Reports of New Haven police using force have decreased by about half over the past year and are currently at a five-year low, records from the New Haven Police Department show.  This year to date, New Haven police reported 164 use of force incidents, down from 342 this time last year. Police officers must record firearm use, firearm display, taser deployment, baton or pepper spray use, any controlled strike made with hands or feet, and injuries caused by K-9 patrol dogs as use of force incidents. Use of force reports are distributed monthly by the city’s Civilian Review Board. Read use of force records over the first eight months of the year dating back to 2021 here. This year, controlled strikes made with hands or feet have made up the majority of use of force incidents, totaling 107 to date. Police have reported displaying a firearm 34 times, though there has not been an incident where an officer has used their firearm. The month with the largest number of use of force incidents was January, with 48 incidents. Under department policy written by Police Commissioner Tracey Meares and Police Chief David Zannelli and approved in 2021, police officers must use force only when necessary rather than in every case it is legally justifiable. Use of force must also be reasonable and “proportionate to the threat.”  Along with that policy, the New Haven Police Department began implementing new deescalation training tactics in 2021. Since then police have also collaborated with the University of New Haven’s federally funded East Coast Regional De-Escalation Training Center.  “I think what you’re probably seeing, and I can’t prove it, is the effect of this new policy and the new training,” said Michael Lawlor, referring to the decrease in use of force. Lawlor, a member of Police Commission and a former top state criminal justice policy advisor, is an associate professor of criminal justice at the University of New Haven. Deescalation training is now “endorsed by and funded by the federal government, including in the current administration,” Lawlor said. “So it’s not a phase.”  Zannelli added that NHPD officers undergo Integrated Communication Assessment and Tactics training (ICAT) on how to appropriately respond to volatile situations, specifically when subjects are engaged in erratic or dangerous behavior but do not have a firearm on them. Officers also undergo KINGIAN non-violent conflict resolution training, taught by local clergy and “founded on principles and tactics utilized by Dr. Martin Luther King.” “So we do what’s required, but provide more as far as de-escalation goes which I feel is helping contribute to the decreases in use of force,” he said. The post Police Use of Force Reports Down 50% appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less