In a ‘good start,’ CMPD says it’s in compliance with ’8 Can’t Wait’ policy goals
Campaign Zero — a police reform and accountability organization — has determined that the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is in compliance with its “8 Can’t Wait” policy platform, CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings announced on Tuesday.
Since the June protests over the death of George Floyd, Charlotte protesters and politicians have demanded that CMPD adopt the eight policies designed reduce police brutality and deaths. Most of the policies have to do with when an officer uses lethal or non-lethal force.
In the past two months, CMPD has announced policy changes, many of which were targeted toward gaining compliance with “8 Can’t Wait.”
Jennings said the last two policies to gain compliance were the ban on shooting into moving vehicles and requiring officers to exhaust all alternatives before firing a gun.
Adopting the latter policy was a matter of finding the right wording, since officers often do not have time to try non-lethal methods before turning to their gun, he said. According to the “8 Can’t Wait” website, CMPD’s new policy states that officers should only use deadly force if they believe that a “lower degree of control” is not enough to defend themselves or another person.
As for shooting into a vehicle, Jennings said CMPD worked with Campaign Zero to allow officers to do so when a vehicle is being used to hurt a crowd.
In June, CMPD announced a duty-to-intervene policy that requires officers to step in if nearby officers are not following procedure, though some activists have criticized the policy for its limited scope. Then in August, CMPD said it started tracking whenever officers draw their guns with a new piece of technology. Both of these policies are a part of the “8 Can’t Wait platform”
According to the ‘8 Can’t Wait’ website, CMPD is now in compliance with the other four policies, which include banning choke holds and strangle holds, requiring de-escalation, establishing a use of force continuum and requiring officers to warn people before they shoot.
Mixed reception
On Tuesday, some City Council members praised CMPD for adopting the policies.
“It’s not the end of our work, but it’s a hell of a good start,” City Council member Larken Egleston said. Mayor pro-tem Julie Eiselt said that, unlike other cities, CMPD adopted the policy changes without a judicial order.
However, advocates pointed out that at first, CMPD was quick to defend its existing policies and that “8 Can’t Wait” should only be the start of more police reform.
In June, CMPD said the department was already in compliance with “8 Can’t Wait” and released a graphic that showed each of the eight recommendations and when the department had adopted those policies. However, Jennings walked the statement back in August and admitted the department still had work to do.
Longtime Charlotte police reform advocate Robert Dawkins said those developments were proof that community members have to “stay on top” of the police and “watch them on every single thing.”
“It bodes badly that something as simple as Campaign Zero — which is a basic human right — took so much to get them in compliance,” he said. “What does that say about other things like targeting disproportionately black people at traffic stops?”
In a press conference on Wednesday, Jennings said the department’s compliance is a step forward nonetheless.
“This may seem something (that is) very simple to some, but it certainly is not,” he said.
Jennings added that out of the top 100 biggest cities in America, CMPD is one of only 10 cities that meet all eight recommendations from Campaign Zero.
