Bakersfield Police Department announces the suspension of carotid restraint control

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Just a day after the Kern County Sheriff's Office announced the suspension of the carotid hold the Bakersfield Police Department is now doing the same.

The department said in a press release Thursday that the use of the carotid restraint control hold by officers has been suspended pending further review. Officers are not authorized to use any neck compression techniques including that hold.

Wednesday during a panel discussion with community leaders Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood made a similar decision. He took the first step in starting a conversation to change the relationship between law enforcement and the community by announcing he was suspending the use of the carotid artery hold by his deputies.

Youngblood called it a pre-emptive move and said it's just the beginning.

The decisions were made in light of the death of George Floyd.

Floyd died on Memorial Day after then Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin held a knee to Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes, likely causing his death. Chauvin has been charged with homicide, and three other officers have been charged with aiding and abetting a homicide.