Boston City Council Members Propose Restricting Police Use Of Tear Gas, Pepper Spray, Rubber Bullets

America Protests Global France — Protesters react to tear gas fired by French riot police during a march against police brutality and racism in Marseille, France, Saturday, June 13, 2020, organized by supporters of Adama Traore, who died in police custody in 2016 in circumstances that remain unclear despite four years of back-and-forth autopsies. Several demonstrations went ahead Saturday inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement in the U.S.

Isaiah Thompson is a reporter WGBH News.

June 17, 2020

The Boston City Council on Wednesday took up a proposed ordinance that would restrict the use of chemical agents — like tear gas — as well as rubber bullets, by police.

The measure, sponsored by Councilors Ricardo Arroyo and Andrea Campbell, wouldn't ban the use of such tools outright; but the sponsors said it’s time for a public discussion of the risks posed to the public by such tools and when they are and aren’t appropriate for use by police — especially in crowded situations, like mostly-peaceful protests.

Rubber bullets, said Arroyo, can cause serious injury or even death, especially when a target is hit in the head. He

Tear gas and pepper spray, he said, can also cause serious or fatal health problems, particularly in children, the elderly and people with pre-existing health conditions.

“Chemical crowd control agents are indiscriminate weapons by design,” Arroyo said. “The use of these types of chemicals in warfare is specifically prohibited by the Geneva Protocol of 1945, but is not currently prohibited for use by law enforcement on U.S. citizens."

Campbell noted that the proposed ordinance still allows police to use those tools, but only in limited circumstances and with a clear chain of command and authorization.

“This is the time to push for many police reforms that will make our system more transparent, accountable, racially just and diverse,” Campbell said, “and one way of course is de-militarizing our police department.”

“We’ve all heard from numerous residents with respect to tear gas use, rubber bullets being used in peaceful demonstration and them being injured by these tools, by our officers,” Campbell said, referring to public testimony in recent hearings.“This is not a question around taking away tools that will make our officers less safe. We know there are other tools, and other ways we can get at protecting our officers.”

“This is an opportunity to bring everybody to the table.”

The measure was assigned to the Council’s Committee on Public Safety and Criminal Justice for a public hearing in the coming weeks.

The proposal received support from a majority of the council, including: Councilors Liz Breadon, Kenzie Bok, Anissa Essaibi-George, Matt O’Malley, Julia Mejia, Michelle Wu and Council President Kim Janey all signed on as co-sponsors.