WASHINGTON _ Demonstrators protesting the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of police officers have held various positions _ some have called for reforms of policing methods, some want police budgets slashed and some want law enforcement agencies reconfigured into public safety departments with a very different mission.
Whatever the demand, the protests seem to have finally pushed police departments, at least in the big cities, to make changes to policing protocols after years of stonewalling.
An exclusive McClatchy survey of police departments in the 100 biggest American cities found that 40 police forces have made at least one change to their use-of-force policy _ including the use of lethal force _ in June, after protests rocked the nation.
