| Attorney General Jennifer Davenport announced upcoming listening sessions in North, Central, and South Jersey where residents, law enforcement, and organizations will have an opportunity to give feedback on the state’s rules governing the use of force by law enforcement. By law the Attorney General must review the Use of Force Policy in even-numbered years and, if needed, make revisions. As part of the review process, the Attorney General’s Office is seeking input from community members, religious leaders, civil rights organizations, police officers, youth groups, and victims’ advocates. Community comments and perspectives will be taken into consideration as potential policy amendments are weighed. Listening sessions will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on the following dates: • Tuesday, November 10: Greater Mount Zion AME Church, 42 Pennington Ave., Trenton • Thursday, November 12: New Hope Memorial Baptist Church, 91 Division St., Elizabeth • Thursday, November 19: Faith Baptist Church, 829 Tilton Road, Pleasantville Anyone interested in attending a session as an audience member or speaker is asked to preregister by going to https://www.njoag.gov/force-sessions. The website is also available in Spanish at https://www.njoag.gov/force-sessions-esp. “These periodic reevaluations of New Jersey’s Use of Force Policy provide an opportunity to ensure our standards align with best practices and address emerging threats and challenges facing our officers and the public,” said Attorney General Davenport. “We want to hear from the public as we consider whether the Use of Force Policy effectively protects both law enforcement and the community.” A 2024 review of the Use of Force Policy resulted in revisions related to handling situations involving barricaded individuals, particularly those who may be experiencing behavioral, mental health, or substance-use-related crisis. The revisions require officers dealing with a barricaded individual to contact designated tactical teams to respond. Those tactical teams must be equipped with less lethal weapons, such as conducted energy devices (CEDs), commonly referred to as tasers. First-responding officers facing a barricaded individual situation are also advised to wait for appropriate resources to respond before attempting to force a resolution, unless immediately necessary to prevent injury or death. In addition, tactical and crisis negotiation teams are required to identify qualified mental health professionals who can be available to respond to incidents involving a barricaded individual or hostage situation. A 2022 revision to the Use of Force Policy included an update to the vehicular pursuit policy, which provides guidance on the circumstances when officers may engage in high-speed pursuits. Revisions to the Attorney General’s Use of Force Policy must be in furtherance of core principles, including respecting the sanctity of human life, prioritizing alternatives to the use of force, using deadly force as a last resort, and promoting only reasonable and proportional force. Additional core principles, such as the duty to prevent and report uses of force that are illegal or excessive, and the duty to render medical assistance, are set forth in the Use of Force policy. The policy is available online at https://www.njoag.gov/force. |
New Jersey to hold public listening session on law enforcement use-of-force policy in Pleasantville
