OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Omaha officials have announced that the city’s police are now banned from using a knee on a person’s neck to restrain them.
The announcement Thursday from Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer and Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert follows weeks of civil unrest across the country following the May 25 police-involved death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The update to the Omaha Police Department’s use-of-force policy was among several changes announced to beef up training, seek public input and improve diversity within city government, the Omaha World-Herald reported.
Schmaderer has ordered new mandatory training for all officers that will begin in July. He also is conducting a review of recent protests in the city and the police response to them. That review will be presented to Stothert and the Omaha City Council before being released to the public.
“We want to be part of listening and reform,” Schmaderer said in a written release.
The Citizen Complaint Review Board will also see a change, Stothert said. It will now allow people to file complaints against officers directly to the board, instead of with the police department’s internal affairs division.
Stothert also announced the creation of a community advisory board and city employee advisory board to increase diversity; hiring a diversity and inclusion manager, and conducting mandatory racial bias training for all city employees.
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