IMMEDIATE ADOPTION
Number
200316
Version
SUBSTITUTE 1
Reference
Sponsor
ALD. ZAMARRIPA, JOHNSON, PEREZ, DIMITRIJEVIC, BORKOWSKI, KOVAC, SPIKER AND LEWIS
Title
Substitute resolution urging the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners to adopt standard operating procedures prohibiting certain types of restraints and holds such as ‘chokeholds’ and ‘strangleholds’.
Analysis
This resolution urges the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners to adopt standard operating procedures that prohibit officers from using certain types of restraints and holds such as chokeholds and strangleholds, as these have demonstrably lead to loss of life.
Body
Whereas, On the morning of April 19, 2020, on Milwaukee’s south side, Joel Acevedo begged for his life, while an off-duty police officer held him in a rear naked chokehold; and
Whereas, Joel Acevedo cried out, “Let me go home”; and
Whereas, On April 25, 2020, Joel Acevedo died from the injuries he sustained after he was put in a chokehold by a current Milwaukee police officer; and
Whereas, Numerous other individuals have died from being placed in chokeholds or strangleholds by police officers; and
Whereas, Chokeholds and strangleholds frequently result in death or serious injury, qualifying their use as excessive force; and
Whereas, The use of excessive force without consequence erodes public trust in those charged with enforcing laws and preserving public safety; and
Whereas, The frequency of the use of chokeholds and strangleholds indicates a pervasive and systemic issue in the way in which police officers restrain individuals; and
Whereas, It is the role of the Fire and Police Commission to prescribe policies and standards for the Police Department; and
Whereas, Establishing standard operating procedures that prohibit the use of chokeholds and strangleholds would, by some measure, restore public trust in law enforcement and minimize the likelihood of death by police officers; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, By the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee, That the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners is urged to adopt standard operating procedures prohibiting certain types of restraints and holds such as chokeholds and strangleholds.
Requestor
Drafter
LRB176173-1
Luke Knapp
6/22/2020