Police use of force
How does Milwaukee’s new policy stack up to sought-after reforms?
The Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission has approved a series of changes to the police department’s policy regarding the use of force, but how does it stack up to the reforms many Americans have called for across the country?
Calls to strengthen use-of-force policies in police departments nationwide gained momentum over the summer after the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a white Minneapolis officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes.
Many of the new standards that advocates have sought are part of a national campaign called Eight Can’t Wait, which calls for tightened restrictions on when it’s acceptable to use force and policies that require officers to use nonviolent de-escalation techniques before they do.
The new Milwaukee policy passed unanimously Thursday by the commission was hailed as “one of the most progressive use-of-force policies currently being employed or discussed” by Fred Royal, the president of the local NCAAP chapter. It institutes a partial ban on chokeholds and requires officers to file a report anytime they point a gun at someone, among other changes.
Here’s a closer look at how Milwaukee’s new use-of-force policy compares to the eight main recommendations set forth in the Eight Can’t Wait campaign.
Using nonviolent de-escalation techniques
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for requiring officers to use de-escalation techniques, when possible, in order to avoid using force.
Previously, Milwaukee’s policy did not explicitly state officers must use nonviolent means to de-escalate tense situations, but it does so now, whenever it is “safe and feasible.”
The new policy stipulates that officers should attempt to stabilize a situation so that more time, options and resources can become available.
They are required to consider when a suspect’s lack of compliance is deliberate or the result of a number of factors, including disabilities, language barriers or drug use.
The policy now lists nine options for de-escalation tactics, including moving people into an isolated or safer area, placing barriers between themselves and the uncooperative subject and using verbal techniques to promote rational decision-making.
Milwaukee police officers are already trained to use such techniques to gain voluntary compliance from subjects. Now, those techniques are codified in standard operating procedures.
Chokeholds and other neck restraints
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for the ban on officers using chokeholds and other similar neck restraints.
The Milwaukee policy now includes a partial ban on “chokeholds, strangleholds, lateral vascular neck restraints, carotid restraints, or any other tactic that restricts oxygen or blood flow to the head or neck unless the (officer) is in
volved in a deadly force situation and has reasonably exhausted all other options and tactics.”
Previously, Milwaukee police were not trained to use chokeholds, but also were not expressly forbidden from using them.
Officers intervening during unnecessary force
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for policies that require officers to intervene when they witness fellow officers using excessive force and report it to supervisors.
Milwaukee’s use of force policy remained unchanged on this point after Thursday’s meeting. It says officers who see force beyond what is objectively reasonable must intervene if in a position to do so and it does not jeopardize anyone’s safety.
“Any such intervening officer shall promptly report their observations, along with his/her own intervening actions to a supervisor. A failure to intervene in any unreasonable use of force, when there is an opportunity to do so, demonstrates a lack of courage, and a violation of the Code of Conduct,” the policy says.
Shooting at moving vehicles
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for a complete ban on officers shooting at moving vehicles.
This area of Milwaukee’s use-of-force policy remained unchanged after Thursday, and it does allow a narrow window for officers to shoot at moving vehicles. It essentially forbids officers from shooting at moving vehicles unless “all other reasonable alternatives have been exhausted” and the vehicle is being used as a weapon that poses an imminent threat of substantial physical harm to anyone who does not have means to escape.
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign argues that shooting at moving vehicles is a dangerous and ineffective tactic and any “loopholes” allow for police to kill people in a situation that is all too common, according to its website.
Milwaukee’s policy also stipulates that officers cannot place themselves in the front or rear of a moving vehicle’s path. If they are in danger from a moving vehicle, they must attempt to move out of the way.
Reserving the most severe kinds of force to the most extreme situations
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for policies that establish clear restrictions on the use of each police weapon and tactic.
Milwaukee’s policy in this area was expanded, but it largely stayed the same in that, generally, “force that is intended or likely to cause great bodily harm or death may only be used as a last resort” in order to prevent the same kind of harm to other individuals.
Officers are allowed to draw or display their firearms when they reasonably believe it may be necessary for the safety of others, including themselves. They are allowed to point guns at people when there is a substantial risk the situation may escalate to justify deadly force. Batons can be used to impede a suspect from continued dangerous behavior.
New additions to the policy institute the partial ban on chokeholds, as well as a ban on the use of pepper spray on peaceful demonstrations. If a person claims they cannot breathe during the use of force, officers must determine if an alternative restraint can be used to allow for the person to breathe without compromising officer safety.
An expanded section on rendering aid after force has been used stipulates that once someone is handcuffed while laying on their stomach, officers must roll that person onto their side or into a sitting position as soon as possible.
Use of deadly force
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for policies that require officers to exhaust all other options, including non-force and less-lethal options, before using deadly force.
Milwaukee’s policy previously described deadly force as a “last resort” that should be relied upon minimally.
The changes approved Thursday included new language near the top that says, “The Milwaukee Police Department is committed to resolving conflict through the use of professional communication skills, crisis intervention, and de-escalation tactics, when feasible.”
Verbal warnings before discharging a gun
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for policies that require officers to give a verbal warning before discharging their firearm.
Milwaukee’s policy remained unchanged in this regard. It says officers should give a verbal warning, when feasible, prior to using deadly force. They are prohibited from firing warning shots.
Comprehensive reporting
The Eight Can’t Wait campaign advocates for policies that require officers to file reports whenever they use force or threaten to do so.
The changes approved Thursday now require officers to file a report every time they point a gun at someone.
Officers remain required to file a report when:
▪ They discharge a firearm.
▪ They use a baton to strike a subject or an animal.
▪ The discharge an irritant, chemical or inflammatory agent.
▪ They deploy a Taser.
▪ A department canine bites someone.
▪ Someone claims injury as a result of a forcible blood draw.
▪ They engage in a hand-to-hand physical confrontation with someone.
▪ They use any type of force in which a person is injured or claims injury.