Not a Chokehold
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Were they stupid, lazy, or bent on sensationalism? I asked myself that question about the reporters who wrote the stories about the tragic death of the 16-year-old Mira Mesa boy (“Teen-ager Dies After Police Use Chokehold,” Jan. 19).
Reporters for all three local papers, yours included, as well as Channels 8 and 39 referred to the police “chokehold.” An incorrect and inflammatory term.
What police officers were forced to apply was a carotid restraint or “sleeper” hold, wherein pressure on the carotid arteries in the neck causes a temporary shut off of blood to the head, resulting in temporary unconsciousness. This hold is an authorized police restraint hold.
The “chokehold” or arm bar restraint, not authorized by local police agencies, is where pressure is applied to the windpipe, cutting off air, causing unconsciousness.
L. LOUIS, San Diego
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