ROCK HILL, S.C. — Former Rock Hill NAACP President Norma Gray stepped down from the role last week during the trial of former Rock Hill police officer Jonathan Moreno.
Gray is now forming her own social justice organization, the Get Clear Social Justice Network, and her first objective is to pass new legislation named after Travis Price, the man Moreno had been accused of assaulting during a now-infamous arrest in June.
Last week, Moreno was found not guilty of assaulting Price during an arrest that was recorded by a citizen and went viral last summer. Moreno was fired from the Rock Hill Police Department and charged with third-degree assault and battery.
After deliberating for ten hours, a jury found Moreno not guilty last Wednesday.
RELATED: Jury finds former Rock Hill police officer Jonathan Moreno not guilty of misdemeanor assault
“The jury did their job to the best of their ability," Gray said."Where the system failed is that they charged him with a law on the books that’s made for citizens, and that law being assault and battery. And the jury struggled with that."
Gray said she is working with Kevin Brackett, the solicitor for the Sixteenth Judicial Circuit who prosecuted the case, to write The Travis Law.
"The Travis Law would be if any officer breaks the code of excessive use of force according to the state of South Carolina, that would be a crime," Gray explained.
Moreno's attorneys, Creighton Coleman and Paul L. Reeve, responded to the possible legislation by saying the jury reached a unanimous verdict after reviewing all evidence presented.
They released this statement to WCNC Charlotte:
"The jury was properly instructed on the well-established law regarding police use of force as set by the 1989 United States Supreme Court case of Graham v. Connor. A jury of six people reviewed the actions under the proper standard of what 'a reasonable police officer' would do, given the totality of the circumstances and came to a unanimous verdict.
"While Solicitor Brackett and community members are free to debate the definition and application of a use of force policy, Connor constitutionally requires that any review of an officer's actions must allow for the fact that police officers are often forced to make split-second decisions about what to do in a particular situation. This allowance is critical to protect the safety of all the people at the scene. The jury deliberated the exact length of time necessary for each of them to apply the law (all of it) to the facts and come to a unanimous decision."
As of 2020, there were 42 states with a total of 58 different legal statutes regulating the police use of force, including deadly force, according to
University of South Carolina Law Professor Seth W. Stoughton, who co-authored a book on police use of force.
"Unfortunately, South Carolina is one of the very few states that does not have a use-of-force statute," he explained to WCNC Charlotte Monday. "Worse, our case law is very confused, citing a Supreme Court case for a proposition that the Supreme Court case simply does not support."
Gray said she has the backing of two elected officials who will introduce the bill once it's written She declined to provide WCNC Charlotte Monday with the names of those elected officials. Any legislation would need to be passed by the South Carolina General Assembly and signed by the governor before it became law.
Travis Price’s attorney, Justin Bamberg, said he hasn’t seen the proposed language and can’t comment until he does.
Brackett did not respond to requests for comment.
Contact Indira Eskieva at ieskieva@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.