TAMPA, Fla. — At least one Tampa Bay area law enforcement agency is changing a policy in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been charged with murder and manslaughter in connection with Floyd's death. Multiple sources tell our sister-station KARE 11 that Chauvin was the officer captured on video with his knee on Floyd's neck while the man pleaded that he couldn't breathe.
Now, the ripple effects are being felt inside law enforcement agencies nationwide, including here in the Tampa Bay area.
The chief of the Sarasota Police Department has released a memo prohibiting vascular neck restraint. This memo overrides a policy that is part of the department’s standard operating procedure.
“Chief Bernadette DiPino felt it was vital to review this level of force and pulling the VNR use at this time was necessary and a review of the practice and policies was timely” a spokesperson for the department told 10 Investigates. “While the incident in Minneapolis was not an officer from the Sarasota Police Department, Chief DiPino said reviewing incidents like this and recommitting ourselves to being better, doing what is right and being proud of our actions is important and valuable.”
The Minneapolis Police Department allows neck restraints in its use of force policy. Such restraints are defined as "compressing one or both sides of a person’s neck with an arm or leg, without applying direct pressure to the trachea or airway.” In Minneapolis, the policy allows a neck restraint to be used against someone who is "actively resisting." While police in Minneapolis initially suggested Floyd had resisted arrest, the city's mayor later said he'd seen no evidence of that.
10 Investigates found multiple Tampa Bay area law enforcement agencies do not have any policies that would allow for the type of neck restraint that Minneapolis did.
Tampa police tell us the department "teaches no such technique."
St. Pete Police also said neck restraints are not taught.
"This is not an acceptable tactic in our policies. (The head, neck, and groin are pretty much off-limits)," the St. Pete Police Department told 10 Investigates.
The Polk County sheriff's office echoed the same sentiment.
“We don’t train to kneel on someone’s neck," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. "Based on what we see in that video – that was an inappropriate use of force, and totally inappropriate conduct.”
What other people are reading right now:
- Transcript of 911 call on George Floyd released
- CNN crew arrested on live TV while covering Minneapolis protests
- Tampa Bay police chiefs respond to the death of George Floyd
- Hillsborough County endorses plans for reopening Busch Gardens
- 103-year-old woman celebrates coronavirus recovery with a cold beer
FREE 10 TAMPA BAY APP:
►Stay In the Know! Sign up now for the Brightside Blend Newsletter
