Report Recommendation 2.2

Pillar 2: Policy and Oversight

2.2 Report Recommendation: Ensure comprehensive policies on the use of force that include training, investigations, prosecutions, data collection, and information sharing that are clear, concise, and openly available for public inspection

BRPD Alignment

  1. While BRPD will continue to proactively evaluate and adjust its practices and policies to improve our service to the citizens we serve, the agency has made important changes in the following areas:
      • De-escalation: Officers are required to give a verbal warning, before using deadly force, except where there are exigent circumstances 
      • De-escalation: Officers are required to de-escalate situations, when possible, before using force. De-escalation strategies include disengagement, area containment, waiting out a subject, summoning reinforcements, calling in specialized units, or employing other strategies. 
        • General Order 131 (Use of Deadly Force)
        • General Order 135.1 https://www.brla.gov/DocumentCenter/View/10136/General-
        • General Order No. 135.2 and General-Order-1352-Less-Lethal-Impact-Projectiles

        • De-escalation training for all officers.  Officers learn the fundamental skills of active listening, empathetic listening, verbal communication, voice control, officer presence, de-escalation tactics, and assessing the situation. 
          1. Academy Training Police Academy
            • De-escalation Course – 12 hours
            • Use of Force 
            • Procedural Justice Course
            • Fair and Impartial Policing 
        • Officers will not employ choke holds or strangleholds, except in emergency circumstances where it is immediately necessary to use deadly force and the authorized weapons are inoperable, inaccessible, or otherwise not available. 
          1. General Order 131 (Use of Deadly Force)
        • Officers are prohibited from discharging a firearm at a moving vehicle unless the vehicle or the persons within the vehicle pose an immediate deadly threat to others. 
          1. General Order 136
          2. General-Order-136-Vehicle-Pursuits
          3. General Order 136
          4. https://www.brla.gov/DocumentCenter/View/10133/General-Order-136-Vehicle-Pursuits-
        • Mandatory Intervention: Officers are required to intervene to prevent another officer from using excessive force and to immediately report when they observe the use of excessive force by another officer
          • General Order 131 Use of Deadly Force
          • General Order 135.1 https://www.brla.gov/DocumentCenter/View/10136/General-Order-1351-TASER
          • General Order 135.2 General-Order-1352-Less-Lethal-Impact-Projectiles
          • Academy Training http://geauxbrpd.com/academy/
            • De-escalation Course – 12 hours
            • Use of Force 
            • Procedural Justice Course
            • Fair and Impartial Policing 
        • BRPD K-9 Officers are no longer exempt from the agency’s Body Worn Camera policies, specifically, turning on BWC. BRPD BWC_Policy_Revised10_2019
        • Comprehensive reporting: every time officers use force or threaten force against someone, they are required to report it.
          1. General Order 131 (Use of Deadly Force)
        • Require a use-of-force continuum (this limits the weapons or force that can be used depending on the situation)
        • Procedural Justice Training for All Officers (Academy and In-Service). The Procedural Justice tenets of Voice, Fairness, Respect, Trustworthiness, and Transparency are taught to increase officer safety, and officer stress levels leading to fewer complaints, greater community cooperation, and an increase in voluntary compliance.


  2. In 2017, BRPD updated 17 policies

    In 2018, the BRPD updated 24 policies. 

    In 2019, the Department updated 25 policies.
     
    In 2020, BRPD updated 25 policies.
     
    In 2021, BRPD updated 19 policies.


  3. Use of Force incidents has decreased by approximately 23 percent over the last two years.
  4. BRPD has advanced its Early Intervention System https://www.brla.gov/DocumentCenter/View/9875/General-Order-109-Early-Intervention-System. This program allows the Department to track incidents that may be indicators of police misconduct and/or officer training needs.  Those incidents include Complaints, Use of Force Incidents, Accidents, Abuse of Leave, lawsuits, and discipline.  Specific triggers (number of incidents in a time frame) in the system require a supervisor to review past incidents and the documentation of his/her assessment of the officer’s behavior.
  5. For the last two consecutive years, the Baton Rouge Police Department has maintained a 36.7% decrease in cases of police misconduct. 
  6. BRPD's commitment to justice and integrity is at the heart of our Code of Ethics and the sworn oath each officer takes upon graduation from the Academy: General-Order-107-Code-of-Ethics-Oath-of-Office-n.
  7. Procedural justice is embedded in our culture, beginning with BRPD’s Academy Curriculum Academy Course Schedule. 
  8. As an accredited member of the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA), BRPD’s Use of Force policies and training is aligned with the recommendations of the Commission. CALEA Accreditation program seals are reserved for use by those public safety agencies that have demonstrated compliance with CALEA Standards and have been awarded CALEA Accreditation by the Commission. 

    Resources

    Baton Rouge Police Hold new conference about ongoing reforms
     
    As the chief Baton Rouge interview
     
    Law Enforcement - Standards Titles