The NMA Calls for Comprehensive Reform in Response to Police Use of Excessive Force

The National Medical Association Calls for

Comprehensive Reform in Response to Police Use of Excessive Force

On January 7, 2023, Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old black man, was severely beaten by police officers in Memphis Tennessee.  Three (3) days later Mr. Nichols died from his injuries.

The National Medical Association (NMA) extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Nichols. The killing of Tyre Nichols is another reminder of the lingering effects of institutional racism in many communities throughout these United States. The conduct of these police officers is reprehensible and requires a full national reform to law enforcement and police conduct. The National Medical Association is calling for a national response that includes (but is not limited to):

1. Immediate development of a federal office responsible for the review of all fatal police excessive-use-of-force cases occurring in local jurisdictions.
2. The immediate discontinuation of police practices that include life threatening maneuvers like baton beating, rear naked neck restraint (choke hold) and the practice of placing weight or force, by any means, on a restrained person’s neck and torso.
3. All police officers are required to voluntarily report any witnessed unauthorized or excessive use of police force by a fellow officer. An omission of reporting such instances is considered an act of complicity.
4. To improve the accuracy and availability of data on death in custody by include a “death in custody” checkbox on the US standard death certificate.
5. Enforce state, local, and federal compliance with H.R. 1447, the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2013.24.

The NMA is the largest and oldest national organization representing African American physicians and their patients in the United States. The NMA has long asserted police excessive use of force as a public health issue and has published both a position statement on police excess use of force and a position paper on urban violence in minority communities. The organization is committed to addressing issues of social determinants, structural violence and systemic racism that fosters an environment that leads to the disproportionate policing of communities of color.

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Garfield Clunie, MD                                                                                 Contact:  Michael Peery

123^rd President                                                                                               (312) 217-2260

National Medical Association                                                                        mlp@lengarmedia.com