Qualified Immunity:
A legal doctrine that shields government officials from accountability when they violate your constitutional rights.
Because of Qualified Immunity (QI), the government officials who abused these Americans' rights were shielded from the consequences of their actions, and the victims were denied the chance to a fair trial. These are only a few of many examples. QI fuels the tragic misconduct that has led to many more unjustifiable abuses and deaths.
This is wrong. The Constitution is not an empty promise.
Sign your name below to demand a change.
Abolish QI. Add Your Voice.
What is Qualified Immunity?
Frequently asked questions about qualified immunity.
How Well Does Your State Protect Your Rights?
See how your state ranks on government immunity.
What You Can Do
Find out what you can do to help end qualified immunity.
Qualified Immunity: Explained
What is qualified immunity? How does it work? Do police officers need qualified immunity to protect their split-second decisions? Here are some facts on the controversial judicial doctrine that lets government officials escape lawsuits when they violate constitutional rights.
AAQI is a growing group of Americans from all walks of life who understand that no one is above the law, including government officials, and agree that it is time to end qualified immunity. Here are just some of their voices, representing people from different professions, perspectives, and faiths. Ending qualified immunity should not be a partisan issue – it should be an American issue. Add your voice to the growing list by clicking here.
Stephen Grimes, Retired Professional Engineer
Camden, OH
"In order for people to willfully accept the legitimacy of a social contract with the government there must be recourse for those times when the government itself breaks the contract. Without such recourse the contract is meaningless."
William Fragoso, Computer Hardware Technician
Lawndale, CA
"Qualified immunity continues to give government officials the power to trample on citizens right's with impunity. Without proper accountability for their actions, government officials will continue to act in bad faith as long as they know that consequences for their actions will be paid out by the very citizens they abuse. If something is to be done about the pitiful state of law enforcement today, it begins with a revision or removal of qualified immunity."
William Heath, Retired, Real Estate Agent
Mexico, MO
"Qualified immunity places government officials and employees above the law. I believe no one is above the law and the law is not above the Constitution. This is a government of the people, for the people, and by the people!"
Earl Lin, Law Student
Minneappolis, MN
"Government officials, especially those allowed to wield violence on behalf of the state, should be held accountable when they abuse their authority."
Sgt. Kyle Faraday, Retired Marine, Chauffeur
Neptune City, NJ
"Instead of public officers being protected when they harm the innocent "for their job," they should be held to a higher standard of good conduct than everyone else."
Michael Robbins, Real Estate Agent
Spokane Valley, WA
"Governments need to be held accountable for employees' actions. It sickens me too read the horror stories of citizens' lives being destroyed by actions of our own government."
Randy Thompson, Retired
Independence, MO
"Government officials have to be held accountable when they injure citizens for no reason. Just because they can put some one on the ground doesn't mean they can pick them up and slam them on the ground causing permanent injury. Then they don't lose their job or have to pay for the injury they caused. It's not fair to us citizens for government officials to get away with Constitutional abuse."
David Casteel, IT Manager
Salt Lake City, UT
"I'm tired of government officials not being held accountable for constantly violating the constitution. Qualified Immunity was created out of thin air by our courts and should have never been a thing to begin with. If you are going to work in public service it should be your job to learn the constitutional rights our citizens here have."
Megan Chastain, Real Estate Agent
Loganville, GA
"No one should be immune from the law including law officers, judges, politicians, etc. It is wrong and I am ashamed that it is not a bigger issue that is being discussed."
Jason Morgan, IT Instructor
Guthrie, OK
"I worked as an educator in prisons and helped inmates find gainful employment upon release. I have seen the evil that can be perpetrated by civilians and police both, in their own way."
Victor Isham, Veteran
Comanche, TX
"As a veteran, I supported and defended the Constitution. I think that EVERYONE should be held to the same standards, no matter what."
Jack Brown, Lawyer
Delaware
"Qualified immunity allows abusive government officials to prey upon people with impunity and, to add insult to injury, is unsupported by the text of the United States Constitution."
Matthew Slayman, Student
Ladson, SC
"We, the people, are required and expected to obey our written laws. So to should an official, one of the people, be required to obey the edict of our constitution. Failing this, they are no longer representatives of the people, but instead ones of tyranny."
Dean Forrest, Veteran
Virginia
"I fought to protect the Constitution of The United States and when rogue government actors abuse their powers to do harm, they must answer for their unpatriotic actions."
Jenn Sanders, Mother
Chattanooga, TN
" We must be able to hold government officials accountable when they violate the rights of Americans protected in the Constitution."
Bryan Rose, Former Police Officer
Irving, Texas
"The individual police officer is almost never held personally liable. Instead, the department or local government pays the victims of proven police misconduct.”
Yitz Greenberg, Rabbi
Brooklyn, NY
"I oppose qualified immunity which has lent itself to enable abusive police officers to escape accountability."
Dr. Nicole Foster, Reverend
Dallas, Texas
"In the Christian faith, we look to Jesus Christ as the perfect example of the command to love our neighbors as ourselves. This basic tenet of our faith applies to all of us, including the Creator of the universe and those put in power to govern and protect us."
Jason Jones, Finance
Phoenix, AZ
"Qualified immunity, quite simply, allows police officers to live above the law."
Dr. Renee Delgado-Riley, Higher Education
Eugene, Oregon
"Qualified immunity severely limits accountability for police officers and government officials."
Terrance McKinley, Reverend
Washington, D.C.
"Qualified immunity does away with the rights of victims. It is immoral, unjust and unethical and it needs to come to an end."
Rabbi David Polsky, Teacher
Detroit, MI
"No one should be allowed to murder others without cause and without justice."
Sarah Fawson, Marketing
Colorado
"A justice system without accountability is not just."
Kimmy Lueders, Mother
Texas
"Ending qualified immunity is a common-sense, first step approach to begin repairing and reversing damage that power hungry entities have wreaked on some of the most vulnerable among us. This is why I’m proudly an American and a Texan against qualified immunity. "
Juan Lozano, Attorney
California
"Qualified immunity allows a public official to operate with the belief that for the most part, they are permitted to function knowing that the legal system views them as close to infallible and won’t hold them accountable for bad acts."
Justin Nail, Engineer
Arizona
"We must do more to support law enforcement--the first step should be ending qualified immunity so that good officers can do their jobs and those who abuse their power can be held responsible."
Stephen Kent, Author
North Carolina
"Serving the public is an honorable act rooted in trust. That trust can only shrink when public servants such as police officers are not held to the same standards of conduct, decency, and accountability under the law as the people they serve."
Andrew Clark, Education
Texas
“We ask so much of our law enforcement—letting the bad actors in their ranks off the hook when they break the law only places further burdens on the backs of the best in the force. End qualified immunity and let the good cops continue to do their job with pride.”
Jacob Deaven, Attorney
Maryland
"When you and I act in bad faith, we’re held accountable for our actions. On the other hand, when law enforcement and government officials do, they can claim qualified immunity. "
Carlos Alfaro, Small Business Owner
Arizona
"The rights guaranteed by our Constitution depend on the government being accountable to the people that they serve. Just like all of us, the people who work in law enforcement must be accountable for their actions."
Korbin Kiblinger, Digital Marketing
Virginia
“Made to protect good cops from the consequences of split-second life-or-death decisions, police unions now weaponize QI to protect the worst of the force in the courtroom.”
Burly Cain, Americans for Prosperity
Albuquerque, NM
"Qualified Immunity allowed judges to fabricate a system where government entities and actors exist above the rule of law. Removing qualified immunity restores the rule of law for all."
William Jones, Business Development Manager
California
"Serving in the U.S. military has shown me the importance of protecting the public from all threats, foreign and domestic. Sometimes those threats come from those sworn to protect us, and when that sacred oath is broken, we can't continue to shield those who choose to abuse their powers from the responsibility of their actions."
Nora Hurab, Education
Oakland, CA
"Ending qualified immunity is the first step in holding officers accountable to unjust policing. We must demand an end to this harmful policy."
