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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Deadly Force Inde-
pendent Review Act of 2019’’. 
SEC. 2. PROTOCOL FOR INVESTIGATION OF USE OF DEAD-
LY FORCE BY FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT 
OFFICER. 
Each Federal law enforcement agency shall establish 
a protocol for investigating any use of deadly force and 
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shall commence such an investigation on each occasion 
that an officer of that agency uses deadly force. 
SEC. 3. ROLE OF INSPECTORS GENERAL. 
(a) REVIEW OF AGENCY INVESTIGATIONS.—If the in-
vestigation is not conducted by the inspector general for 
that agency then the inspector general shall conduct an 
independent review of the findings to verify that the inves-
tigation was sufficiently thorough, complied with the pro-
tocols, and that the findings were adequately supported 
by the evidence. If the investigation uncovers any wrong-
doing, the findings will be reported to proper authorities 
for appropriate disciplinary action, including prosecution 
in the case of any criminal activity. 
(b) COUNCIL
TO
ESTABLISH
UNIFORM
PROCE-
DURES.—The Council of Inspectors General on Integrity 
and Efficiency shall establish a uniform, Governmentwide 
methodology for the reporting of any incident regarding 
the use of deadly force by an officer of a Federal law en-
forcement agency and develop uniform, Governmentwide 
guidelines for the investigation of such uses of deadly 
force. 
SEC. 4. REPORT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Council of Inspectors General 
shall submit a report each calendar quarter including a 
description of all instances of the use of deadly force by 
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an officer of a Federal law enforcement agency, including 
any referrals for criminal prosecution, to— 
(1) the Committee on Oversight and Reform of 
the House of Representatives; 
(2) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 
(3) the Committees on the Judiciary of the Sen-
ate and of the House of Representatives; and 
(4) the Comptroller General of the United 
States. 
(b) DATA COLLECTION.—The data collected and re-
ported on under subsection (a) shall— 
(1) include identifying characteristics of the 
person who was the target of the use of deadly force 
and the officer who used deadly force, including— 
(A) race or ethnicity; 
(B) gender; 
(C) approximate age; and 
(D) the actual or perceived religious affili-
ation; 
(2) include the date, time, and location of such 
use of deadly force; 
(3) include the alleged criminal activity of the 
person who was the target of the use of deadly force; 
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(4) include the nature of the deadly force used, 
including the use of a firearm; 
(5) include an explanation, if any, from the rel-
evant law enforcement agency on why deadly force 
was used; 
(6) include a copy of any use of deadly force 
guidelines in effect at the relevant law enforcement 
agency at the time deadly force was used; 
(7) include a description of any non-lethal ef-
forts employed to apprehend or subdue the person 
who was the target of the use of deadly force before 
deadly force was used; and 
(8) not include personally identifiable informa-
tion described in section 5. 
SEC. 5. LIMITATIONS ON PUBLICATION OF DATA. 
The name or identifying information of a law enforce-
ment officer, person who was the target of the use of dead-
ly force, or any other individual involved in any activity 
for which data is collected and compiled under this Act 
shall not be— 
(1) released to the public; 
(2) disclosed to any person, except for— 
(A) such disclosures as are necessary to 
comply with this Act; 
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(B) disclosures of information regarding a 
particular person to that person; or 
(C) disclosures pursuant to litigation; or 
(3) subject to disclosure under section 552 of 
title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the 
Freedom of Information Act), except for disclosures 
of information regarding a particular person to that 
person. 
Æ 
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