San Diego County bans police use of carotid restraint

June 4, 2020 Michael US 0

A demonstrator raises her hands as police officers stand guard in front of the City Hall during a protest Monday, June 1, 2020, in Anaheim, Calif., over the death of George Floyd on May 25 in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 8:01 AM PT — Thursday, June 4, 2020

San Diego has banned police use of the controversial restraint technique that was employed against George Floyd before his death.

County Sheriff Bill Gore announced the immediate prohibition of the carotid hold Wednesday after police departments across the wider San Diego region issued the policy change earlier this week.

This came as protests throughout the county demanded a ban of the restraint. While Gore defended the practice by saying it was utilized hundreds of times in the past five years without incident, he cited his responsibility to citizens as his motivation for discontinuing its use.

“What made up my mind really, although I still believe it’s a safe technique, but by using that and making it available by deputies, it prevented us from moving forward in the conversation,” said the sheriff. “And we want our communities that we serve to know that we hear them.”