Police Commission to monitor RCMP review of carotid hold

Neck restraint under scrutiny following the death in U.S. of George Floyd in May

SASKATOON The Saskatchewan Police Commission says it is monitoring the RCMP’S review of a neck restraint that has now been banned by several police departments in the United States following the death of George Floyd.

Physical restraints involving the neck have come under scrutiny since the 46-year-old’s death. Floyd, an unarmed Black father, died after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki said Wednesday that the RCMP will review the use of the carotid neck restraint. Other North American jurisdictions are reconsidering or halting its use, including several police departments in California.

In Saskatchewan, municipal police are taught the “Koga neck restraint,” a form of the carotid neck restraint, which the Saskatchewan Police Commission — the body that sets standards for city police services — said is not a “choke hold” and is not intended to restrict air flow.

This form of carotid neck restraint is taught to recruits at the Saskatchewan Police College, and police are permitted to use it. By design, it involves putting pressure on the carotid artery, and will render a person unconscious by restricting blood flow. Police in Saskatchewan are taught to use their arms to employ these “sleeper holds.”

The provincial police commission said the “Koga neck restraint” is considered a “more severe” level of force and its use must be reported and properly documented. In a prepared statement, the commission said each incidence of use is examined by police supervisors to ensure there are no training or policy concerns related to its use.

The commission said each municipal police service has its own policy and procedure related to neck restraint, which must comply with the standards approved by the commission. The standards include direction on when its use is appropriate, how to properly apply the hold and the establishment of official reporting and review mechanisms.

Its use was recorded twice by the Saskatoon city police in 2019, five times in 2018 and once in 2017, and is listed as a “neck restraint” in the department’s annual use of force report. The “carotid neck restraint” is outlined in the Saskatoon police use of force policy, the full text of which is only available through a formal Access to Information request. The Starphoenix has submitted a request.

In an email, a Saskatoon police spokeswoman said officers don’t use chokeholds, or any restraint technique to restrict oxygen.

When asked if Saskatoon’s police department has discussed whether to continue to allow carotid neck restraints, the spokeswoman referred the question to the Saskatchewan Police Commission or Saskatchewan Police College.

Recruits at the police college undergo eight hours of training on the carotid restraint hold and then have to recertify in the use of the “carotid neck restraint” every three years, said Sgt. Derek Lamer, a 20-year member of the Regina city police who serves as the use of force co-ordinator for the provincial police commission.

Lamer has been training recruits for 15 years. He said recruits are taught to use their arms for the carotid neck restraint and the goal is to get the individual to the ground. They are also taught how to get out of a neck restraint if one is used on them.

Lamer said training in how to respond in an arrest situation is based on assessment of things like body language and other considerations, such as whether the person requires medical attention or is showing signs of drug use, mental health issues, stress or fatigue. Recruits are taught different kinds of restraints, such as twist locks that target the wrists or elbows, he said.

Verbal de-escalation is emphasized where feasible, followed by going in “hands on” and using what they need to gain control in an arrest, Lamer added.

“It’s our responsibility to ensure ... the health and safety of not only the police, the public, but also the subject we’re dealing with as well.”

It’s our responsibility to ensure ... the health and safety of not only the police, the public, but also the subject we’re dealing with as well.