APD implements new use-of-force policy

ASHEVILLE - The Asheville Police Department implemented its new use-of-force policy Friday after every sworn officer completed training in de-escalation techniques.

The policy was finished at the end of November as a draft and emphasizes de-escalation and accountability, holding city officers to a higher standard than the North Carolina statute.

This new policy is 100 percent different than the agency's previous policy, Asheville Police Department Chief Tammy Hooper said at a Dec. 7 meeting of the Citizens Police Advisory Committee where the new revisions were presented.

The draft policy states that while North Carolina law stipulates officers have the right to use force in achieving lawful objectives, members of Asheville Police Department are subject to a more restrictive policy.

"Prior to using force, when safe and without compromising law enforcement objectives, officers will use de-escalation techniques to attempt to slow down and/or stabilize a situation to allow for more time, options, and resources for incident resolution," it says.

This includes mitigating the immediacy of the threat by containing exposure; establishing communication from a safe position; using verbal techniques to promote rational decision making; and avoiding physical confrontation unless it is immediately necessary, the draft document states.

"Any use of force that is objectively unreasonable or unnecessary may subject officers to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, as well as civil and criminal liability," it says.

Officers should consider whether a subject's lack of compliance is a deliberate attempt to resist or an inability to comply for reasons such as a medical condition, a mental impairment, a developmental disability, language barriers, the influence of drugs or alcohol, a subject's perceived age or a behavioral crisis, the document states.

"Officers must only use the amount of force that is objectively reasonable, necessary under the circumstances, and proportional to the threat or resistance of a subject," the document states.

The draft policy further calls on officers who witness police excessive use of force to prevent the act when they are in a position to do so safely, and to promptly report their observations to their supervisors.

Officers complete training 

Before the draft policy was implemented, officers went through training known as Integrating Communications, Assessment and Tactics (ICAT), which focuses on critical thinking, crisis intervention, communications and tactics, and helps officers to assess situations and make safe and effective decisions.

The goal of ICAT is to enhance safety for both the officer and all involved people, said APD Lt. Jackie Stepp, who oversaw the training, which began at the end of February and ended in April.

“It’s taking a tactical pause and slowing down to make sure you handle the scene safely and effectively,” Stepp said.

"It provides officers with the tools, skills and options for handling different types of critical incidents, especially those that involve subjects who are acting erratically because of mental illness or behavioral crisis and who are unarmed or armed with a weapon other than firearm," police spokeswoman Chrsitina Hallingse sated in a news release. "It’s an additional tool in an officer’s toolkit."

Officers sat through eight hours of classroom time and spent four hours running through three scenarios to complete the training. In each scenario, they used a training technique known as integrating communications assessment and tactics.

It relies on using communication and critical decision-making skills, as well as creating distance and more time with the person in crisis.

"They try to calm the situation down and get the person to talk with them," said APD Lt. Mike Lamb, who taught the classroom portion of the training.

"The No. 1 goal throughout the training is to generate voluntarily compliance from the subject without having to use force (during an encounter)," Lamb said.

The new draft policy came months after a white Asheville police officer shot and killed a black man at Deaverview Apartments after saying he led them on a high-speed chase and displayed a weapon.

The department also came under criticism in September after a police officer pushed a biracial girl to the ground at another housing development.

In the new policy, lethal force is authorized only when it appears "reasonably necessary" to protect the officer or another person from an imminent deadly threat.

Lethal force should not be used against a person whose actions are a threat only to property or only to themselves, it says. Officers should also not fire at a moving vehicle except to counter an imminent threat. Warning shots are prohibited.

In a situation where an officer may have to use force the goal is to use a non-lethal weapon like a Taser or similar non-lethal device, Lamb said.

"You only want to have to use lethal force in a dire situation," he said.

An officer who uses force is required to notify a supervisor as soon as possible, the draft policy states. A report must also be filed if an officer's action results in the death or injury of another person, if a weapon was used, if physical force was used, or if an officer discharges a firearm other than for authorized training or recreational purposes.

The Professional Standards Section will conduct an analysis of all reports related to use of force annually "to ensure department practices are nondiscriminatory and reveal any necessary training or policy modifications," the draft policy states.

The new draft policy was created in conjunction with the Community Police Policy Work Group with the assistance of the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit based in New York City, that helps government build and improve justice systems that are fair, safe and conducive to stronger communities.

The policy can be found on the Asheville Police Department's website.

Staff writer Beth Walton contributed to this report.