I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4440 

To establish protocols for the investigation of uses of deadly force by Federal 

law enforcement officers, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2019 

Mr. COHEN (for himself and Ms. NORTON) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To establish protocols for the investigation of uses of deadly 

force by Federal law enforcement officers, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Deadly Force Inde5 pendent Review Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PROTOCOL FOR INVESTIGATION OF USE OF DEAD7 LY FORCE BY FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT 

8 OFFICER. 

9 Each Federal law enforcement agency shall establish 

10 a protocol for investigating any use of deadly force and 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4440 IH

1 shall commence such an investigation on each occasion 

2 that an officer of that agency uses deadly force. 

3 SEC. 3. ROLE OF INSPECTORS GENERAL. 

4 (a) REVIEW OF AGENCY INVESTIGATIONS.—If the in5 vestigation is not conducted by the inspector general for 

6 that agency then the inspector general shall conduct an 

7 independent review of the findings to verify that the inves8 tigation was sufficiently thorough, complied with the pro9 tocols, and that the findings were adequately supported 

10 by the evidence. If the investigation uncovers any wrong11 doing, the findings will be reported to proper authorities 

12 for appropriate disciplinary action, including prosecution 

13 in the case of any criminal activity. 

14 (b) COUNCIL TO ESTABLISH UNIFORM PROCE15 DURES.—The Council of Inspectors General on Integrity 

16 and Efficiency shall establish a uniform, Governmentwide 

17 methodology for the reporting of any incident regarding 

18 the use of deadly force by an officer of a Federal law en19 forcement agency and develop uniform, Governmentwide 

20 guidelines for the investigation of such uses of deadly 

21 force. 

22 SEC. 4. REPORT. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Council of Inspectors General 

24 shall submit a report each calendar quarter including a 

25 description of all instances of the use of deadly force by 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4440 IH

1 an officer of a Federal law enforcement agency, including 

2 any referrals for criminal prosecution, to— 

3 (1) the Committee on Oversight and Reform of 

4 the House of Representatives; 

5 (2) the Committee on Homeland Security and 

6 Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

7 (3) the Committees on the Judiciary of the Sen8 ate and of the House of Representatives; and 

9 (4) the Comptroller General of the United 

10 States. 

11 (b) DATA COLLECTION.—The data collected and re12 ported on under subsection (a) shall— 

13 (1) include identifying characteristics of the 

14 person who was the target of the use of deadly force 

15 and the officer who used deadly force, including— 

16 (A) race or ethnicity; 

17 (B) gender; 

18 (C) approximate age; and 

19 (D) the actual or perceived religious affili20 ation; 

21 (2) include the date, time, and location of such 

22 use of deadly force; 

23 (3) include the alleged criminal activity of the 

24 person who was the target of the use of deadly force; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4440 IH

1 (4) include the nature of the deadly force used, 

2 including the use of a firearm; 

3 (5) include an explanation, if any, from the rel4 evant law enforcement agency on why deadly force 

5 was used; 

6 (6) include a copy of any use of deadly force 

7 guidelines in effect at the relevant law enforcement 

8 agency at the time deadly force was used; 

9 (7) include a description of any non-lethal ef10 forts employed to apprehend or subdue the person 

11 who was the target of the use of deadly force before 

12 deadly force was used; and 

13 (8) not include personally identifiable informa14 tion described in section 5. 

15 SEC. 5. LIMITATIONS ON PUBLICATION OF DATA. 

16 The name or identifying information of a law enforce17 ment officer, person who was the target of the use of dead18 ly force, or any other individual involved in any activity 

19 for which data is collected and compiled under this Act 

20 shall not be— 

21 (1) released to the public; 

22 (2) disclosed to any person, except for— 

23 (A) such disclosures as are necessary to 

24 comply with this Act; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4440 IH

1 (B) disclosures of information regarding a 

2 particular person to that person; or 

3 (C) disclosures pursuant to litigation; or 

4 (3) subject to disclosure under section 552 of 

5 title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the 

6 Freedom of Information Act), except for disclosures 

7 of information regarding a particular person to that 

8 person. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS