Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

law enforcement:

Metro rolls out new use-of-force policy for officers

Sheriff says emphasis now is on ‘de-escalating’ situations before need to use force arises

Sheriff Doug Gillespie

Steve Marcus

Sheriff Doug Gillespie, shown in a file photo, announced Monday, July 9, 2012, a new use-of-force policy for Metro Police.

Updated Monday, July 9, 2012 | 5:48 p.m.

A Metro Police policy change aimed at reducing deadly incidents tightens officers’ ability to use tools such as Tasers and firearms — instead urging them to de-escalate volatile situations when possible.

Sheriff Douglas Gillespie announced the department’s new use-of-force policy during a news conference Monday morning, calling the overhaul a step in making Las Vegas a safer community.

“When an officer takes a life in the performance of their job, there are no winners,” Gillespie said. “The decision to use deadly force is the hardest choice anyone in our profession can ever make. It’s a decision that lives with us forever.”

The policy changes place a greater emphasis on de-escalating — or slowing the momentum of — situations before they rise to the level where force is needed, Gillespie said.

Under the new policy, tools considered intermediate level of force, such as Tasers and low-lethality shotguns, cannot be used unless an imminent threat of physical harm exists to the officer or others in the vicinity.

In addition, the 23-page policy strengthens language about human life and deadly force. An opening paragraph states: “It is the policy of this department that officers hold the highest regard for the dignity and liberty of all persons, and place minimal reliance upon the use of force. The department respects the value of every human life and that the application of deadly force is a measure to be employed in the most extreme circumstances.”

Unveiling of the new policy followed five months of analysis and crafting by Metro’s Office of Internal Oversight. Gillespie said the changes reflected recent findings by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court, input from department employees and a review of industry standards.

Metro spent five weeks starting last month training 2,700 employees — police officers, corrections officers and some civilian staff — on the new policy, said Sgt. Kelly McMahill of Metro’s Office of Internal Oversight. That’s the shortest period of time the department has mandated and completed training, underscoring Metro’s desire to make this a priority, she said.

“The training was extensive, but we won’t stop there,” she said. “We will continue over the next several years to incorporate this policy into training and make sure our officers are seeing this on a weekly basis.”

The department relied, in part, on an emotional approach to send the message to its force, McMahill said. A sergeant, lieutenant and officer previously involved in a deadly use-of-force incident spoke about their experience and its impact in video recorded messages broadcast during training, she said.

“How do we get this point across to our officers?” McMahill said the department pondered. “We have to put cops out there talking to other cops about what it is to take a life during the line of duty.”

Since the training, McMahill said feedback from officers has been largely positive.

“Obviously, there’s always going to be some people that are concerned about restricting the use of tools on their belt, but when it was explained to them that these changes were driven by the 9th Circuit Court, they were all very understanding,” she said.

Lt. James LaRochelle of Metro’s Office of Internal Oversight said the new use-of-force policy would be weaved into reality-based training sessions for officers. In October, the department debuted reality-based training courses, which focus on de-escalating common, problematic situations, he said.

During training about the new policy, the department also told officers it’s their duty to report instances of excessive force they witness, LaRochelle said.

LaRochelle said he hoped the policy changes would “sift out” unnecessary cases of excessive force and, ultimately, save lives. Officers will be held accountable to the updated policy and could be disciplined if the department determines they violate any tenets, he said.

The policy change is separate from the U.S. Justice Department’s examination of use-of-force incidents by Metro, which began earlier this year, Gillespie said. He expects the department to receive additional recommendations from the COPS Office in August. (COPS stands for Community Oriented Policing Services, an office in the Justice Department.)

Gillespie said the use-of-force policy change included some recommendations from the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, which has had ongoing discussions with Metro.

Dane Claussen, executive director of the ACLU of Nevada, said he received a personal letter from Gillespie on Monday morning thanking the ACLU for its recommendations.

“That is indicative of the kind of working relationship we have and we plan to keep having in the future,” he said.

After a first glance through the policy, Claussen said he’s pleased to see a greater emphasis on the sanctity of life and de-escalation tactics — two key recommendations the ACLU of Nevada submitted to Metro.

The group, however, had hoped to see Tasers classified as deadly force, clarification about consequences for officers violating policy and examples of instances where deadly force is never permitted, such as firing into a crowd, Claussen said.

Claussen described the new policy as a “positive step,” but he cautioned that it’s only one piece of the puzzle that needed revamping. He pointed to the inquest system and racial profiling as examples of ongoing issues.

“We’re concerned about all the moving parts here,” Claussen said. The ACLU of Nevada plans to continue regular meetings with the sheriff, he added.

The updated use-of-force policy comes at a time when the number of officer-involved shootings in the past six months is at a 10-year low for the department, Gillespie said. There were five officer-involved shootings from Dec. 12 through June 12, according to Metro data. In comparison, Metro officers were involved in 15 shootings in the first half of 2010.

“To say the policy itself has led to that reduction would be premature,” he said. “However, much of the information and the discussions that go into this policy have led to that.”

Bill Sousa, a criminal justice professor at UNLV, said the updated policy likely would benefit both private citizens and officers. He said studies have shown that policies restricting officers’ use of firearms — which have been increasingly common in the past 30 years — have led to fewer officer-involved shootings. In that time frame, fewer officers have been shot in the line of duty, Sousa said.

“What most people speculate is that if officers are less likely to draw their guns, they’re less likely to engage in a gun fight,” he said.

(In the past, Sousa has advised Metro on topics such as the department’s crime-prevention programs, but he said he did not participate in discussions regarding the new use-of-force policy.)

Metro’s emphasis on de-escalating problematic situations also falls in line with a nationwide trend among law enforcement agencies, Sousa said.

“The whole idea is to avoid having to make the split-second decision,” he said.

Even so, authorities admit not all use-of-force incidents are avoidable, but the goal of the updated policy is to minimize the chances of them reaching that point.

“This issue is incredibly important,” LaRochelle said. “You’re talking about people’s lives at stake.”

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