Recommendation: Exhaust all alternatives before using deadly force
To eliminate the use of unnecessary deadly force by police, Campaign Zero’s 8 Can’t Wait recommends that police departments exhaust all other alternatives prior to using deadly force. Alternatives to deadly force include conflict avoidance, empty-handed techniques and less lethal force options (eg. TASER devices).
APD’s current deadly force does not require to exhaust all alternatives, including less-lethal and non- force options, before using deadly force as a last resort.
Background on 8 Can’t wait
The Office of Police Oversight is making recommendations on use-of-force policies as part of a larger effort to re-write Austin Police Department’s General Orders. The revision of the Austin Police Department’s General Orders is a part of the City Council resolutions passed in June 2020.
Learn more about these City Council resolutions on the City of Austin’s Reimagining Public Safety Website.
The first step involves analyzing how APD’s current policies align with policy recommendations of 8 Can’t Wait, an initiative by Campaign Zero that advocates for policies that reduce use of deadly force by police.
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Introduction
Campaign Zero's 8 Can't Wait initiative recommends that police departments "[r]equire officers to
exhaust all other alternatives, including non-force and less-lethal force options, prior to resorting
deadly force."4 In other words, under this recommendation, officers should only use deadly
40
to
force as a last resort. Some alternatives to deadly force include: conflict avoidance, empty-hand
techniques, and less-lethal force options (e.g. TASER devices).41
41
This policy recommendation is intended to eliminate the unnecessary use of deadly force.
Currently, APD's deadly force policy does not require that officers exhaust all alternatives prior to
using deadly force. 42
Exhaust All Alternatives Before Using Deadly Force
Policy review findings
Under APD's current deadly force policy, there is no
requirement to exhaust all alternatives
APD's General Orders consists of both introductory sections and
conduct-specific sections. The introductory sections discuss ethics
and APD's philosophy.43 Following the introductory sections are the
chapters and sections with specific directives.
44
Currently, the only explicit language in the General Orders
pertaining to the use of deadly force as a last resort is the section
detailing APD's philosophy. 45 While articulating a police
department's general philosophy is a valuable exercise, the policy
sections with specific directives are what provide officers with
substantive information about what is required of them.
While the rest of the relevant policies listed below may tangentially
relate to the exhaustion of all alternatives, nowhere do any of them
explicitly direct officers to use deadly force only as a last resort and
only after all available alternatives have been employed. 46
Current APD policies related to exhaustion of all
alternatives
The following APD policies are relevant to the exhaustion of all alternatives:
The Philosophy of the Austin Police Department, which is located in the introductory
paragraphs to the General Orders:
200.1.1 Philosophy - Response to Resistance;
200.3 Response to Resistance;
200.4 Deadly Force Applications; and
202.1.1 Policy - Firearm Discharge Situations.4 47
To view the full excerpts of these policies, please turn to Appendix B.
Office of Police Oversight
Exhaust All Alternatives Before Using Deadly Force
Recommended policy changes
Add the following definitions to General Order 200.1.2 Definitions:
Unreasonable - Conduct which, given the totality of the circumstances, is irrational, not
warranted, or not in accordance with practical realities.
Add the following section to APD General Order 200.4 Deadly Force Applications
and 202.1.1 Policy-Firearm Discharge Situations:
(b) Deadly force shall only be used as a last resort after all alternatives have been exhausted
or when, after analyzing the situation, alternatives have been rendered impossible by the
totality of the circumstances.
1. Officers shall utilize appropriate tactical communication and decision-making as
outlined in General Order 200.2 to ensure that they have the time, distance, and
resources to properly respond to situations they encounter.
2. Officers shall not take unreasonable or unnecessary actions that escalate any
situation to one that would require a deadly force response. Examples include, but
are not limited to, the following:
(a) Standing in front of a moving vehicle;
(b) Giving unclear commands;
(c) Giving an individual an insufficient amount of time to comply with commands;
(d) Drawing weapons before the officer has an objectively reasonable belief that
it will escalate to a deadly force situation; and
(e) Using profanity while giving commands.
3. Officers shall document in an incident report all deadly force alternatives used
during an encounter and what the involved individual's response was to each
technique. If deadly force was ultimately used, officers shall document in detail why
use of deadly force was necessary and objectively reasonable.
Office of Police Oversight