As they look to find some common ground between law enforcement groups and supporters of a California bill establishing tougher standards for use of deadly force by police, state lawmakers on Tuesday linked a police-backed measure requiring more training with a competing proposal allowing officers to open fire only if they have exhausted non-lethal methods of resolution or de-escalation. The committee voted in favor of combining the bills after lengthy discuss and input from the public.
This move is seen as an effort to force negotiations between the sides by combining major elements of each plan.
The combined measure would set a national precedent by creating statewide guidelines on when officers can use deadly force and requiring that every officer be trained in ways to avoid opening fire.
The 2018 shooting death of unarmed vandalism suspect Stephon Clark by police officers in Sacramento inspired the California effort to restrict when police can use their guns. The officers say they that in the darkness of the night they mistook a cell phone in Clark's hand for a weapon. Both Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert and California Attorney General Xavier Becerra reviewed the case and decided not to file charges against the officers.
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