Dear Katharine,

On Feb 6, the DC Council had their first vote on the Crimnibus aka Councilmember Pinto and Mayor Bowser’s “Secure DC” Omnibus in their legislative meeting. While this hyper-racist crime bill passed the first vote, HUNDREDS of you called & emailed and PACKED the Council meeting, resulting in some critical harmful provisions being removed from the bill!

These harm reduction amendments are an important win. Unfortunately, many dangerous provisions still remain and the second and FINAL vote is coming up on March 5th. But we know the community pressure is working!

So, please join us and take action to stop the crimnibus!

• Call and email DC Council tomorrow to tell them to: 1) stay strong and not let Councilmember Pinto roll back the harm reduction amendments from the first vote, and 2) remove the harmful provisions remaining in the bill on March 5th!
  • Take 30 seconds to email (call scripts and phone numbers can be found here and below)
• Join us on March 5th to pack the meeting! The huge community presence at the first vote made a big difference! We need to turn out again! RSVP here.
• The crimnibus is HUGE and full of harmful provisions. That's why we made a NEW website where you can learn more about what is in the bill and how it will impact our communities.

Sample script:

Hi, My name is _____, I live in Ward ___, and I am calling to ask you not to roll back the important harm reduction amendments passed during the first reading of Secure DC. The Council was right to remove the invasive, expanded DNA collection provisions from the bill and make the expansion of pretrial detention temporary. Please stay strong and keep these amendments at second reading!

I also ask that you remove the remaining harmful provisions in Secure DC. Specifically:

• Do not revive old, ineffective, and racist practices, like drug-free zones and anti-mask laws, which Council already unanimous repealed years ago
• Do not expand MPD’s power to kill and injure DC residents. We should not make it easier for cops to use neck restraints or engage in deadly police chases
• Do not expand prosecution, lengthen prison sentences, or change the Sentencing Commission
• Do not broaden current surveillance practices, like GPS monitoring and camera subsidies
• Do not reduce transparency and oversight over the police. Cops should not be allowed to view body camera footage before writing reports. MPD should not hide names of cops on adverse action hearing notices regarding police misconduct
• Do not create loopholes to recriminalize metro riders for fare evasion
• Do not make it easier to violate data privacy of children in the youth legal system

Phone numbers:

If you can, please call all 13 councilmembers. But if you can’t, prioritize calling your Ward’s Councilmember, the Chairman, and the At-large members! Remember to mention that you are a DC resident and/or a resident of that councilmember’s ward. Don’t know what Ward you’re in? Find out here.

In solidarity,

Us Not Crimnibus Campaign

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