However, qualified immunity is often used as a shield by police to say “I didn’t know” in the event they violate someone’s constitutional rights. They may very well know what they’re doing is wrong under a common interpretation of the constitution, however the lack of case law grants them leeway. In other words, cops are allowed to say “but I didn’t know!” while they simultaneously say to you and I “ignorance of the law is not an excuse”

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i'm in favor of eliminating it entirely because cops just use it as a straight up excuse for 4th Amendment and use of force violations. i'd be ok with keeping it, but only if the legal bar for it was incredibly high, like an NGRI conviction

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