# 116-hr-7134: Bend Toward Justice Act of 2020

116-hr-7134, Bend Toward Justice Act of 2020, is a 116th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Kennedy, Joseph P., III [D-MA-4] (D-MA); status Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. (as of 2025-11-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7134
- As of: 2025-11-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 116-hr-7134
- Congress: 116
- Title: Bend Toward Justice Act of 2020
- Status: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
- Introduced: 2020-06-08
- Sponsor: Rep. Kennedy, Joseph P., III [D-MA-4] (D-MA)
- Cosponsors: 29
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-11-18

## Summary

Bend Toward Justice Act of 2020 This bill lowers the criminal intent standard—from willful to reckless—to convict a government official (including a law enforcement officer) for deprivation of rights while acting under color of law.

## Cosponsors (29)

- Rep. Jeffries, Hakeem S. [D-NY-8] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large] (D-DC), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Lee, Barbara [D-CA-12] (D-CA), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Maloney, Sean Patrick [D-NY-18] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12] (D-NJ), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Blumenauer, Earl [D-OR-3] (D-OR), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Clark, Katherine M. [D-MA-5] (D-MA), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2] (D-MA), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Hastings, Alcee L. [D-FL-20] (D-FL), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Blunt Rochester, Lisa [D-DE] (D-DE), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Johnson, Eddie Bernice [D-TX-30] (D-TX), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Velázquez, Nydia M. [D-NY-7] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Meeks, Gregory W. [D-NY-5] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Sewell, Terri A. [D-AL-7] (D-AL), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Butterfield, G. K. [D-NC-1] (D-NC), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9] (D-TN), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- ELIOT ENGEL (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Brown, Anthony G. [D-MD-4] (D-MD), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Rice, Kathleen M. [D-NY-4] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cooper, Jim [D-TN-5] (D-TN), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Meng, Grace [D-NY-6] (D-NY), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Trahan, Lori [D-MA-3] (D-MA), 2020-06-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Beatty, Joyce [D-OH-3] (D-OH), 2020-06-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39] (D-CA), 2020-06-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Larson, John B. [D-CT-1] (D-CT), 2020-06-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Porter, Katie [D-CA-47] (D-CA), 2020-06-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Del. San Nicolas, Michael F. Q. [D-GU-At Large] (D-GU), 2020-06-11T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. García, Jesús G. "Chuy" [D-IL-4] (D-IL), 2020-08-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Related bills

- 116-hr-8015: Delivering for America Act
- 116-hr-2694: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
- 116-hr-2420: National Museum of the American Latino Act
- 116-hr-2382: USPS Fairness Act
- 116-hr-1980: Smithsonian Women’s History Museum Act
- 116-hr-7120: George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020

## Sources
- [116-hr-7134 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/7134)

## Related
- [116-hr-8015: Delivering for America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-8015)
- [116-hr-2694: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-2694)
- [116-hr-2420: National Museum of the American Latino Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-2420)
- [116-hr-2382: USPS Fairness Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-2382)
- [116-hr-1980: Smithsonian Women’s History Museum Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-1980)
- [116-hr-7120: George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7120)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7134 (as of 2025-11-18).