military rifles departments obtain through the program are essential equipment in the event of a shooting in which the perpetrator is also armed with a rifle. Law enforcement groups have also said armored vehicles play an important role in some standoffs.

“I will tell you a lot of smaller and mid-sized agencies do not have the funding to purchase these for their agencies,” she said. “They need to be in the hands of patrol officers.”

https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/va-house-panel-backs-ban-on-tear-gas-rubber-bullets/article_a2df0998-e79e-11ea-b876-230f7af70540.html

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard joined WMAL's morning-drive radio show "Mornings on the Mall" in Washington, D.C. on Friday to discuss the extreme anti-police measures moving through the Virginia Assembly during special session. Some of the bills include lowering the punishment for assaulting a police officer and banning police from using tear gas and rubber bullets.

INTERVIEW - Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police VP and Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard

https://www.herndon-va.gov/public-safety/about-the-chief

https://www.vachiefs.org/

TOPIC: Virginia legislative special session has had a lot of anti-police nonsense

ASSAULTING A POLICE OFFICE

- Virginia Senate passes bill allowing assaulting a police officer to be a misdemeanor 

Bill removes mandatory jail sentence

RICHMOND, Va. – A controversial bill is moving forward during the current Virginia General Assembly special session.

On Wednesday, the Virginia Senate voted 21-15 to pass Senate Bill 5032, which would allow an assault against a law enforcement officer to a misdemeanor if the person attacked is not hurt.

Here’s the summary of the bill:

Eliminates the mandatory minimum term of confinement for an assault and battery committed against a judge; magistrate; law-enforcement officer; correctional officer; person directly involved in the care, treatment, or supervision of inmates; firefighter; or volunteer firefighter or any emergency medical services personnel and provides that such crime can no longer be committed as a simple assault and must result in a bodily injury.

Summary of Senate Bill 5032: The bill also removes mandatory minimum 6-month jail sentence for assaulting a police officer.

https://www.wsls.com/news/virginia/2020/08/26/virginia-senate-passes-bill-allowing-assaulting-a-police-officer-to-be-a-misdemeanor/

BANNING POLICE USE OF TEAR GAS AND RUBBER BULLETS

- Va. House panel backs ban on tear gas, rubber bullets 

Lawmakers in the House of Delegates gave a preliminary thumbs up Tuesday to legislation banning police from using tear gas and rubber bullets — so-called nonlethal weapons that departments around the state and country have deployed in response to recent widespread civil unrest.

“It’s currently legal for police in Virginia to use chemical weapons against civilians that we don’t even allow our troops to use in warzones,” said Del. Dan Helmer, D-40th, who represents parts of Prince William and Fairfax counties, who sponsored the legislation.

And rubber bullets and beanbag rounds, he said, “are known to pose significant risk of death and permanent disability.”

The bill, dubbed the Best Equipment for Law Enforcement Act, passed the House’s public safety committee on a party-line vote, with Democrats supporting and Republicans opposing. In addition to reining in crowd-control tactics, it also limits what kinds of military equipment police can obtain.

Law enforcement groups opposed the legislation, arguing rubber bullets, also called kinetic rounds, are an important law enforcement tool, especially in stand-off situations where someone is armed with a knife or other non-projectile weaponry.

“The way these munitions are used on a regular basis is not in civil disturbances,” said Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard, vice president of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police. “I spent four years commanding a SWAT team. I can tell you, these munitions save lives.”

As a compromise, she suggested limiting the ban to protests and riots, where their deployment has caused brain damage, loss of sight and other disabilities.

Herndon also defended the use of a federal grant program that distributes military surplus to local departments around the country, arguing the military rifles departments obtain through the program are essential equipment in the event of a shooting in which the perpetrator is also armed with a rifle. Law enforcement groups have also said armored vehicles play an important role in some standoffs.

“I will tell you a lot of smaller and mid-sized agencies do not have the funding to purchase these for their agencies,” she said. “They need to be in the hands of patrol officers.”

https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/va-house-panel-backs-ban-on-tear-gas-rubber-bullets/article_a2df0998-e79e-11ea-b876-230f7af70540.html

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.