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OPERATIONS, SAFETY, AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE COMMITTEE
SEPTEMBER 17, 2020
Subject
SUBJECT: REPORT BACK ON USE OF FORCE POLICIES
Action
ACTION: RECEIVE AND FILE
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
RECEIVE AND FILE on 'Use of Force' polices followed by Metro policing contractors and employees.
Issue
ISSUE
At the June 2020 Regular Board meeting, Board Directors Hahn, Solis, and Butts filed motion #35, requesting System Security and Law Enforcement (SSLE), the Executive Officer for Equity and Race, and the Office of Civil Rights, to report back in 90 days with a review of the use of force policies (Part A) and recommendations on how to further reform policing (Part B) at Metro and reallocate resources for homelessness outreach and services (Part C).
Background
BACKGROUND
On May 25, George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer during his arrest. That tragedy sparked nationwide demands to reform policing and calls for alternative methods to address public safety issues and non-violent crimes. The organization "Campaign Zero" has identified eight 'Use of Force' policies that have been shown to reduce the number of officer-involved killings. These policy reforms include:
1) Requiring officers to de-escalate situations, when possible, before using force
2) Using a Force Continuum or Matrix that defines and limits the types of force that can be used to respond to specific types of resistance
3) Restricting, or prohibiting, the use of chokeholds, strangleholds, and carotid restraints
4) Requiring officers to give a verbal warning before using deadly force
5) Prohibiting officers from shooting at people in moving vehicles unless the person poses a deadly threat
6) Requiring officers to exhaust all other reasonable alternatives before resorting to using deadly force
7) Requiring officers to intervene to stop another officer from using excessive force
8) Requiring comprehensive reporting that includes both uses of force and threats of...
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