WEST OLIVE, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) – As the trial of the now-former Minneapolis police officer charged in the death of George Floyd last Memorial Day continues, the issue of how law enforcement handles suspects has returned to the forefront across the country.
The hold that Derek Chauvin used to keep Floyd subdued is not one that most police departments use now, and it’s one that the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department hasn’t employed at all, according to Sheriff Steve Kempker, who says that his department has a “Response to Resistance” policy.
“Every situation is different,” Kempker explained on “WHTC Talk of the Town” during a recent appearance. “There’s not a textbook paragraph for each situation. It depends on the suspect, whether they’re under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It depends too if it’s a ‘fight or flight’ for them, that they just do not want to go to jail or be arrested. The officer has to make some very split-second decisions.
“We train very heavily in ‘verbal de-escalation’ first. There are times that the deputy may be alone, because your backup could be anywhere from a couple of minutes to 15-20 minutes away. That’s where you learn to talk and de-escalate situations, to normally let people ‘get their steam out.’ We’ve been very fortunate through the years that we do not get a lot of people that resist.”
Chauvin is facing second and third-degree murder charges, as well as a second degree manslaughter charge, in connection with the incident that sparked outrage, protests and calls for justice across America.
An excerpt of Kempker’s “Talk of the Town” interview will air today (Apr. 4, 2021) around 10:45 AM in the weekly “Perspectives” public affairs program on WHTC.
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