WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court is for now declining to get involved in an ongoing debate by citizens and in Congress over policing, rejecting cases Monday that would have allowed the justices to revisit when police can be held financially responsible for wrongdoing.
With protests over racism and police brutality continuing nationwide, the justices turned away more than half a dozen cases involving the legal doctrine known as qualified immunity, which the high court created more than 50 years ago.
It shields officials, including police, from lawsuits for money as a result for things they do in the course of their job. As is usual the court didn't comment in turning away the cases, but Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a 6-page dissent saying he.