US Conference of Mayors: Report on Police Reform and Racial Justice
Executive Summary: The Principles of Policing and Recommendations to Achieve Them
On June 30, 2020, we issued a Statement of Principles for reform. The Principles we adopted build upon the core modern policing principles first articulated in 1829 by Sir Robert Peel to address the concerns that the people of London had about standing up a police force in their community. Peel’s Principles stand for the ideas that the police exist to prevent crime and that the legitimacy of the police to keep the public safe derives from public consent and trust. We have refreshed Peel’s Principles here and used them to frame our recommendations so that our American cities can meet this moment.
There is widespread consensus about what needs to be done to reform policing in America. In issuing this Report, we build on previous efforts to address police reform, including the May 2015 report of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, our own reports on police-community relations in 2015 and 2016, and years of research and reports from the Police Executive Research Forum, including the Guiding Principles on Use of Force.
What follows is a summary of our recommendations—organized around the Principles of policing that the Conference has already adopted—to give our cities a blueprint for the implementation of real and lasting change. These recommendations are discussed in greater detail in the sections that follow.
Trust and Legitimacy
Animating all of our recommendations is the fundamental principle of Trust and Legitimacy: that the public must have a reason to trust the police, as public approval and acceptance are the basis of effective policing. The police serve the public interest and must earn public trust and legitimacy by acting as faithful guardians of the community who work to prevent crime and promote safety.
Redefining the Role of Local Police and Public Safety
We ask police officers to protect our communities from crime and violence and to promote public safety. They play an essential role in our cities. But we are often asking police to be first responders on every scene. Although our police play a vital role, they are not always the best response. They should not be the only public response to every need in our communities. Mental health, homelessness, and domestic violence are just a few examples of challenges for which we need to rethink our response.
