In a June 5 statement to members of The American Law Institute, David F. Levi — president of ALI and director of the Bolch Judicial Institute at Duke Law — discussed racial injustice in the legal system and called for all ALI members and legal professionals to bring their knowledge and skills to bear on efforts to address and resolve the inequities. He also highlighted ALI’s Principles of the Law, Policing Project, which offers recommendations for fairer and safer policing strategies.
“This is such a difficult time in our nation’s history. The coronavirus has taken the lives of more than 100,000 of our fellow Americans and exposed very disturbing disparities in health and access to medical care. In addition, we have seen again, once again, the shocking and unjustified use of excessive force by police officers in connection with the death of a black person, George Floyd. This injustice, rooted in racism, is simply intolerable. As lawyers and as members of The American Law Institute, we deeply feel this wound to the rule of law and common decency.
We know that as a society and as a legal system, we must do so much better.”