The myth about chokeholds and why a total ban is a bad idea

There has been much discussion in the news lately about the use of chokeholds in law enforcement, whether or not they should be restricted or banned completely, and I just wanted to take a few minutes to shed some light about their use, importance, and why I feel many people arguing for their outright ban have this very wrong.

Chokeholds, in this case classified as "sleeper holds" are one of the quickest, safest, and most effective ways to subdue a person and get them under your control. In 5-10 seconds, if a proper chokehold is executed, the person will temporary go unconscious and come to within a handful of seconds. A proper sleeper chokehold temporarily cuts off blood flow of the carotid artery in the neck causing the person to blackout. If executed properly, they do not cut off air flow, and are typically safe. People volunteer to be put in sleeper chokeholds all the time and if they are done by someone who knows what they are doing they rarely cause injury.

I agree that they should not be used by police officers haphazardly. They should only be used when an individual is either combative or resisting arrest and needs to be quickly and safely brought under control so he/she can be handcuffed. So, I support only using them in those types of situations, but an all-out ban on them is both dangerous to the officer and the civilian. If cops are no longer allowed to use chokeholds for any reason, then they will be forced to resort to other means to get a person under control as quickly as possible, which is how police are trained. It's all about speed, effectiveness, and efficiency.

Now, I'll throw out this scenario. A cop pulls someone over, for whatever reason. Their car was reported stolen, they were speeding, they were blowing red lights, etc. The officer finds out they have a warrant out for their arrest and is placing the person under arrest. As the officer goes to handcuff the individual, they decide to struggle, resist, or even fight back. If they are no longer legally allowed to use a chokehold, they now have to find another way to subdue the individual. The quickest and most effective way to do so after a chokehold is going to be physical blows. Specifically to the head or throat area, as blows to the body are not going to subdue an individual effectively. Punches or elbows to the face, possibly groin shots to the testicular area. These are going to cause much greater potential damage to the person being detained, and also the longer the officer has to tussle with this person, the greater harm potentially comes to them and nearby civilians if the officer is overpowered and potentially has their firearm taken from them.

Most of the people arguing for a total ban of chokeholds, including sleeper chokeholds have no experience or knowledge of hand-to-hand combat or law enforcement tactics. Many ex-officers, military, and professional fighters, who are either well versed in police tactics or combat maneuvers advocate for the use of chokeholds. The lawmakers and people in power against their use really have no knowledge of this, and if they listened to those who do know, they would not be pushing for total bans on chokeholds. Police reforms should be done by people most knowledgeable about these issues, not people in a suit and tie behind a desk. This is an over-correction in response to George Floyd's tragic death, which was a) not a chokehold, and b) was ruthlessly and callously pinned to the ground for almost 9 minutes. Sleeper chokeholds are done in seconds, and do not cut off an individual's breathing. Two completely different things. Kneeling on a person's throat has no business being used by police officers, especially when handcuffed it's absolutely barbaric. Sleeper chokeholds, however are extremely effective, and in fact, I can argue that more lives of innocent civilians would have been saved in struggles with cops if a chokehold was used instead of fighting, wrestling, which can lead to who knows what.

Rash policy decisions are always the worst, and I suspect any state that rushes to put a total ban on chokeholds, rather than specifying their use, will come to regret the decision within a few years, as both officer fatalities and civilian injuries during incidents with officers rise. Reforms should focus on properly training officers how to execute them, and what instances they should specifically be used in, rather than taking this effective maneuver out of their arsenal altogether.