MBTA police issue order banning chokeholds, requiring officers to intervene if colleagues use excessive force

BOSTON (WHDH) - The MBTA Transit Police Department has issued an order that prohibits chokeholds and requires officers to intervene if colleagues use excessive force, officials announced Wednesday.

“All Transit police officers have a duty to intervene if they witness another officer using excessive force,” the department said. “They must also report such force to a member of the TPD’s command staff without delay.”

The department said it has also revised its use of force policy, explicitly prohibiting chokeholds, strangleholds and neck restraints.

“We are committed to serving all citizens with compassion and respect,” the department added.

The changes come in the wake of the officer-involved death of George Floyd and the nationwide protests that continue to call for more transparency and accountability.

Floyd, a black man, died in late May after a Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on the back of his kneck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest on Memorial Day. Floyd had been suspected of using a counterfeit $20 bill.

Chauvin is facing a charge of second-degree murder in connection with Floyd’s death.

Many other Massachusets police departments have since updated their use of force policies.

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