Oceanside Police Department Ceases Chokeholds

OCEANSIDE, CA — A number of law enforcement agencies in San Diego County — including the Oceanside Police Department — have announced that they will stop using the so-called carotid restraint, a compliance technique that renders uncooperative detainees unconscious but can prove deadly if performed improperly.

The agencies include police departments in Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Coronado, El Cajon, Escondido, La Mesa, National City, Oceanside and San Diego, as well as the San Diego County Sheriff's Department and San Diego Harbor Police.

Police departments at San Diego State University and University of California San Diego also announced an end to the use of the carotid restraint, along with the San Diego Community College Police Department and the San Diego Unified School District Police Department.

The agencies announced the decision in a joint statement Wednesday night.

"As San Diego County law enforcement leaders, we have listened to the concerns of our community and hope this action furthers positive dialogue," the agencies said in a joint statement. "We are committed to improving the police profession and enhancing the trust of our community."

The Oceanside Police Department announced Wednesday it would immediately stop using the carotid hold.

"I am aware this particular restraint option has been and continues to be considered unacceptable in many communities," Oceanside Police Chief Frank McCoy said.

"It is time for our department to focus on alternative de-escalation tools and techniques that will help ensure the safety of those individuals in our custody," he added. "The Oceanside Police Department is committed to continuing to provide our officers with extensive training on de-escalation tactics and promoting new tools as appropriate alternatives.

"Our department is committed to listening and learning from the community, as well as continually improving our relationship through each and every interaction with those we serve and protect."

On Monday, the San Diego Police Department became the first police agency to discontinue the practice, citing the death of George Floyd, a black man who died Memorial Day in Minneapolis after being taken into police custody.

Floyd passed out and died after being pinned by the neck to the ground by an officer's knee for nearly nine minutes. He repeatedly said he could not breathe in the final minutes of his life.

For more than a week, people have taken to the streets in cities across the country, including in the county, against police brutality and in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

"We are watching the hurt and pain so many people are expressing after the tragic death of George Floyd and are committed to taking new actions to make sure something like this doesn't happen in San Diego," Mayor Kevin Faulconer said Wednesday.

In a carotid restraint — a type of so-called chokehold also known as a "sleeper hold" — an officer applies pressure to vascular veins on the side of a detainee's neck to render the person unconscious in a matter of seconds. A different type of chokehold puts pressure on the front of the neck and throat, cutting off air, but if done wrong, the sleeper hold can also asphyxiate.

The use of the carotid restraint locally has caused "much concern and frustration by many in our minority communities," Faulconer said.

Sheriff Bill Gore said that he was taking the step "in light of community concerns and after consultation with many elected officials throughout the county."

The sheriff also said he decided to make the policy change due to input from the community.

"I have and always will listen to any feedback about the public-safety services we provide," Gore said. "Working together, we can ensure San Diego remains the safety urban county in the nation."

City News Service and Patch editor Kristina Houck contributed to this report.