In the wake of Eric Garner’s death in Staten Island, Police Commissioner Bill Bratton promised a “top to bottom review” of the training his cops receive, with a special focus on the use of force. With that in mind, Bratton is sending six New York officers to visit their Los Angeles counterparts. The NYPD chief told the New York Daily News that his ambassadors will learn about the LAPD’s “state-of-the-art training” — the result of the 12 years the infamously corrupt and violent department spent overhauling its protocols under the supervision of the Justice Department. (Bratton, who was L.A.’s police commissioner from 2002 to 2009, oversaw many of the changes himself.)
LAPD Sergeant Art Tom told the Daily News that the visitors from New York might get some lessons in the “sleeper hold,” which is different from the banned chokehold Garner was put in right before he died. “We don’t choke anyone, but we do use a carotid restraint control hold,” Tom explained. “If I was standing behind you, my right biceps would be along the right side of your neck. It squeezes your arteries, and that’s what we call a control hold. We cannot use it unless it’s a lethal force or deadly force situation.” Sounds like a fun way to spend time on the West Coast.
