[Mayor or Sheriff Name], 

My name is [Your Name], and I'm reaching out to demand that the city of [Your City] take immediate action to implement key policies to reduce police violence and killings. 

Data clearly shows that police departments that place clear restrictions on when and how officers use force had significantly fewer police killings than those that did not have these limits in place. It also shows that there's a significant and influential relationship between the number of restrictive use of force policies that police departments implemented and the number of people these departments killed. 

Some police organizations have opposed these restrictions claiming they “endanger officers,” but these assumptions are not supported by the data. Officers in police departments with more restrictive policies in place are actually less likely to be killed in the line of duty, less likely to be assaulted, and have similar likelihood of sustaining an injury during an assault.

With that, it's vital that we institute all eight of the following policies in our city immediately: 

1. Require officers to de-escalate situations, when possible, before using force.
2. Use a force continuum or matrix that defines/limits the types of force and/or weapons that can be used to respond to specific types of resistance. 
3. Restrict chokeholds and strangleholds (including carotid restraints) to situations where deadly force is authorized or prohibiting them altogether. 
4. Require offers to give a verbal warning, when possible, before using deadly force. 
5. Prohibit officers from shooting at people in moving vehicles unless the person poses a deadly threat by means other than the vehicle (for example, shooting at people from the vehicle). 
6. Require officers to exhaust all other reasonable alternatives before resorting to using deadly force.
7. Require officers to intervene to stop another officer from using excessive force.
8. Require comprehensive reporting that includes both uses of force and threats of force (for example, reporting instances where an officer threatens a civilian with a firearm).

Together, data shows that these policies can decrease police violence by 72%. 

A commitment to protect and preserve life necessitates the immediate adoption of more restrictive policies governing when and how officers use force. I thank you for valuing the lives and safety of the citizens of [Your City] enough to ensure that we see these policies through. 

Thank you,
[Your Name]