National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement

Urgent Priorities to Further Our Reform Efforts

The field of oversight of law enforcement has grown significantly in the last few years. With it, the needs of practitioners and communities looking to establish civilian oversight have also grown; the current national outcry for police reform has accelerated that growth rapidly. NACOLE is working hard to meet the demand but money is often a limiting factor. With your help, we could increase our capacity for outreach, advocacy, and education. We want to strengthen and expand oversight throughout the country, and give those tasked with doing this challenging and essential work the support and professional development they need to be strong, effective community-change agents. Your donation will directly support NACOLE’s top 3 priorities:

1. Advocacy for civilian oversight

2. Training of oversight professionals

3. Defining and defending oversight with state-of-the-field research and data

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RECENT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Registration is NOW OPEN for the 29th Annual NACOLE Conference

The 29th Annual Conference is scheduled to take place November 12-16, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. This year's event will bring together experts from the United States and around the world to discuss ways in which we can assess oversight systems, implement effective practices, and build better oversight. Sessions will focus on the momentum of the last three years, speakers will share information on strengthening the work of police, jail, and prison oversight, and particpants will be able to share innovations in oversight and law enforcement that will push civilian oversight forward in this continued era of reform. Read More

NACOLE Urges Governor Lee to Veto SB 591

NACOLE has recently send a letter to Governor Lee of Tennessee urging him to veto SB 591. The bill, sent to the Governor for signature on May 9, 2023, will abolish existing community oversight mechanisms and undermine local authority and the will of the people within these communities who overwhelmingly support strong, independent, and effective civilian oversight of law enforcement. Read More

NACOLE is Hiring!

NACOLE is currently seeking a Director of Training to oversee the development and delivery of all training and technical assistance programs. The Director will be responsible for the content development, programming, and speaker acquisition associated with conferences, webinars, symposia, and other special training events for a wide range of audiences. Read More

NACOLE Hires Inaugural Executive Director

We are proud to announce that Cameron (Camme) McEllhiney has been selected as the organization’s inaugural Executive Director. We are confident that under her leadership and passion for the work, the organization’s success and impact in fulfilling its mission and vision will continue to grow and flourish. Read More

New listings posted regularly. Click below to see current job postings.

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Wednesday, June 07, 2023 at 02:00 PM

2023 NACOLE Webinar Series

Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable

In recent years, the high-profile murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tyre Nichols, and so many others have brought much-needed attention to the pervasiveness of police misconduct. Yet it remains nearly impossible to hold police accountable for abuses of power—the decisions of the Supreme Court, state and local governments, and policymakers have, over decades, made the police all but untouchable.

Join us on April 25, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. EST as we welcome Joanna Schwartz, a professor at UCLA School of Law and author of the recently published book Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable. Her book the product of more than two decades of advocacy and research. She will join us to discuss the myriad ways in which our legal system protects police at all costs, cutting across race, gender, criminal history, tax bracket, and zip code. The webinar will delve into why civil rights litigation so rarely leads to justice or prevents future police misconduct.

Weaving powerful true stories of people seeking restitution for violated rights with insightful analyses about subjects ranging from qualified immunity to no-knock warrants, Schwartz paints a compelling picture of the human cost of our failing criminal justice system, bringing clarity to a problem that is widely known but little understood.

Joanna Schwartz is a professor of law at UCLA, where she teaches civil procedure and courses on police accountability and public interest lawyering. Her writing, commentary, and research about police misconduct, qualified immunity, indemnification, and local government budgeting have been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Christian Science Monitor, ABC News, NBC News, CBS News, CNN, NPR, and elsewhere. Her research has been quoted and cited by United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and more than two dozen state supreme courts, federal circuit courts, and federal district courts.

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