S.F. youth groups want more juvenile protections from police
Youth advocates and community groups sent a joint letter to the San Francisco Police Commission on Wednesday requesting that a potential new policy on how police interact with juveniles further limit the use of handcuffs. It also asked that officers default to the least restrictive response possible when dealing with youths. At present, the draft policy gives officers discretion on whether to handcuff youths being taken to non-jail facilities. It allows youths to be handcuffed until a search can be conducted by their preferred gender of officer. Juveniles may also be handcuffed to a stationary object for a maximum of 30 minutes, with room for extensions. There is no other mention of when to use handcuffs. The policy has long been planned in group meetings that have included police commissioners and other stakeholders, including the nine groups that signed onto today’s letter. The […]
