OPD Revises Policy After Mass Arrest Backlash

Omaha police have revised a policy on arresting protesters following the mass arrest of more than 100 peaceful protesters last month. The Omaha World-Herald reports that Mayor Jean Stothert unveiled the policy change during a news conference Tuesday to discuss coronavirus relief funding. Stothert said the revised policy requires officers to use body cameras to get pictures of each individual they arrest rather than doing mass arrests. The mass arrest on July 25 was criticized not only because protesters were peaceful, but because those arrested were held for hours in an already crowded jail plagued by a COVID-19 outbreak.