(CNN) The Sacramento Police Department needs to make significant improvements in its use-of-force policies in the wake of Stephon Clark's death, including better training for officers and an end to choke holds, state officials said Tuesday.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra outlined the recommendations a day after the family of Clark -- an unarmed black man who was shot and killed in his grandmother's backyard by police last year -- filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit.

The state Department of Justice recommended an overhaul of force-related policies within the department. City officials welcomed the input and said they expect they will put the plan into action.

"SPD's use of force-related policies should more clearly define and describe when force is, and is not, authorized; create standards that more clearly define and build upon minimum legal requirements; and more clearly and consistently articulate a commitment to protecting the sanctity of life and de-escalation," the state report said.

It said an officer's response to a suspect's actions should be proportional to the nature of a threat and that he or she "exhaust all reasonably available alternatives before using deadly force."

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