Use of Force
(Consent Decree, paragraphs 45 – 130)
“CDP will revise, develop, and implement force policies, training, supervision, and accountability systems with the goal of ensuring that force is used in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the United States and the requirements of this Agreement and that any use of unreasonable force is promptly identified and responded to appropriately. The force policies, training, supervision, and accountability systems will be designed with the goal of ensuring that officers use techniques other than force to effect compliance with police orders whenever feasible; use force only when necessary, and in a manner that avoids unnecessary injury to officers and civilians; de-escalate the use of force at the earliest possible moment; and accurately and completely report all uses of force.”
CPC Recommendations and Reports
The Community Police Commission has issued numerous recommendations, reports, and statements on Cleveland’s police policies since the commission was formed by the Consent Decree in 2015. Use of Force is among the issues the CPC was tasked to provide input on and our work is listed below:
May 2016
The CPC collected the concerns, experiences, values, and issues related to the internal, administrative investigations and subsequent review of force from members across Cleveland’s diverse communities into a written document that fairly and accurately summarizes community input received. The CPC distributed the document to CPD, the Parties, and the Monitor. Continue reading
March 2016
The Use of Force Policy refers to the Cleveland Division of Police’s policy governing when officers are and are not authorized to apply force to subjects in the field. Forms for reporting force, what information or data is collected, and how such force is investigated and reviewed are addressed by major topic area in the report. Continue reading
How you can get involved
Together, we can make policing policies better. Your feedback is crucial to ensuring the Commission’s reports and recommendations on ways to improve police policies reflect the values of all Cleveland residents. Join a CPC work group to discuss and prepare reports on issues outlined in the Consent Decree, or view our list of other ways to get involved in the police reform process and have your voices heard.