Gov. Tony Evers signs a bill banning chokeholds, while GOP lawmakers pass a scaled back use-of-force bill
MADISON – Republican lawmakers scaled back legislation addressing use of force by law enforcement officers on Tuesday just hours after Gov. Tony Evers signed legislation limiting chokeholds and other policing bills that he said didn’t go far enough.
Under legislation Evers signed Tuesday, Wisconsin police officers are barred from using chokeholds except in life-threatening situations or in self-defense.
The legislation was part of a handful of bills Evers signed that seek to reduce the likelihood of law enforcement officers taking action that results in death, particularly of Black men who have disproportionately been subjected to policing.
In addition, Assembly lawmakers passed legislation that carries criminal penalties and would require officers to report colleagues if they use unnecessary force and to intervene when they see colleagues use excessive force.
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