Amid protests over systematic racism and police brutality, Phoenix Police last week outlawed a controversial neck restraint officers use to subdue subjects. But some other Arizona police departments have already banned it. KNAU’s Ryan Heinsius reports.
The Prescott Police Department stopped using what’s known as the carotid control technique last year. Page police also prohibit officers from using it and Prescott Valley Police say they've never allowed their officers to use the technique. The Flagstaff Police Department, however, does allow properly trained officers to employ the neck hold, but only in situations where a person is trying to harm or kill someone.
The neck restraint involves wrapping an arm or leg around a subject’s neck to slow blood flow to the brain causing a loss of consciousness. Police say it’s used to control potentially dangerous people, but it can result in severe injury or death.
Many police departments across the country have recently banned or limited use of the neck hold, as calls to outlaw it have grown following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Carotid control was not the technique the officer used on Floyd when he died.
