Colorado will become the first state in the country to pass major reforms in policing following the death of George Floyd as soon as Gov. Jared Polis signs the legislation.
The Colorado Senate on Saturday passed the Enhance Law Enforcement Integrity bill, which bans the use of chokeholds and carotid control holds, mandates officers to wear body-worn cameras, removes the qualified immunity defense, allowing people to bring civil rights claims in court, and prohibits officers from shooting rubber bullets indiscriminately into a crowd, among other changes.
The Colorado House voted Friday to pass the bill brought in the wake of demonstrations following Floyd's death in Minneapolis at the hands of a white police officer. Floyd was black. According to CBS Denver, Polis is expected to sign the bill.
"This is, in my estimation, the largest single advancement of individual civil rights and liberties for Coloradans in a generation," Denver civil rights attorney Qusair Mohamedbhai told The Denver Post.
The bill also requires officers to intervene in cases of excessive force or face criminal charges and mandates data collection to make sure police officers who are fired from one agency don't get rehired by another.
"Colorado is leading the way. We led the way when it came to gun safety reform measures, and we're leading the way now when it comes to police reform measures," said bill sponsor Sen. Rhonda Fields, a Democrat.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.