City Council Minutes 2020 06 16 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

City Council Meeting Minutes June 16, 2020 Page 4 of 13 services and to enforce the law equally, fairly, objectively and without discrimination toward any individual or group consistent with the City's Mission and Values. He stated the organization values diversity and human life, and that starts with every new Officer before they put on a Louisville Police Department uniform for the first time. Those values are reinforced with all officers each day and with ongoing training. The Chief reviewed the use of force — response to resistance policies of the Department noting de-escalation tactics are used to minimize the needs to use force. An officer shall use only force that is reasonable, necessary, and proportionate to effectively bring an incident or person under control, while protecting the lives of the officer or others. The Chief stated that effective June 15, 2020 a peace officer is prohibited from using a chokehold upon another person. The Chief stated the Department also voluntarily reports any use of force that results in serious bodily injury to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, who in turn reports this information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In 2019 and 2020 to date, the Department has not had any use of the force that resulted in serious bodily injury. Any use of force by a member of this Department shall be documented promptly, completely, and accurately in an appropriate report. He stated that any officer present and observing another officer using force that is clearly beyond that which is objectively reasonable under the circumstances shall, when in a position to do so, intercede to prevent the use of unreasonable force. An officer who observes another employee use force that exceeds the degree of force permitted by law must promptly report these observations to a supervisor. The Chief stated bias -based policing is prohibited; officers contacting a person shall be prepared to articulate sufficient reason for the contact, independent of the protected characteristics of the individual. All officers wear portable audio video recorders. Officers should activate recorders any time they believe it would be appropriate or valuable to record an incident. Once activated, the portable recorder should remain on continuously until the officer reasonably believes that their direct participation in the initial incident that caused the activation has concluded or the situation no longer fits the criteria for activation. The Chief reviewed the "8 Can't Wait" movement noting the Department's current policies are in full compliance with their recommendations. He added the Department will adopt any other changes coming out of the new bill from the State. He noted the Department has gone through a recent accreditation process. That process included the review of all polices and showed the Department is using contemporary policies in all areas. He stated it also made sure they are using a comprehensive policy manual.