Oregon law requires that police trainees be trained to deal with a whole list of crimes that deal with protected classes. The list is long. State Representative David Gomberg is proposing adding gender to the list in HB 2986 The current law reads:

The Board on Public Safety Standards and Training shall ensure that all police officers and certified reserve officers are trained to investigate, identify and report crimes motivated by prejudice based on the perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, marital status, political affiliation or beliefs, membership or activity in or on behalf of a labor organization or against a labor organization, physical or mental disability, age, economic or social status or citizenship of the victim.

Interestingly, as society increasingly loses it's understanding of what gender means, it remains to be seen how this law will be able to be enforced. For instance, if gender is regarded as a subjective characteristic that an individual identifies as, how would the police know that a gender-based crime was being committed?

The bill has been assigned to the House Committee On Judiciary House Subcommittee On Equitable Policing.


--Staff Reports

Post Date: 2021-02-21 09:48:05

Last Update: 2021-02-21 17:12:12