Raleigh, N.C. — House Speaker Tim Moore floated a legislative crackdown on looting Wednesday as the General Assembly went back into session, though he acknowledged that the legislature's time may be too short to pass anything this year.
Moore, R-Cleveland, who has a downtown apartment in Raleigh, has repeatedly expressed disappointment with the way the city and Gov. Roy Cooper's administration handled protests that turned destructive at times over the last few months downtown.
He told reporters Wednesday that lawmakers are talking now about "some of the lawlessness that has gotten out of hand." Pressed for ideas being discussed, he said lawmakers may consider legislation allowing a 48-hour hold for anyone who commits a felony during a riot.
The hold would be similar to something in place already for domestic violence cases. The speaker called it "a cooling-off period."
Moore also suggested tripling civil litigation damages in looting cases to strengthen the potential penalties against rioters.
“We’re discussing a number of things," he said.
Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue called Moore's idea "backwards."
“If you commit a felony, you should be charged with a felony," said Blue, D-Wake. "We want to encourage people to exercise their First Amendment right to protest peacefully. When they fail to be peaceful and people begin committing crimes, they should be prosecuted accordingly."
Lawmakers plan to meet only two days this week, primarily to appropriate nearly $1 billion in federal coronavirus money and tinker both with state budget and policy. After that, they're likely to adjourn for the year.
Moore said “we’re trying to see if we can get there" on anti-looting measures, but "it may be a pure time issue.”
A new House Committee on Community Relations, Law Enforcement and Justice, which Moore appointed after the first round of North Carolina protests that followed the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minnesota in May, also met for the first time Wednesday morning.
Moore committed to prioritizing the committee's eventual recommendations, but he did not lay out a time line for action.
"Nearly three months went by until that commission met for the first time today," House Minority Leader Darren Jackson said Wednesday, after Moore's news conference. "If we are going to take up any bills, it should be some of the dozens of bills sitting in House committees that address racial disparities in society."
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NC House Speaker: Consider 48-hour hold for looters - WRAL.com
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