A police department’s use-of-force policies can have a huge impact on the number of people they end up killing. The people at Campaign Zero have identified the eight most important policies that cities can start putting in place right away, and they have built a tool so you can look up where your city stands on each.
The website is 8cantwait.org, and the policies are:
Requiring deescalationA use-of-force continuumA ban on chokeholds and strangleholdsRequiring a warning before shootingRestricting shooting moving vehiclesRequires officers to exhaust all other means before shootingRequires other officers to intervene and report when their colleagues are using excessive forceRequires reporting of all uses of force or threats of force against civiliansThere’s not only a chart to compare your city to others, like so:
Blue means that policy is in effect. Red means it is not. The more blue in a row, the better. Cities highlighted in yellow have updated their policies since 2016.Screenshot: 8cantwait.org...but you can also look up your city and get a shareable graphic showing which of the eight policies your city still needs to enact, and giving the phone number of your mayor or sheriff.
These policies are a good beginning, but they aren’t the only way to reduce police violence. For more, check in with your local organizations, especially Black-led ones, that are working to eliminate police violence. But this is one place to start.
