The Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable is demanding an immediate and total ban on the use of non-lethal bullets by the Los Angeles Police Department, citing serious injuries and escalating concerns over public safety.
President Earl Ofari Hutchinson issued the call on Wednesday after seeing videos of bystanders struck and injured by one a non-lethal projectile.
Hutchinson says, the video reinforces what he and other advocates have warned: that “non-lethal” rounds used by police can, in fact, inflict significant harm.
“The LAPD has fired hundreds of these so-called non-lethal bullets during overwhelmingly peaceful protests,” Hutchinson stated in a press statement. “A total ban is the only way to prevent major injuries and long-term disabilities from these potentially lethal bullets.”
Hutchinson is requesting a meeting with LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell to press for the ban and raise further concerns about what he describes as the excessive use of force during recent protests. He cited alarming injury statistics, referencing more than 2,000 injuries and over 300 resulting disabilities tied to the use of non-lethal munitions in protests across the country.
“This is what a non-lethal weapon looks like? That’s a fiction,” Hutchinson said. “You’re talking about trained killers – Marines, National Guard – now on the ground in L.A. What happens when they’re told to use ‘non-lethal’ force? What happens next?”
Hutchinson also criticized the deployment of federal forces in Los Angeles, calling it a dangerous precedent that could lead to further violence and civil rights violations in future demonstrations.
With more protests expected in the coming weeks, the Urban Policy Roundtable warns that unless meaningful reforms are implemented – starting with a ban on kinetic impact projectiles – injuries to both demonstrators and bystanders will likely continue.
The Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable is an activist and donor organization that discusses public policy every week and advocates local leaders and policy makers for change.
