We must confront and correct outdated thinking, discriminatory policies, and the harms that they produce. In Congress, Donald will:
seek to reform our criminal justice system, ending self-defeating policies that promote over-incarceration and
create a school-to-prison pipeline
work to correct biases and disparities in policing and sentencing, both by changing unfair laws and by funding priorities like greater oversight, increased training, and body cameras for local law enforcement
Source: 2016 Virginia House campaign website DonaldMcEachin.com
, Nov 8, 2016
No secret purchases of lethal injection drugs
Legislative Summary: State agencies may contract with pharmacies for compounding drugs necessary to carry out an execution by lethal injection. The compounding of such drugs is not subject to the jurisdiction of the Board of Pharmacy, the
Board of Medicine, or the Department of Health Professions; and is exempt from the provisions of the Drug Control Act. The identities of any pharmacy that enters into a contract for the compounding of drugs necessary to carry out an execution by lethal
injection, any employee of such pharmacy, shall be confidential, exempt from the Freedom of Information Act, and shall not be subject to discovery as evidence in any civil proceeding.
Legislative Outcome::
Sen. McEachin voted YEA; passed House 59-40-1 on Feb. 10; passed Senate 22-16-1 on March 7; Gov. McAuliffe vetoed on April 8 and then signed substitute amendment
Oppose death penalty for accessories of capital murder
SB 1288: Redefines the "triggerman rule," which currently provides that only the actual perpetrator of a capital murder is eligible for the death penalty and that accessories and principals in the second degree can be punished only as if guilty of first
degree murder.
Summary by the ACLU: Death penalty critics feared that elimination of the "triggerman" rule might encourage prosecutors to bring many more death penalty cases and cause more executions to take place.
Veto message
from Governor Tim Kaine: Virginia is already second in the nation in the number of executions we carry out. While the nature of the offense targeted by this legislation is very serious, I do not believe that further expansion of the death
penalty is necessary to protect human life.
Legislative Outcome: Passed by Senate 28-11-1 on Jan/23/07; Passed by House 83-13-4 on Feb/21/07; Rep. McEachin voted NO; Vetoed by Governor Kaine on Mar/26/07
Sponsored stricter rules for police accountability.
McEachin co-sponsored George Floyd Justice in Policing Act
This bill addresses policing practices and law enforcement accountability:
lowers the criminal intent standard--from willful to knowing or reckless--to convict a law enforcement officer for misconduct in a federal prosecution,
limits qualified immunity as a defense to liability in a private civil action against a law enforcement officer, and
grants administrative subpoena power to the Department of Justice (DOJ) in pattern-or-practice investigations.
Rep. Elise Stefanik in OPPOSITION (3/1/21): I voted against H.R. 1280--this bill poses a grave danger to law-abiding police officers, as it would eliminate qualified immunity protections, lower the standard for federal civil rights lawsuits, and limit access to necessary equipment during emergencies and natural disasters. Democrats rushed this bill to the House Floor without accepting any input from Republicans, expert testimony, or significant data. I am proud to sponsor the JUSTICE Act with Senator
Tim Scott, to provide necessary reforms to end police brutality while protecting our law-abiding officers.
OnTheIssues explanation of "qualified immunity": "Qualified immunity" means that police officers (and other government officials) cannot be sued for actions on duty, unless knowingly taking unreasonable actions. This bill would limit "qualified immunity," which means the family in cases like George Floyd's could sue the police for civil damages.
Biden Administration in SUPPORT (3/1/21): We must begin by rebuilding trust between law enforcement and the people they are entrusted to serve and protect. We cannot rebuild that trust if we do not hold police officers accountable for abuses of power and tackle systemic misconduct--and systemic racism--in police departments.
Legislative Outcome: Passed House 220-212-0 on March 3, 2021, rollcall #60; received in Senate on March 9; no further Senate action during 2021.