,i  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #gaae  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,june #d1 #bjbj ,mr4 
,veasey introduced the following bill2  
which was referred to the ,committee on 
the ,judiciary  ,a ,,bill  ,to expand   
the scope of section #aigi of the       
,revised ,statutes1 and for other       
purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,restoration of     
,civil ,rights ,act of #bjai4  #b4      
,findings ,congress finds the following3
  7#a7 ,section #a of the ,act entitled 
,an ,act to enforce the provisions of   
the ,fourteenth ,amendment to the       
,constitution of the ,united ,states and
 for other purposes 7commonly known as  
the ,civil ,rights ,act of #ahga71      
approved ,april #bj1 #ahga 7#ag ,stat4  
#ac1 chapter #bb7 was enacted by        
,congress to provide a ,federal forum to
 which a civil cause of action could be 
brought by any citizen of the ,united   
,states or other person within the      
jurisdiction thereof1 for the           

deprivation of any right1 privilege or  
immunity secured by the ,constitution or
 by ,federal statute4  7#b7 ,congress   
was granted the authority to enact the  
,civil ,rights ,act of #ahga by sections
 #a and #e of the ,fourteenth ,amendment
 of ,constitution of the ,united        
,states4  7#c7 ,popularly known as the  
,anti-,ku ,klux ,klan ,act1 the statute 
was enacted to provide a ,federal remedy
 to fight the ,klan's reign of terror in
 the southern states1 as reflected in   
,president ,grant's message to ,congress
 on ,march #bc1 #ahga1 which stated that
 the ,klan had rendered life and        
property insecure and that the power to 
correct these evils was beyond the      
control of state authorities4  7#d7 ,a  
,joint ,committee from each ,house of   
,congress addressed the problem1 and the
 ,committee's product was the ,civil    
,rights ,act of #ahga1 from which       
section #aigi of the ,revised ,statutes 
was derived 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #aihc71 which
 reads as follows3 ,every person who1   

under color of any statute1 ordinance1  
regulation1 custom1 or usage1 of any    
,state or ,territory or the ,district of
 ,columbia1 subjects1 or causes to be   
subjected1 any citizen of the ,united   
,states or other person within the      
jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation 
of any rights1 privileges1 or immunities
 secured by the ,constitution and laws1 
shall be liable to the party injured in 
an action at law1 suit in equity1 or    
other proper proceeding for redress1    
except that in any action brought       
against a judicial officer for an act or
 omission taken in such officer's       
judicial capacity1 injunctive relief    
shall not be granted unless a           
declaratory decree was violated or      
declaratory relief was unavailable4 ,for
 the purposes of this section1 any ,act 
of ,congress applicable exclusively to  
the ,district of ,columbia shall be     
considered to be a statute of the       
,district of ,columbia44  7#e7          
,decisions of the ,united ,states       

,supreme ,court1 beginning with ,monell 
v4 ,new ,york ,city ,department of      
,social ,services1 #dcf ,u4,s4 #feh     
7#aigh71 have held that governmental    
entities are not responsible or liable  
for damages caused by their agents or   
employees who1 in the course and scope  
of their employment1 violate the        
constitutional rights of citizens and   
other persons within the jurisdiction of
 the ,united ,states4  7#f7 ,decisions  
of the ,united ,states ,supreme ,court1 
beginning with ,harlow v4 ,fitzgerald1  
#deg ,u4,s4 #hjj 7#aihb71 have          
established the doctrine of qualified   
immunity1 absolving the individual      
wrongdoers themselves of liability for  
even the most egregious violations of   
the ,constitution unless there exists a 
clearly established statutory or        
constitutional precedent of which all   
reasonable public officials would have  
known4  7#g7 ,to be a clearly           
established precedent1 there must be a  
prior case whose particularized facts   

clearly place the statutory or          
constitutional question beyond debate4  
,white v4 ,pauly1 #acg ,s4,ct4 #edh1    
#eea-eb 7#bjag74  7#h7 ,qualified       
immunity was not known at common law and
 has had the effect of nullifying the   
right to seek redress for constitutional
 violations unless a virtually identical
 set of facts existed in a case         
previously decided that is so well-known
 and recognized that no reasonable      
public official would not have knowledge
 thereof4  7#i7 ,the failure to hold    
governmental entities1 responsible for  
the constitutional violations of their  
agents or employees acting within the   
course and scope of their employment1   
together with the qualified immunity the
 courts have granted the agents and     
employees from personal responsibility  
for their constitutional violations1    
deprive citizens of the ,united ,states 
and other persons within its            
jurisdiction of an effective remedy for 
the deprivation of their rights1        

privileges or immunities secured by the 
,constitution and laws of the ,united   
,states1 and specifically1 drastically  
weaken the remedy granted by section    
#aigi of the ,revised ,statutes 7#db    
,u4,s4,c4 #aihc71 making this bill which
 amends the section necessary in order  
to restore the purpose and intent of    
section #aigi of the ,revised ,statutes4
  #f4 ,expanding civil rights remedies  
,section #aigi of the ,revised ,statutes
 of the ,united ,states 7#db ,u4,s4,c4  
#aihc7 is amended--  7#a7 by inserting  
7a7 before the first sentence2 and  7#b7
 by adding at the end the following3    
7b7 ,any person against whom any action1
 suit1 or proceeding is filed under     
subsection 7a7 for an act or omission   
taken in the person's official capacity 
may not raise as a defense that such act
 or omission did not violate a clearly  
established statutory or constitutional 
right4  7c7 ,in any action1 suit1 or    
proceeding filed under subsection 7a7 in
 which a person is held liable for an   

act or omission taken in the person's   
official capacity1 any ,state or        
,territory or the ,district of          
,columbia1 of which the person is an    
employee1 shall be vicariously liable   
for such act or omission if the act or  
omission of the person are attributable 
to violations of the #adth ,amendment by
 the ,state or ,territory or the        
,district of ,columbia1 as the case may 
be4  7d7 ,any person who is an employee 
or contractor of a ,state or ,territory 
or the ,district of ,columbia and is    
found to be liable under subsection 7a7 
for acts or omissions occurring in the  
course and scope of such person's       
employment or agreement is entitled to  
indemnification by such ,state or       
,territory or the ,district of ,columbia
 if the act of omission is taken in the 
person's official capacity and          
attributable to violations of the #adth 
,amendment by the ,state or ,territory  
or the ,district of ,columbia1 as the   
case may be4  7e7 ,any ,united ,states  

,attorney may bring a civil action for a
 violation of this section on behalf of 
any citizen of the ,united ,states or   
other person within the jurisdiction    
thereof before the appropriate ,federal 
district court for appropriate relief4  
4  #g4 ,application ,the amendments made
 by this ,act shall apply to any action1
 suit1 or proceeding pending on the date
 of enactment of this ,act or filed on  
or after such date4