The Top 10 Most Dangerous American Job

Each year law enforcement officers throughout the county are involved in shootings, some of them fatal. Frequently the shootings are reported by the media, which exploits the feelings of the victim while ignoring the effect of the shooting on the police officer. It is “estimated that approximately 87 percent of all emergency service personnel will experience a critical incident at least once in their career, which include officer-involved shootings” (Kureczka, 2002, p. 18). Officer-involved shootings have a profound effect on not only the officer involved but also their spouses, families, and the departments they serve. Law enforcement officers that are involved in officer-involved shootings need support and assistance such as critical incident stress debriefing and sometimes long-term trauma recover therapy in order to cope and live successful lives beyond the critical incident of the shooting.

* The police has many dangers due to the criminals is society today. Officers may be fired at while on duty, injured on a pursuit, or even on a simple traffic stop. Another danger with police is the amount of stress they receive while providing service.

It is easy to take a look across the occupational spectrum and see that Law Enforcement is a very emotional and dangerous job. Law enforcement officials come in contact with homicides, street violence, and other tragedies while “protecting and serving”. They

I agree that officer safety is tremendously important, unfortunately in today's society it has become more of an issue. Due to the overwhelming media coverage on the use of deadly physical force by police officers, officer safety has decreased. Law enforcement is constantly scrutinized by the media anytime an incident occurs, no mater how severe. Overall the public has to demonstrate more respect towards law enforcement, and law enforcement officers have to do the same toward the public.

In light of the recent spate of police-involved homicides of suspects who may or may not have put the lives of the police involved in fear for their safety and well-being, this paper seeks to examine the use of deadly force by police officers in the line of duty. The training involved in using one’s service weapon in situations that call for a determination of the use of force will be explored, as will the rules, regulations, and extenuating circumstances that lead to the firing of a service weapon in the line of duty, resulting in the death of a suspect. The Supreme Court cases that have led to and/or upheld laws allowing a broader interpretation of what is considered justifiable use of deadly force will be briefly examined. Additionally, the use of non-lethal weapons, such as Tasers, by police forces and how the availability of these weapons influences the rate of deadly force will be inspected. Finally, an elucidation of the various perceptions of the general public of the police after use of deadly force is used within their communities will be addressed.

Police work can be dangerous because with any situation they face, there can be a possibility that it results in personal injury or death to the officer. Throughout their line of worker, there are many variables that create constant dangers for police officers. They are responsible for ensuring everyone’s safety, which means if an incident occurs they must correct the problem. Any of their every day duties can lead to an accident as a result of the offender’s, victim’s, or officer’s actions. Dangerous incidents can take place during their police duty can happen while: responding to a code 3, responding to traffic violation, involved in pursuits, or making an arrest (Brucia). These incidents

Police shootings are unfortunate events but whenever there is a shooting, the topic of race emerges. Police shootings have always been the highlights on news channels and there is always the racially biased narrative that keeps repeating itself yet no one seems to dispute this narrative. However, did you know that studies show a police officer is eighteen and a half times more likely to be killed by a African American male than an unarmed African American male is to be killed by a police officer? In fact, a recent “deadly force” study by Washington State University researcher Lois James found that police officers were actually less likely to shoot an unarmed black suspect than unarmed Caucasian or Hispanic suspect in simulated threat scenarios. Some would argue that there are still police shootings all over America and they occur when police officers

Police officers are often viewed as oppressors and unjust by the community, when in reality they are just doing their jobs. The job of a police officer is to apprehend criminals and detect crime, and the maintenance of public order and to the extend and complication of this duty police officers often need to make split second decision that is not often view by the public as what we call “self-defense” which is a right we all have as human beings and stated in the Universal Declaration of

This shows that police are being protected because society can’t control themselves to deal with the scarlet letter that police wear. Police not only have to wear a badge of courage, but they also have to face the discrimination of wearing their scarlet

I understand police officers everywhere have their own lives on the line, every time they suit up to protect and enforce the law amongst the population. I do appreciate the risk they do to keep us safe from absolute

In addition, police officer exposed to high levels of stress relate to their job have been at an increased risk for adverse health problems, including depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder, (Grant & Terry, 2012).

Law enforcement officers have encountered some very deadly days. The life of a law enforcement officer is one of constantly being aware of your surroundings, dealing with the uncertainty of not knowing the individuals you have to approach, and being able to cope with the visual images seen after vicious crimes. The life of a law enforcement officer, who protects and serves, is both challenging and rewarding. The first law enforcement system was established in Boston, Massachusetts over 350 years ago. During this time in the Colonies that were not heavily populated, the sheriff served as the main law enforcement officer. During the 1800’s, 24-hour law enforcement service and systems similar to what is used today began to emerge (NLEMI). Law enforcement officers face incredible dangers. With over 900,000 law enforcement officers nationwide the Federal Bureau of Investigations reported approximately 1,165,383 violent crimes in 2014. Approximately one law enforcement officer dies every 61 hours (NLEMI).The law enforcement profession is the most challenging and dangerous career, because officers must be aware of every law and action they take at all times, manage constant training and stress, and protecting others as well as themselves in the line of duty.

Interestingly, physical danger is ranked low on the list of stresses by police officers! A study of 2376 Buffalo NY police officers found that compared to the white male population police officers had higher mortality rates for cancer, suicide, and heart disease (Constant). Suicide is one of the worst effects that stress can have on police officers.

Around the world, at an alarming pace, public safety responders are finding themselves in the crosshairs of society. Gone are the days of respect and authority as being a given. In a time where everyone generally has access to a video or camera on their phone, there is nothing normal or typical in regards to interactions with the public. What used to be a simple traffic stop, has the potential to be escalated and posted out on social media or smeared across the prime time news channels. The threat is no longer primarily reserved for just one field within our profession. Police are being ambushed and killed in astronomical numbers. Firemen are being called to a scene and shot. Dispatchers are being followed into stores for wearing a uniform

Friederich Nietzsche wrote, “Whoever fights monsters should seek to it that in the process he does not become a monster”. This aptly applies to police officers who face unexpected and potentially dangerous situations every day. Police officers are confronted with destructive and negative behavior on a regular basis. Law enforcement is one of the most stressful and demanding professions in the United States. Characteristics of police work are stressful because a situation can change at any time. An FBI report shows that approximately twelve out of every one hundred or 60,000 police officers are assaulted each year (Stevens, p. 587). Combined with many other factors,