Strengthening and Unleashing America's Law Enforcement To Pursue Criminals and Protect Innocent Citizens
This Executive Order directs the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Defense (DoD), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and other federal agencies to take coordinated steps to strengthen, protect, and expand support for State and local police. It calls for federal legal defense and indemnification for officers, new federal guidance and resources to encourage more aggressive local policing, review and possible modification of court-ordered police reform agreements, and increased provision of excess military and national-security assets to assist local law enforcement. The stated purpose is to reduce crime by removing legal and political limits on police operations and prioritizing prosecution where local officials are seen as obstructing enforcement. Potential impact: the order increases federal involvement in local policing through guidance, funding priorities, legal interventions, and use of national security assets. It may shift the balance between federal and local control over policing practices, influence ongoing consent-decree reform processes, and raise legal and civil-rights concerns about militarization of police and protection of community civil liberties. Implementation is subject to existing law, appropriations, and possible legal challenges.
Key Points
- 1Legal defense and indemnification: The Attorney General must create a mechanism to provide legal resources and indemnification (payment for legal costs and liabilities) to law enforcement officers who incur expenses or liabilities for actions taken while performing official duties. This mechanism may include private-sector pro bono assistance.
- 2Federal support and best practices: Federal agencies are directed to maximize use of federal resources to give States and localities new "best practices" promoting aggressive policing, expand training, increase pay and benefits for officers, and strengthen legal protections for officers.
- 3Review of consent decrees and reform agreements: Within 60 days, the Attorney General must review ongoing federal consent decrees, out-of-court agreements, and post-judgment orders involving state or local police and seek to modify, rescind, or conclude those that "unduly impede" law enforcement functions. (A consent decree is a court-enforced agreement often used to require police reforms after civil-rights violations.)
- 4Use of military and national-security assets: Within 90 days, the Attorney General and Secretary of Defense (with DHS consultation) must increase provision of excess military and national-security assets, training, non-lethal capabilities, and personnel to local jurisdictions and determine how these resources can be used to prevent crime. (Domestic use of federal military forces is legally constrained by statutes such as the Posse Comitatus Act and other law.)
- 5Accountability and prosecution priorities: The Attorney General is directed to pursue legal remedies and prioritize federal prosecution in jurisdictions where state or local officials willfully obstruct criminal law enforcement or where officials allegedly use diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs as a cover for discrimination that restricts policing or endangers citizens.