CARLSBAD, Calif – The City of Carlsbad Police Department worked in collaboration with the Carlsbad Equality Coalition, the North County Equity and Justice Coalition and the North San Diego NAACP to create and implement a new de-escalation policy. The policy is consistent with the countywide de-escalation philosophy implemented into policy in June of 2020.
The policy’s leading concept is that law enforcement is guided by the overarching principle of reverence for human life in all investigative, enforcement, and other interactions between law enforcement and members of the community. The Police Department is committed to providing peace officers with the training, equipment, and resources necessary to encourage peaceful resolutions.
“We, as a law enforcement organization, also understand that every law enforcement situation is unique,” noted Police Chief Mickey Williams. “The policy is intended to provide officers who are called to a crisis or criminal act the best tactics and techniques to facilitate a peaceful resolution.”
Williams went on to say that there are many variables that influence every call for police service, but the Police Department’s mission is to provide officers with the policy, training, and resources they need to peacefully resolve situations when possible. The policy includes
Pre-engagement considerations
De-escalation techniques
Disengagement considerations
The Carlsbad Equality Coalition, North County Equity and Justice Coalition and North San Diego NAACP were contributory in the creation of this policy. These groups were part of the team that met, deliberated, and drafted the new policy.
Keyrollos Ibrahim, president of the Carlsbad Equality Coalition said of the experience, “We entered this process only to find that the Police Department was already working on policy changes that community groups have pursued for nearly a decade. This really shows the importance of community collaboration. It only helps police departments efficiently reach the best policies before frustrations boil over.”
Ibrahim further noted that this policy is innovative in the way that it expands the duty to intervene to apply to de-escalation. This expansion makes it the responsibility of every officer not just to regulate their own adherence to the policy but to make sure their fellow officers are using best practices.
Yusef Miller, Co-Chair of the North County Equity and Justice Coalition noted, “The Police Department’s process of creating a new De-Escalation Policy was open, transparent, and best of all collaborative. The department and local social justice activists simultaneously reach out to one another for a well-rounded approach to making real changes that would impact the safety and confidence of the community and officers alike.”
Miller also said that employing a frank dialogue, listening to community concerns, and analyzing real-life solutions and challenges in policing has forged a product that we can be proud of and that will serve the residents and visitors well. We acknowledge that this policy exists in a living and growing process, which will evolve as we learn more and is an opportunity for future continued cooperation.
Lieutenant Reid Shipley is responsible for the comprehensive training portion of the new policy and relays, “The policy’s mission is to give everyone the best possible chance for a safe resolution of incidents in a way that upholds the highest expectations of our officers while simultaneously augmenting and supporting the principles of officer safety.”
All Police Department policies can be found at www.carlsbadca.gov/police under resources.
For more information
Lieutenant Reid Shipley, 760-607-2352 or reid.shipley@carlsbadca.gov
Keyrollos Ibrahim, President of the Carlsbad Equality Coalition, 760-331-7137 or keyrollos@gmail.com
Yusef Miller, co-chair of the North County Equity and Justice Coalition, 240-876-3087 northcountyejc@hotmail.com
