City of Falls Church Mayor David Tarter signed former President Barack Obama’s “Mayor’s Pledge,” calling for mayors, city councils and police oversight bodies to address police use of force policies. 

At their June 8 meeting, the City Council voted unanimously to join the mayor in taking this pledge.

“With the full support of our City Council and Police Chief, I am pleased to join Mayors nationwide to review our police department’s use of force policies in an open and transparent manner with our community,” said Mayor Tarter.

“The use of force is the most extreme and solemn power that any government has. It can never be taken lightly. Because of that we are moving to make sure that our community and elected officials have a greater say in, and oversight of, our procedures and policies to ensure that they are fairly and evenhandedly applied to all. We will be reaching out to the community to seek those interested in joining in this review.”

The pledge includes a commitment to:

• REVIEW police use of force policies;

• ENGAGE your communities by including a diverse range of input, experiences, and stories in your review;

• REPORT the findings of your review to your community and seek feedback;

• REFORM your community’s police use of force policies. 

More information can be found at obama.org/mayor-pledge