Gov. Holcomb signs police reform bill into law
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Gov. Eric Holcomb on Thursday signed a police reform bill.
The new law, House Bill 1006, will require the state Law Enforcement Training Board to establish mandatory de-escalation training. It also bans chokeholds under certain circumstances.
The bill will also establish a procedure for the Law Enforcement Training Board to decertify officers who commit misconduct, and would ease the sharing of employment records between police departments, thus helping to stop “wandering officers” from moving jobs.
The law also says an officer who turns off a body-worn camera with the intent to conceal a crime commits a misdemeanor. The law does not include money for police agencies to buy body cameras.
The law also includes $70 million to upgrade the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy, a nearly 50-year-old training facility.
Also on Thursday, the governor signed in laws:
- A bill to create a monument to Hoosiers active in the women’s suffrage movement. The monument will be installed on the Statehouse grounds.
- A bill that ensures schools receive full funding for all students, regardless of whether they are receiving instruction virtually or in the classroom due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
