Department of Homeland Security updates use of force policy

The Department of Homeland Security released a new use of force policy to align itself with an executive order President Biden signed in May. It provides new guidelines on when to use force, deadly force, bans chokeholds and increases training.

“Our ability to secure the homeland rests on public trust, which is built by accountability, transparency, and effectiveness in our law enforcement practices. Today’s policy announcement is designed to advance those essential values,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

The policy states law enforcement officers may use force only when no reasonably effective, safe and feasible alternative appears to exist. It stated that because there can’t be a precise definition of reasonable, it must be judged by the perspective of the officer on scene, not with 20/20 hindsight.

The updates include: 

• Prohibiting the use of deadly force against a person who is only a threat to themselves or property.
• Prohibiting chokeholds and carotid restraints unless deadly force is authorized.
• Limiting the use of no knock warrants.
• Requiring all DHS employees with knowledge of an officer’s improper use of force to report it to their chain of command. Failure to do so can result in a firing and civil liability. 
• There will also be training on de-escalation techniques, and implicit bias and profiling. 

This will apply to every branch of the department, including the Coast Guard, Secret Service, TSA, Border Patrol and ICE. Each agency and division will have to create its own guidelines that either match or exceed the new policy.