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Ventura County Sheriff's Office Nixes Use Of Carotid Holds To Subdue Suspects

Another law enforcement agency on the Central and South Coasts will no longer use a controversial type of hold sometimes used to subdue suspects. 

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office announced deputies will no longer be allowed to use carotid holds.  The action comes following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. 

The Sheriff’s Office had already banned choke holds, but did allow the use of carotid holds during confrontations with violent subjects.  In 2019, deputies used the hold twice, and in 2020 once.  Deputies used the hold in rare instances to restrain a person long enough to handcuff them.

Department officials say in all three cases, the suspects were not seriously injured.  In each case, the suspect was given a medical examination afterwards to insure they were okay. 

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral. 
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