Law enforcement agencies in the U.S. Department of the Interior have new and updated guidelines to improve policing practices and public safety, the DOI announced this week.
The policy changes are based in part on the findings of a task force established by DOI Sec. Deb Haaland in July 2021, "to implement the highest standards for protecting and building trust with the public and provide necessary policy guidance, resources, and training to agency personnel," according to the Oct. 3 announcement.
"The new policies provide clear guidelines on use-of-force standards, require law enforcement officers to wear body-worn cameras and restrict the use of no-knock warrants," the DOI states in the announcement.
The task force, led by Deputy Secretary Tommy Beaudreau and the Office of Law Enforcement and Security, included a representative from each of the DOI's law enforcement bureaus, the announcement reports; the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service.
Updates to policies on the use of body cameras were included in a new chapter in the Departmental Manual, according to the DOI. Those updates include requiring all DOI law enforcers to carry body-worn cameras while on duty; establishing requirements on how video footage is handled; best practices for quickly releasing footage after incidents of injury or death; and creating training standards.
The DOI also updated its use-of-force policies to give "clear guidance" on meeting or exceeding the standards set by the Department of Justice; mandatory collection and reporting of use-of-force information; and forbidding "carotid restraints unless deadly force is authorized."
A new no-knock entry policy was also established, according to the report. The policy requires agents to follow chain-of-command protocols when seeking a no-knock warrant and restricts no-knock entries "to instances where the agent’s announced presence would create an imminent threat of physical violence to the agent and/or another person."
