Top Biden DOJ nominee wants to shrink legal system 'footprint' in 'black and brown people’s lives'

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Vanita Gupta, President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for a senior role within the Justice Department, delivered a forceful testimony last summer in which she called for "shrinking the footprint of the criminal legal system in Black and brown peoples’ lives."

Gupta made the comments during a House Oversight Hearing in June, just as nationwide protests were gaining momentum in reaction to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights, testifies during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled Police Use of Force and Community Relations, in Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington. (Getty Images)

Gupta, who was U.S. assistant attorney general for civil rights under President Barack Obama, said the remedy for police misconduct in the U.S. was not merely reform, but a "new paradigm" altogether.

"This moment of reckoning requires leaders, together with communities, to envision a new paradigm of public safety, that respects the rights of all people," Gupta said. "That means not just changing policing practices and culture, but ultimately shrinking the footprint of the criminal legal system in black and brown people’s lives."

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Gupta said this new approach would require diverting public funds away from "criminalization and policing" towards economic investments in things like education, health care, and other public benefits.

"This approach will not only further equity but also constitute effective policy," Gupta said. "When we stop using criminal justice policy as social policy, we will make communities safer, and more prosperous."

Gupta and the three others Biden has picked for Justice Department leadership posts are being introduced Thursday afternoon in Wilmington, Del. The others include Merrick Garland as attorney general, Obama administration homeland security adviser Lisa Monaco as deputy attorney general, and Kristen Clarke as assistant attorney general for civil rights.

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"Our first-rate nominees to lead the Justice Department are eminently qualified, embody character and judgment that is beyond reproach, and have devoted their careers to serving the American people with honor and integrity," Biden said in a statement. "They will restore the independence of the department so it serves the interests of the people, not a presidency, rebuild public trust in the rule of law, and work tirelessly to ensure a more fair and equitable justice system."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.