D.C. police under fire for handcuffing kids 12 and under, vows to stop

Washington D.C. Metro Police found themselves under scrutiny recently after reports surfaced of children in the city being placed in handcuffs. But a new policy is changing that.

According to NBC Washington, on Tuesday, Metro Police Chief Peter Newsham announced the deparment would no longer place juvenile suspects aged 12 and younger in handcuffs. The move was prompted by an ongoing series of troubling incidents caught on camera, showing how officers detained the youngest of minors.

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“We want the public to know that when we do come in contact with kids who have been involved in criminal behavior, they’re going to be treated very, very carefully,” Newsham said. “The default will be not to place handcuffs on juveniles under 12.”

A Metro Police document now clearly states that police are prohibited from handcuffing children “unless the juvenile presents a danger to themselves or others.” It also goes on to explain that for adolescents between the ages of 13 to 17 officers are asked to use their discretion “based on the severity of the offense and circumstances of the interaction.”

READ MORE: D.C. officer probed for handcuffing 9-year-old boy for leaning on car

Last April, police in the area received criticism after cellphone footage showed authorities putting a 10-year-old in handcuffs near Union Station.

“It traumatized him real bad,” the boy’s mother told NBC Washignton. “He couldn’t even sleep last night.”

At the time the child was suspected of being involved in an armed robbery, but the district attorney’s office later conceded that an investigation revealed he was “totally innocent.”

According to The Washington Post, a week prior to that incident, cellphone video caught officers chasing down and detaining another boy who was only 9-years-old.

READ MORE: D.C. citizens oppose the muting of go-go music at area Metro PCS

Metro Police leadership subsequently launched initiatives to revamp departmental policies with the D.C. attorney general’s office in response to public outcry about what appeared to be systemic mistreatment of children in the community.

In a statement, Mayor Muriel Bowser said she hoped that less abrasive tactics at the hands of authorities would lead to improving the relationship between the community and local police.

“They’re different,” said Bowser. “They are not just little adults. They’re developmentally different, and we want to put them in the right lane to get them the help that they need, divert them from the system if possible, so we are not seeing them when they are older and involved in much more serious crime.”

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