CAREN Act introduced to prevent 'Karens' from making false 911 calls against minorities

Member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Shamann Walton announced that he would be introducing a bill called the CAREN Act that would make it unlawful for individuals to make racially biased 911 calls.

Walton tweeted: "Racist 911 calls are unacceptable that's why I'm introducing the CAREN Act at today’s SF Board of Supervisors meeting. This is the CAREN we need. Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies. CARENact SanFrancisco."

Walton has partnered with Oakland's Rob Bonta on the bill. Bonta expressed his support: "Excited to announce our partnership with Supervisor Shamann Walton ! Today, we unveiled our two-prong strategy to join forces and stop discriminatory 911 calls: #AB1550 and the #CARENAct. Using 911 as a tool for your prejudice towards marginalized communities is unjust and wrong!"

The press release states that Walton will "be introducing an ordinance known as the Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies (CAREN) Act to amend the San Francisco Police Code to making it unlawful for an individual to fabricate false racially biased emergency reports..."

This comes after a white woman called the police on a black birdwatcher in New York, who is now being charged with falsely reporting. This could lead to a year's jail time for the women colloquially known as Central Park Karen.

This ordinance would only go into effect within the state of California.