By David Simpson,
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — DeKalb County police are using force less often in the first half of this year than in the same period last year, when fatal shootings of suspects led to controversy and a grand jury investigation.
The total number of incidents involving any use of force by DeKalb police against a suspect from January through June of this year was 157, according to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis of police records. That’s 20 percent less than in the same period of 2006, when there were 196 incidents.
The county police department began the year with a new chief, Terrell Bolton, and facing a grand jury review of 12 fatal shootings by county officers in 2006, more than any other metro Atlanta department. One police officer also was killed last year.
But thus far in 2007, there has been only one fatal shooting of a suspect. The other figures in the AJC analysis came from department records tallying officers’ use of all forms of force, including guns, batons, pepper spray as well as “physical skills” carried out without a weapon.
Records from the past three years showed fluctuations in the use of force.
DeKalb officers fired their guns at suspects in eight incidents in the first half of 2007, down from 11 in the same period a year earlier. But two years ago, in the first half of 2005, there were only two incidents of shots fired.
Excluding shots fired at threatening or injured animals, use-of-force incidents climbed from 366 in 2005 to 401 in 2006.
But in the second half of 2006 — when seven fatal shootings occurred — overall use-of-force incidents actually dropped to 205 from 215 in the same period a year earlier.
Bolton attributed the decrease in incidents in 2006 in part to an increased emphasis on “de-escalation” in officer training that began late in 2006. Officers this year already have received three hours of use-of-force training in a classroom and a full 10-hour day of exercises, some with live ammunition.
The training includes regular reminders that guns should be reholstered if a threat sufficiently diminishes and that officers should continuously urge an armed suspect to surrender, even if shots have been fired.
Bolton also said since his arrival as DeKalb chief in January, he has emphasized “the preservation of life.”
Asked if that implied any criticism of department practices during last year’s 12 fatal shootings, Bolton said no, adding, “Now we’re doing better ... There’s a reason for all this. Leadership makes a difference.”
He cited an incident shortly after his arrival in which officers staked out a house where a man who did not have custody had taken his children.
Officers waited for the man to fall asleep and then removed the children.
“Probably in the past, they would have charged that house,” Bolton said.
The next day, the same suspect was accused of robbing a jewelry store and shooting and wounding a police officer as he fled.
INCIDENTS OF USE OF FORCE BY DEKALB POLICE
Months..........2007 ..2006 ..2005
January-June ....157....196....151
July-December ....NA....205....215
CATEGORIES OF FORCE USED
Category..........Jan.-June ’07....Jan.-June ’06....Jan.-June'05
Physical skills......241..............294..............263
Pepper spray..........46 ..............42 ..............35
Baton ................34 ..............37 ..............31
Gun (fired)............8 ..............11................2
Taser ................NA ..............NA ..............23
Other..................7 ..............10................1
Note: DeKalb police stopped using Tasers in August 2005. Uses of individual categories of force do not add up to total “incidents” because a single incident may include multiple officers using multiple types of force. Figures for total “incidents” and “gun” shown here exclude incidents in which shots were fired to euthanize or defend against animals.
Copyright 2007 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution