United States: Art Acevedo, police chief marching alongside protesters

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The Houston police chief is making headlines in the United States and around the world. And for good reason, in an interview with CNN, he advised Donald Trump to "close his mouth" when he spoke of controlling ("dominate") the protesters. Today, Art Acevedo calls for a reform of the American police.

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With our correspondent in Houston,Thomas Harms

This son of a Cuban immigrant became the first police chief in 2016. Appointed by the African-American mayor Sylvester Turner. Since then, he has taken care of his communication. Art Acevedo knelt with the demonstrators, prayed with them in tribute to George Floyd .

But he admits: the Houston police also have their black sheep. "  We were really in a bad spot last year during a drug trafficking case," he explains. We launched an investigation and charged our police officer with murder. Our agents are already responsible for their actions. "

Eleven people were killed by police in Houston last year. And six, just the past six weeks. Internal investigations are underway. But rules have been established by Art Acevedo. "  In my department, you can't put your knee on someone's neck and leave it there for nine minutes," he insists. Do not touch the neck unless your own life is in danger. We have a duty to intervene. If you see a colleague doing something wrong you must intervene and report. "

He calls for police reform

And in view of the national protest against police violence, he offers a solution: "  We must have a national policy to establish essential rules in police departments so that the 18,000 police departments in the United States follow the same rules , he says. I'm not going to tell you that we are perfect (in Houston) because we are far from perfect, but we will continue to seek perfection. No one is ever going to reach it, but that's what the American people deserve.  "

More and more voices want to come up with a police reform law in the United States that would bear the name of George Floyd.

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• United States
• Racism
• Social issues

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