In June, the Chapel Hill Town Council voted to ban the use of chokeholds by the Chapel Hill Police Department (CHPD), along with several other reforms. In September, members of Town Council learned that CHPD had not actually enacted the chokehold ban. Rather, CHPD listed chokeholds as a form of deadly force, which may still be used under certain circumstances. Sign the petition below if you would like to urge the Chapel Hill Town Council and Mayor Hemminger to enforce its policy reform and fully ban the use of chokeholds by the CHPD.

Dear Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger and Chapel Hill Town Council:

We write with very real concern about the recent revelation that the Chapel Hill police have ignored your very clear direction and vote in June of this year to ban chokeholds in Chapel Hill. 

Regardless of your opinion on the policy of chokeholds, this is a deeply disturbing admission that the Chapel Hill police and town manager feel comfortable ignoring the policy direction of our elected leaders. We are having an urgent and badly needed conversation about the impact of policing on communities of color, especially Black communities, in our community and across the country. Banning chokeholds is just one small part of this conversation, but it’s an important one. Cities around the country have taken similar action.

This issue doesn’t need to be brought back to council; the vote you took in June needs to be enforced. If that doesn’t happen, what confidence do the residents have regarding future votes you take on issues related to policing—or on any issue, for that matter?

We urge you to correct the police procedure manual to ban chokeholds immediately. In this moment, delay only serves to undermine your credibility as leaders as well as public safety.