Complaints from officers prompted Minneapolis Police Department officials to table revisions of a deadly-force policy last week. But that should not be an indefinite pause.
The MPD and other departments need clear use-of-force rules to save lives, reduce injuries and build community trust.
Last August, MPD leaders announced a major overhaul of department rules to emphasize "sanctity of life" and de-escalation tactics. This year's revisions would have "strongly" discouraged officers from firing at, or from, moving vehicles. The proposed changes also would have held officers accountable "if their actions unnecessarily place themselves [or others] in a deadly force situation."
A Minneapolis police union official said officers "were up in arms" because the recommended policy changes were too vague, would remove officers' discretion and could increase penalties for cops.
Following the high profile, officer-involved deaths of African-American boys and men, police departments across the nation have been rethinking their guidelines. Changes such as the ones MPD officials proposed have been adopted in cities such as Seattle, Baltimore and Chicago.
Many recent police policy changes are based on best practices supported by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and former President Barack Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing.
Preventing deaths and injuries is the primary reason to adopt clear, comprehensive policies on when and how officers should employ deadly force. But an additional benefit of such policies can be saving cities and taxpayers money. Fewer cop-involved shootings can mean fewer lawsuits and settlements — legal outcomes that have cost Minneapolis and other cities millions of dollars.
An MPD spokesperson said that the department is taking officer concerns into account but that it will continue to work on revisions. That's the right approach. Together with the community and officers, the MPD should develop use-of-force policies that will best keep citizens and the police who serve them as safe as possible.
