The mayor of Alabama’s largest city on Tuesday banned the use of chokeholds by police following the police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota.
Mayor Randall Woodfin, who announced the prohibition during a continuing review of city policies, also issued new guidelines that say city police now have a duty to intervene anytime they see a fellow officer using excessive force.
Members of a task force that includes a co-founder of Birmingham’s Black Lives Matter chapter and a former detective are continuing a review of police practices in the city.
Floyd died after a Minneapolis police officer now charged with murder pressed down on his neck for almost nine minutes after Floyd repeatedly said he could not breathe. Three other officers were charged for not intervening.
Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
