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KANSAS CITY MISSOURI POLICE DEPARTMENT

PROCEDURAL INSTRUCTION

DATE OF ISSUE

EFFECTIVE DATE

NO.

4/7/2021 4/7/2021 21-04

SUBJECT

AMENDS

First Amendment-Protected Activities

REFERENCE

RESCINDS

PPBM: 201- “Code of Ethics and Rules of Conduct.”

P.I.: “Emergency Operations Procedures”

“Internally Recorded Digital Media Records.”

Critical Incident Management Plan

Retention Policies

Revised Statutes of Missouri Section 574.040 & 574.050

I. INTRODUCTION

A. This written directive establishes guidelines and procedures for members of this

Department when engaging with individuals who are participating in First

Amendment-protected activities.

B. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution provides individuals and

groups the right to organize and participate in assemblies on city streets,

sidewalks, other public ways, in parks, and near the object of their assembly, so

long as the individuals and groups do not unreasonably obstruct vehicle or

pedestrian traffic, understanding varying degrees of disruption is inevitable.

C. It is the Department’s mission to safeguard and protect the Constitutional rights

of all individuals participating in First Amendment activities and assemblies.

II. TERMINOLOGY

A. Assembly – A peaceful and lawful gathering or coming together of several

individuals, usually for a particular purpose protected by the First Amendment,

whether religious, political, educational, or social.

1. These gatherings may include but are not limited to, demonstrations,

marches, protests, and rallies.

2. These gatherings present little to no threat to public safety and require

little to no police response.

B. Buffer Zone – A safety zone implemented by command and maintained by

officers which designates an area as safe, usually between counter-protesting

assemblies.

C. Kettling – A tactic used by law enforcement to control crowds in which officers

surround a group of individuals from all sides, preventing points of egress,

sometimes to make arrests or contain individuals.

D. Riot – An incident of civil unrest that constitutes a clear and present danger of

violent and unlawful acts such as destruction of property, arson, looting, injury

towards persons, or other similar threats/acts. A person commits the offense of

rioting if they knowingly assemble with six (6) or more other participants in the

assembly and are agreeing to violate any state or federal law with force or

violence, and thereafter, while assembled and in fact violating any of said laws

with force or violence as outlined in Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo.)

Section 574.050.

E. Unlawful Assembly – An assembly that has met a specific set of criteria as

outlined in RSMo. Section 574.040 that occurs when seven (7) or more

participants in the assembly agree to collectively engage in activity with force or

violence in violation of state or federal law – not municipal law.

III. GENERAL GUIDELINES

A. First Amendment rights are subject to reasonable time, place, and manner

restrictions. These restrictions will be the least prohibitive reasonable and

available means at that time to accomplish a lawful goal in accordance with city,

state, and federal law.

B. Members are encouraged to attend and participate in meetings with community

stakeholders and assembly sponsors for pre-planned large-scale anticipated

assemblies.

C. Whenever possible, members will attempt to contact sponsors and organizers

of large-scale spontaneous assemblies to establish communication and

cooperation and send a clear message that the Department is there to protect

their Constitutional rights.

D. Members will coordinate efforts with the Media Unit to establish communication

via social media regarding an unlawful assembly.

E. At All Assemblies Protected by the First Amendment:

1. Responding members will:

a. Perform all duties impartially without favoritism or preference and

without regard to race, color, national origin, limited English

proficiency, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, religion,

disability, or economic status, in accordance with the current

written directive entitled, “Code of Ethics and Rules of Conduct.”

b. Enforce laws appropriately and courteously in carrying out their

responsibilities. Members will strive to obtain maximum

cooperation from the public in accordance with the current written

directive entitled, “Code of Ethics and Rules of Conduct.”

c. Protect the public’s right to security and privacy in accordance

with the current written directive entitled, “Code of Ethics and

Rules of Conduct” and “Internally Recorded Digital Media

Records.”

d. Be aware that:

(1) Generalized threats of future harm are never the cause for

arrest in First Amendment situations.

(2) Only genuine threats of immediate violence given the

totality of circumstances that would result in harm to an

individual or substantial harm to an organization, or other

entity are cause for arrest.

2. Members will not:

a. Infringe on an individual’s right to lawfully assemble and associate

with others.

b. Obtain information on individuals for documentation solely based

on status, age, sex, gender, race, color, religion, disability, gender

identity, sexual orientation, national origin, support for unpopular

causes, social beliefs, associations, limited English proficiency, or

economic status.

c. Allow personal feelings, animosities, or friendships to influence

their official conduct.

d. Intentionally escalate tensions between law enforcement and

individuals gathering during an active assembly by expressing

their personal, political, or religious views while on-duty and in the

performance of their duties.

IV. PROCEDURES

A. Small Scale and Peaceful First Amendment Assemblies

1. Generally, member involvement and oversight is not necessary unless

members are called to respond.

2. If called to respond, members will contact a supervisor/commander and

assess whether the allegations of law violations for which they were

called are likely occurring, and, if so, will address such violations

consistent with their training and duties.

3. If no law violations are occurring, members will consult with a

supervisor/commander for further direction, but generally keep the peace

from a distance and in a manner that does not escalate the situation.

4. If a small scale peaceful assembly becomes large and potentially

unlawful, members will contact a commander who will refer to Section B

below.

B. Large Scale, Protracted and Potentially Unlawful Assemblies

1. Commander Responsibilities

a. For planned First Amendment activities, a single identifiable

incident commander (IC) will be designated by the Chief of Police

or their designee.

(1) The IC or designee will make reasonable efforts to meet

with assembly organizers in advance to discuss plans,

rules of engagement, and foster a professional and

cooperative relationship.

(2) Reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on the

assembly will be included in discussions.

b. If an active assembly emerges spontaneously, a commander from

the effected patrol division will assume the responsibility of the IC.

If not available, the Duty Commander will assume the

responsibilities of the IC.

c. The IC responsibilities generally include, but are not limited to:

(1) Monitoring, observing, and assessing the event from a

distance with a minimum amount of interference or display

of force as possible.

(2) Determining the level of force response (display of force),

such as donning personal protective equipment, as stated

below.

(3) Distinguishing between minor inconveniences and the

disruption of normal activities when addressing crowd

control situations through the exercise of reasonable

judgement.

(4) Recognizing that any event involving a large number of

individuals may result in a varying degree of disruption of

normal activities.

(5) Determining whether a buffer zone is necessary to ensure

public safety and maintain order when counter-protesting

groups are present.

(6) Determining if and when an assembly will be designated as

unlawful.

(7) Evaluate and determine whether it is reasonable and

appropriate to use weapons, munitions, or chemical agents

to address any threats as they may arise.

2. Display of Force – Generally

a. The display of armored vehicles, personal protective equipment,

or other displays of force will be minimized to the extent safely

possible while having such equipment within proximity.

b. The IC will continuously evaluate the situation to determine if law

enforcement presence is aggravating the situation and if so, make

adjustments accordingly.

3. For Protracted Events Occurring Over Several Days

a. Create a formal plan.

(1) The plan will include a mechanism for direct

communication and feedback from members involved

regarding the formal plan and any updates or modifications.

(2) The formal plan will clearly define the strategic and tactical

goals for the operation, including plans for collaboration

with partner agencies and elected officials and plans for

member wellness.

b. If possible, establish protocols with any assisting outside agencies

regarding the guidelines addressed with ranking members.

C. Unlawful Activities During an Active Assembly

1. If an assembly becomes disruptive, commanders will use their best

efforts to employ a gradual approach to restore order consistent with the

health and safety of the surrounding community, its inhabitants, and its

property.

2. If possible, assembly organizers and sponsors, or individuals of

leadership roles within the assembly, will be engaged by the IC to

communicate expectations and to issue warnings if disruptive activities

are not resolved.

3. Members will make all reasonable efforts to allow law-abiding individuals

to continue to exercise their First Amendment protected rights, and will

focus efforts on those individuals in the active assembly who violate the

law.

4. It is understood that some situations will require members to employ

immediate control and/or enforcement procedures.

D. Designating an Active Assembly as an Unlawful Assembly

1. The IC may designate the active assembly as an unlawful assembly if

the criteria for such a designation are met pursuant to the RSMo. Section

574.040 and only after reasonable efforts to gain voluntary compliance

have failed.

2. Dispersal orders will only be given after the IC determines:

a. No less than seven (7) participants in the assembly are

collectively engaging in activity with force or violence in violation

of state or federal law; and

b. There is a clear and present danger of riot, immediate violence, or

other immediate threats to public safety; and

c. There is no longer a reasonable likelihood that voluntary

compliance or targeted enforcement of non-compliant individuals

will result in eliminating the violence, interference, or threats to

safety; or

d. A State of Emergency has been declared by the Mayor, the

Governor, or the President of the United States that requires such

dispersal.

3. The IC or their designee giving the dispersal order will document the

state or federal violation(s) by whatever means are feasible at the time.

4. Clear and unambiguous warnings to disperse will be utilized.

5. While issuing the order and when possible, the IC or their designee will:

a. Give the dispersal order from multiple locations via an

amplification system. The warnings should be loud enough for

individuals in the rear of the assembly to hear the orders, if

possible.

b. Announce the direction of egress to the group of individuals

assembling unlawfully.

c. State the dispersal orders in English and in other languages that

are appropriate for the audience.

d. Record via audio/video the time, date, and location of the

dispersal order.

6. An example of dispersal orders is:

“I am (rank and name), of the Kansas City Missouri Police Department. I

hereby declare this to be an unlawful assembly in violation of Missouri

Revised State Statute Section 574.040 and order all individuals

assembled here at (specific location) to immediately and peaceably

disperse (insert direction of egress). If you do not do so, you will be

arrested.

7. Members will provide a sufficient and reasonable opportunity for all

individuals to heed the warnings, follow the rules of egress, and exit the

area.

8. Kettling

a. This is a practice that is not preferred because it eliminates points

of egress and denies potentially peaceful protesters the

opportunity to remove themselves from escalating situations.

b. Kettling will only be used when authorized by an IC after

concluding that it is reasonable and necessary to protect the

public or members from physical harm.

9. Dispersal orders will be given repeatedly until the crowd has dispersed,

or the IC determines that the crowd unlawfully assembling does not

intend to disperse and authorizes the deployment of a chemical agent.

Dispersal orders and directions on how to follow the rules of egress will

continue as often as reasonably possible after a chemical agent is

deployed to encourage protesters to leave the area.

E. Use of Force to Disperse or Control Crowds

1. Generally, the IC is responsible for evaluating and determining if and

when it is reasonable and appropriate to use less-lethal weapons,

munitions, or chemical agents to neutralize threats in an assembly.

2. Members will refrain from deploying less-lethal weapons, munitions, or

chemical agents before the IC’s authorization unless given the totality of

the circumstances there is an immediate need to protect themselves or

others from physical injury.

3. Less-lethal weapons and munitions, other than chemical agents, will not

be used for crowd-dispersal purposes.

4. All use of force actions will be thoroughly documented in accordance

with current written directives.

F. Arrests

1. Generally, the IC will approach First Amendment assemblies with the

goal of making arrests only to the extent necessary and with a focus on

identifying any specific individuals who are breaking the law and avoid

mass arrest situations.

2. The IC will communicate that enforcement activity in connection with a

designated unlawful assembly will focus on the violation of state and

federal law(s) that led to the assembly being declared unlawful, and on

those individuals responsible for the state and federal violations.

3. Any other violations of city, state, or federal criminal laws witnessed by or

reported to members will be handled according to training and current

written directives.

4. If possible, the appropriate county or city prosecutor will be notified of

large-scale events that have the potential for unlawful activity that could

result in arrests.

5. Members will refer to the Critical Incident Management Plan and the

current written directive entitled, “Emergency Operations Procedures,”

regarding arrest procedures for Area Commands/Field Forces.

G. Information Dissemination

Information determined to be disseminated concerning First Amendment-

protected activities will be released in accordance with the Department retention

policy.

Richard C. Smith

Chief of Police

Adopted by the Board of Police Commissioners this 23 day of March 2021.

Mark Tolbert

Board Vice President

DISTRIBUTION: All Department Personnel

Public View Master Index – Internet

Department Master Index – Intranet

Policy Acknowledgement SyStem (PASS)