Citizen Justice Restoration Act of 2020

To prohibit searches based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or sex, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Citizen Justice Restoration Act of 2020 2. Pretextual Action Under Color of Law (a) In general A person, acting under color of State or Federal law, may not base, to any degree, a decision to search, seize, or scrutinize an individual on actual or perceived race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or sex (including gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation). (b) Inadmissibility of evidence Except as provided in subsection (c), evidence obtained as a result of such a search or seizure in violation of subsection (a) shall not be admissible to be offered as evidence against a defendant— (1) in any Federal or State criminal proceeding, including a proceeding for revocation of parole and probation; or (2) in any civil enforcement proceeding brought by the United States, any State, or any agency or political subdivision thereof. (c) Exception Subsection (a) does not apply in the case of a search or seizure that was motivated by reasonable suspicion based on specific and articulable facts that include trustworthy distinguishing information, relevant to the locality and timeframe, about an individual who committed an identified crime, which information includes a particular characteristic described in subsection (a), if that distinguishing information is sufficiently specific that it does not describe a substantial subset of individuals sharing that characteristic, or of individuals of the relevant age sharing that characteristic. 3. Applicability of the Constitution, Laws, and Treaties of the United States on Collateral Review (a) Grant of habeas corpus when judgment in error Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court shall be granted with respect to any Federal claim that was adjudicated on the merits in State court proceedings, which adjudication was in error. (b) New constitutional rules Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in the case of a new rule of constitutional law announced by the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals, or the United States District Court— (1) such rule shall be retroactive to cases on collateral review; (2) an application for a writ of habeas corpus raising a claim under such rule may be made at any time; and (3) a second or successive application for a writ of habeas corpus may be made seeking the benefit of such rule regardless of whether the same claim was presented in a prior application made prior to the announcement of the new rule. 4. Rules of construction (a) Laws against discrimination An ambiguity in a statute that provides protection against discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, disability, or sex (including gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation) shall be construed in the manner that will provide the greatest protection against such discrimination. For purposes of this subsection, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 ( 42 U.S.C. 2000bb–1 (b) Other laws An ambiguity in a statute designed to provide protection for freedom of speech or of the press, or for individual informational privacy, or for the environment, or for consumers, shall be construed in the manner that will provide the greatest protection for freedom of speech or of the press, or for individual informational privacy, for the environment, or for consumers, respectively. (c) Constitutional avoidance No statute described in this section shall be construed so as to avoid a constitutional question if that construction differs from the construction required under this section. (d) Liberal construction Nothing in this section may be construed to prevent the liberal construction of any statute not specified in this section, in order to serve its remedial purpose. 5. Private rights of action (a) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an individual may bring an action in the appropriate district court of the United States seeking damages and injunctive relief for a violation of a Federal law or regulation if the individual— (1) is within a class of individuals that the law or regulation was intended to or does benefit; and (2) was harmed by the violation of the law or regulation, regardless of whether the law or regulation provides such a private right of action, or provides other enforcement mechanisms. (b) Exception Subsection (a) does not apply in the case of a Federal law or regulation that explicitly precludes a private right of action. 6. Bounty for citizen suits (a) In general In any civil action brought under any citizen suit provision under a Federal law, in which the plaintiff prevails in whole or in part, the court shall award the plaintiff a bounty of $100 to be paid by the defendant against whom the plaintiff prevailed. (b) Multiple plaintiffs In the case of a civil action described in subsection (a) in which there are multiple plaintiffs, the court shall divide the award under subsection (a) equally among the plaintiffs. (c) Joint and several liability In the case of a civil action described in subsection (a) in which there are multiple defendants, such defendants are jointly and severally liable for the award described in subsection (a). 7. Severability If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act, and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.

Summary: Citizen Justice Restoration Act of 2020 This bill prohibits decisions to search, seize, or scrutinize an individual that discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or sex. Specifically, the bill prohibits a person acting under color of law from basing a decision to search, seize, or scrutinize an individual on actual or perceived race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, and makes evidence obtained as a result of such a search or seizure inadmissible, with exceptions; requires an application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a state court to be granted with respect to any federal claim that was adjudicated on the merits in state court proceedings, which adjudication was in error; makes a new rule of constitutional law announced by the U.S. Supreme Court, a U.S. Court of Appeals, or a U.S. District Court retroactive to cases on collateral review; and requires an ambiguity in a statute that provides protection against discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, disability, or sex to be construed in the manner that will provide the greatest protection against such discrimination. The bill further creates a private right of action and provides for the award of a bounty for citizen lawsuits under specified circumstances.