The Vigilante Killing

Violent crimes happen every day in America, yet the full scope of why and how they happen are not understood by many outside of law enforcement. But within the ranks of law enforcement and the criminal justice system itself, violent crimes are examined and analyzed at length to determine both how and why the incident occurred, as well as what can be done in the future to prevent a similar event from reoccurring. Investigators use multiple methods and seek various explanations as to why a violent crime occurs. This literature will look at some of those things that investigators try to sort out in the aftermath of a violent crime, such as the killer’s modus operandi and signatures, his psychology, relation to his victims, and how the effect of gender, race, or culture might impact his violent behavior.

The way the plot of Killings by Andre Dubus is arranged changes how the reader sees the characters in the story. This plot starts out in the present, then goes into the past, then back to the present. There are two main characters, and three secondary characters in this story. The way the reader views all of these characters is affected by the plot arrangement. The two primary characters who are most important to the plot, and also most affected by the plot arrangement, are Matt Fowler and Richard Strout. Because the first thing the reader reads in the exposition of the story is “On the August morning when Matt Fowler buried his youngest son, Frank, who had lived for twenty-one years, eight months, and four days…” pg 93, and not Richard Strout’s backstory and reasoning for his actions, they are immediately persuaded by the author to feel sympathy towards Matt. The author needs the reader to feel this sympathy so that when Matt kills Strout at the climax of the plot, Matt is not viewed as the antagonist of the story, but rather as the protagonist. The author needs the reader to view Strout as the antagonist so that the reader does not dislike Matt, and so that the story is one of justified revenge and not just another murder. If the reader had been presented with the plot in chronological order, with Strout’s backstory and reasoning for killing Frank first, then the reader might almost feel bad for Strout. If seen like this, one might conclude that, while he did not take

First, it is crucial to note that police brutality is not synonymous to racism against a particular group. However, there is a stigma that police often racially profile a specific African Americans. In February 2015, two cases of police brutality did not involve African Americans; instead the two victims were a Hispanic shot and killed in Washington State and an Indian-American severely paralyzed in Alabama. Even with this considered, of late, a majority of police brutality cases have involved minorities and specifically African American males. Cases such as Michael Brown and Freddie Gray have sparked a cultural uprising. These trigger event inspired the protests and riots against police brutality demonstrating collective action and physical violence, but the idea of police brutality is much larger than these individual cases, since it is a reoccurring cycle.

“I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!” These were the last words of Eric Garner, a middle-aged African American man. Garner died at the hands of multiple police officers who were trying to restrain him for selling cigarettes. These sorts of images are showcased on television way too often. To the point that some people feel helpless, they know that they alone do not have the power to overthrow the superiority of an officer. So they have really no choice but watch the tragedy unfold. Also fear that if they interfere, that they may be the next victim. “I am most struck by the behavior of the EMTs, who stood along with the police and did nothing as they watched Eric Garner die” (Williams 10). Although some people deny that police brutality is a problem, recent studies and events (such as the one listed above) prove that ultra-aggressive police officers, militarization of police agencies, and the effects of racism have increased police brutality.

As of September 1, 2015, in the United States police officers have killed 776 people and 161 of those people were unarmed at the time of their death (MintPress). There have been too many incidents where police officers have injured or killed someone that could have been prevented. Using maximum force with a suspect has become a routine in many confrontations. Officers have not been given the proper training to deal with individuals and how to handle them without using a weapon. If they were given more training on how to deal with situations resulting in using a weapon to stop an individual during certain scenarios police brutality situations would decrease, lives would be saved, and police would get their good reputation back. However, police departments would have to spend more money on re-training. Some people agree with police brutality and think that a civilian deserved their punishment, which is not right because no one deserves to be beaten or killed. Situations involving police brutality have been increasing throughout the years, which is a problem that must to be solved.

The contemporary social problem I would like to conduct sociological research on is the use of excessive force used by members of the police department in recent unconscionable shootings of unarmed civilians. With all the recent attention that the people of Ferguson Missouri and New York City have been able to rise on this issue, making it a media sensation, it seemed like a good topic to discuss. Police brutality is an egregious, ongoing problem in our society that, until just recently, has been accepted as a sad fact of life by the people it affects and is largely ignored by the rest of society, including politicians and the mass media. Police brutality affects the people that society has come to stigmatize such as minorities, the mentally ill and impoverished people, more so than the well off or middle to upper class white people.

The major theme of Andre Dubus’ Killing,s is how far someone would go for the person they love. It is important to note the title of the story is killings and not killers, for the reasoning that the story does not just focus on two deaths or two murderers but rather the death of marriage, friendship, youth, and overall, trust.

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.

In addition to social medias significance, online activism has made sure we know victim’s names that have been victims of fatal violence at the hands of police. Authority figures were never questioned as to why they did the things they do, until now. People are now linking together different incidents and putting them together as a whole. Since the rise of new generation activists such as Alicia Garza and McKesson, violence and fatalities at the hands of police are now front page news and are no longer be

Vigilante based justice is by no means justice. In essence, vigilantism strips people of their constitutional and legal rights. If vigilantism was allowed, suspected lawbreakers would have no presumption of innocence. Another right that would be lost would the right to have procedural due process. In addition to the rights being lost, a vigilante will often carry a bias and/ or they do not have law enforcement training. With the absence of training, the vigilante will more than likely detain the suspected law breaker in a harmful way, and the vigilante does not know how to properly screen a suspected law breaker to collect facts. All of this being said, vigilantism does not provide suspected law breakers with adequate resources and time to fight any allegations. For a moment place yourself in someone’s shoes that has been wrongly accused of murder. Without any hesitation, one of the family members of the deceased was allowed to murder you because of the preconceived notion that you had killed his/her family member. This is what vigilantism looks like and why it is not acceptable. The possibility of false accusation leading to wrongly punishing an individual should alone deter you from thinking vigilantism is good. This being said, vigilantism has no place in the realm of justice and is not

Thesis Statement: While some citizens argue that police officers are doing their job, is police violence more prevalent, because of social media dramatization, lack of proper tactical training, or is it the vigilante attitude that makes the officers’ feel above the law?

The United States has been a world leader in homicide for centuries. Indeed, “since the early 19th century ...[America has been] the most homicidal country in the Western world” and holds that title today (Kelley, 2009). In a 2007-2008 list of 31 nations, only two nations, Mexico and Chile, had higher homicide rates (Comparison, 2010). Nations with higher populations, such as India and China have fewer homicides (Comparison, 2010). Further, a nation such as Japan, which has a lower population but a higher population density then the United States, has one of the world’s lowest homicide rates (Comparison, 2010). Population size and density, therefore, cannot be the chief reasons for this nation’s higher homicide rates.

The movement continued its encounter beyond racial police violence to make sure change. “Because of social media we reach people in the smallest corners of America. We are plucking at a cord that has not been plucked forever. There is a network and a hashtag to gather around. It is powerful to be in alignment with our own people.” (De Choudhury et al., 2015) ‘Reformist and Revolutionary’ is a social action that fits in with the Black Lives Matter movement. Reformist regularly pursue to help bring about change without challenging the limitations of legal systems however it is often that the motivation is the legal change. Revolutionary disputes that change can’t happen unless there is a change within the legal system for instance; social, political and economic. This backs up the movement as the Black Lives matter movement aims to make sure that change occurs within the judicial system. There aiming for a new social direction. The main focus is to change the political system and the American Districts perspective on viewing police officers who use excessive force, which is leading to the deaths of black

In this poem, ‘The Man He Killed’, the poet Thomas Hardy explores a complex theme, which is war, using the simplest language. Throughout this essay I will be discussing the thoughts and opinions Hardy has on war.

Do you believe in vigilantism? Do you believe in criminals and outlaws being punished for their crimes in the name of justice? What if you knew someone who was so close to you, you would do whatever it took to find those responsible for the pain they caused and punish them in the name of justice. Would you walk down the path of a vigilante and help bring about an end to their tyranny? Vigilantism can be looked at as crime if you look at it in a negative way, or it can be looked at in a positive way. Many vigilantes help make the world a better place every day by doing away with the evil people in this world who kidnap, rape, murder, and loot people in the streets. Vigilantism is justified because the vigilantes help make the world a better