There are five categories of reportable force:
Pointed Firearm at Person (Reportable) Incident involves a Department member intentionally pointing a firearm (pistol, rifle, or shotgun) at a person.
Drawing from the holster, a slung rifle or shotgun, or displaying a firearm while pointing it in a low ready or other safe position if not pointed at a person's body does not constitute a reportable PFP incident. Pointing a Stunbag, Taser, Arwen, or other launcher or chemical irritant delivery system at a person does not constitute a PFP incident, as these are less-lethal force options and not firearms.
Non-Categorized Force Incident involves any of the following where there is no injury or complaint of pain from the subject and no allegation of unreasonable force:
Resisted Hobble application;
Resisted searching and handcuffing techniques; and/or
Resisted firm grip, control holds, come-alongs, or control techniques.
Examples include but are not limited to, using control techniques on a resistive individual, using control techniques on an advancing/hostile individual to create a safe distance, and using control holds on a subject who grabs onto a fixed object to avoid handcuffing.
Category 1 Force involves any of the following where there is no injury:
Takedowns;
Use of Oleoresin Capsicum spray, Freeze +P or Deep Freeze aerosols, or Oleoresin Capsicum powder from a PepperBall projectile (when a subject is not struck by a PepperBall projectile) if it causes only discomfort and does not involve injury or lasting pain; or
Pointing a firearm at a person when there has been an allegation that the pointing of a firearm violated policy.
Category 2 Force involves any of the following:
All face, head, or neck strikes or punches with hands or fists;
Any identifiable injury;
A complaint of pain that a medical evaluation later determines is attributable to an identifiable injury; and/or
Any application of force other than those defined in Category 1 Force but does not rise to the level of Category 3 Force.
Category 3 Force involves any of the following:
All shootings in which a shot was intentionally fired at a person by a Department member;
Any type of shooting by a Department member which results in a person being hit;
Force resulting in admission to a hospital;
Force resulting in serious bodily injury;
Any death following a use of force by any Department member;
All face, head, or neck strikes with an impact weapon or other object;
Kicks or knee strikes to a person’s face, head, or neck;
Striking a person’s face, head, or neck against or with a hard object;
Skeletal fractures caused by any Department member.
Any use of improvised weapons or techniques if the use meets any other Category 3 category;
All canine bites;
Any force which results in a response from the IAB Force/Shooting Response Team, as defined in MPP section 3-10/130.00.
NOTE: For cases involving strikes to a person's head or neck by use of a kick, knee, or personal or impact weapon, the Executive Force Review Committee (“EFRC”) Panel may reclassify the strike from a Category 3 use of force to a Category 2 use of force if the Panel determines the act was unintentional and the incident did not meet any other Category 3 element. Any review to reclassify the strike can only be done following the concurrence of all three EFRC members and the Department’s Office of Constitutional Policing (after consultation with the Office of Inspector General and Los Angeles County Counsel).
Internal Affairs Bureau (IAB) will be notified of all canine bites requiring medical treatment. Due to the specialized nature of these investigations, canine bites will initially be investigated by the Special Enforcement Bureau sergeant unless the incident meets the criteria for an IAB Force/Shooting Response Team response. All canine bites shall also be reviewed by the Executive Force Review Committee.