ST. LOUIS (KTRS) St. Louis aldermen are considering a bill that would limit police respond to protests. Police have drawn criticism for using chemical agents and dispersing crowds in demonstrations since mid-September, when a judge acquitted white former police officer Jason Stockley in the 2011 shooting death of black drug suspect Anthony Lamar Smith.

Alderwoman Megan Green’s proposal filed this week would repeal an existing ordinance on unlawful assemblies. The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri helped draft the bill, which it says would help protect protesters’ First Amendment rights.

Meanwhile, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner wants to set up a unit in her office to investigate officer-involved shootings. Currently, only the city police handle such incidents internally. Gardner pitched her idea to the aldermanic public safety committee Tueday, explaining that such a unit would be more objective than the current system in which city police investigate such shooting incidents.