Rep. Moore lobbying for racial profiling bill to get a hearing

Mecklenburg Democrat Rep. Rodney Moore pushed Tuesday for a bill that would prohibit racial profiling and mandate more training and oversight for local police departments.

Moore brought advocates and parents of people who have been killed by police officers from across the state, and plans to lobby representatives to put the bill up for a hearing in the House’s judiciary committee.

“This situation is at a tipping point,” said Moore. He referenced the unrest in Baltimore following the death of a man in police custody, as well as racially charged protests in Ferguson, Mo. “The same thing can happen here in our cities.”

Although racial profiling by law enforcement is prohibited under federal law, Moore said stronger protections are needed.

“It is banned at the federal level, but it continues,” he said. “We need to send a clear message to our law enforcement agencies.”

Rep. Leo Daughtry, a Johnston Republican who heads the judicial committee, couldn’t immediately be reached Tuesday.

House Bill 193 would prohibit profiling, direct the Department of Public Safety to keep statistics on killings by law enforcement officers, require more training for police about profiling and give citizen review boards broader power to investigate police misconduct, including subpoena power.

This story was originally published April 28, 2015 at 11:37 AM with the headline "Rep. Moore lobbying for racial profiling bill to get a hearing."