Judge Orders Detroit Police Not to Use Batons, Tear Gas Against Protesters for Two Weeks
A federal judge in Detroit has ordered the city’s police not to use batons, tear gas, shields, chokeholds, rubber bullets, sound cannons, or any other type of non-lethal force against protesters for the next two weeks.
The late Friday ruling granted a temporary restraining order to the activist group Detroit Will Breathe, which sued the city on Monday, claiming that excessive police force infringed upon their protesters’ First Amendment rights, the Detroit Free Press reported.
U.S. District Court Judge Laurie Michelson’s order stops police from using any type of force during protests without “probable cause.”
“For a short period, we know that the police will not be able to use the brutal tactics they have in the past against peaceful protesters without violating a court order,” said Jack Schulz, who filed the order on behalf of the group.
But Detroit Police Chief James Craig said the police have not used force against peaceful protesters.
“We’re going to continue to do our jobs the way we’ve done it,” he said. “We respect peaceful protesters. We understand the judge’s order and we’ll make sure the protesters understand if there’s any aggression or violation of law, they will get ample notice like we’ve done in the past.”
The lawsuit claimed that some of the officers’ use of force had left some protesters hospitalized.
https://www.breitbart.com/law-and-order/2020/09/05/judge-orders-detroit-police-not-to-use-batons-tear-gas-against-protesters-for-two-weeks/