Trump presses police to embrace better practices on use of force

President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order designed to prod police departments to embrace better police training and practices on the use of force, and also establishing a federal database to keep track of officers hit with misconduct complaints.

"We need to bring law enforcement and communities closer together," President Trump said in the White House Rose Garden, as he signed the new order.

The President's plan would funnel federal grant money to police departments which update their training regimens related to the use of force by officers.

"I'm signing an executive order encouraging police departments nationwide to adopt the highest professional standards to serve their communities," Mr. Trump added.

In order to get federal money, local police would have to stop using techniques like the one which killed George Floyd in Minneapolis - though the President left open a loophole where chokeholds could be used if an officer felt his or her life was in danger.

The President's new executive order is much less sweeping than legislation being pushed on Capitol Hill by Democrats - which is expected to advance through a key House panel on Wednesday.

Both would set up a national registry to make it easier for police departments to check and see whether a prospective new hire has had previous incidents of misconduct involving the use of force.

The President said the registry was a good idea, "so that officers with significant issues do not simply move from one police department to the next."

Cox Media Group