criminal justice Essay

Patrick and Hall in “In Defense of Self and Others” write, "If effective law enforcement is to be maintained, the race must not be to the swift. The fleeing criminal, regardless of his offense, must be considered the author of his own misfortune.” Policemen only use force in response to the situation they are in. Day to day Police men and women have to make difficult choices. The decisions they make often lead to controversy. Two sides are then created. On one side, there are people that believe police are bullies that do as they wish; the other side believes officers act as they see fit and do the best they can to keep the public out of harm's way. “The Etiquette of Police Brutality” by Rion Amalcar Scott represents the first view and

When a law enforcement officer uses force on a subject it will be classified into one of three main categories which are, justifiable, excessive, and deadly force. The authority for law enforcement officers to use force comes from the United States Constitution (case law), state statutes, and department policy. Law enforcement use of force is very important because it involves the patrolman on the street, the corrections officer in jails and prisons, and the courts where excessive use of force cases are held.

Sometimes, it really depends on the officer’s mood and mentality toward his or her job. Some officers may never have to use deadly force, while others use it daily.

The use of deadly force by police officers is a very important subject in today’s society. Many consider the use of deadly force excessive in most cases. However, there are many aspects to look at when considering this topic, such as: Why was deadly force required? When did the officer feel it necessary to apply deadly force? What will be the implications for the officer after the fact? How does the use of deadly force affect society as a whole?

The Supreme Court has stated that the calculus of the propriety of an officer’s use of force must include the fact that officers are often forced to make split-second decisions in circumstances that are tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving. Officers who use force in the street are judged under the Objective Reasonableness

The legal sufficiency of the policy can be called into question anytime force is used. This was first demonstrated in 2000. The state’s policy was revised to explicitly address two subjects. The first issue addressed the act of officers shooting at moving vehicles. This was in response to two controversial shootings that occurred in 1998. Both incidents involved officers firing on moving vehicles after they engaged in high-speed chases for traffic violations. Use of force is not authorized for moving vehicles unless the officer ''reasonably believes: (1) there exists an imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm to the officer or another person; and (2) no other means are available at that time to avert or eliminate the danger'' (Halbfinger, 2000).

The law gives police officers power to use deadly force when they feel physically endangered, but that power doesn’t extend to opening fire at fleeing individuals. When is it necessary or proper for an officer to shoot at a fleeing suspect? This question was posed after a police shooting in South Carolina. There was video recorded by a bystander that shows a black man being shot in the back and killed as he runs away. According to A seminal 1985 Supreme Court case, Tennessee vs. Garner, “The police may not shoot at a fleeing person unless the officer reasonably believes that the individual poses a significant physical danger to the officer or others in the community.” So by that precedent it is only justifiable to shoot a fleeing suspect if they meet that criteria. No two situations are identical neither are any two officers, but law enforcement officers should use only the amount of force necessary to dissolve the situation in order make the arrest. Force should only be applied to protect officer or others from harm. The levels of force police use include basic verbal and physical restraint, less-lethal force, and lethal force application of each depends on the situation. KRS 503.090 is the use of physical force in law enforcement.

The standard that the courts established that allows police to use deadly force to effect an arrest is appropriate. An officer cannot utilize deadly force to arrest an individual unless there is probable cause to believe that the person poses a threat to commit serious bodily harm to the officer or someone else. The use of deadly force to prevent a fleeing felon from escaping is disproportionate and unconstitutional. An officer may use deadly force if he has given appropriate notice to arrest, and there is a reason to believe that the violent fleeing felon will put the police or the community in imminent danger. Deadly force may be reasonable under certain circumstances where there is a fear of harm to you or someone else. This standard is

Police chief: That Is a very good closing question when it comes to using deadly force you have to be 110% sure that your life is in danger and the only way you can get out is to use deadly force. I will always go home to my family if I can help it.

the use of excessive force. Many people have witnessed or have become victims of police brutality. In their line of duty, police officers are sometimes faced with threatening circumstances that enable them to make haste decisions when expecting the worst at the same time hope for the best outcome. A police officer is given the power to maintain law and order as well as to take away any right of a citizen when a situation permits (Heydon, 2005). Thus, they have the responsibility to apply the forces in a recommended way. Therefore, police are trained to use the least amount of force necessary to make an arrest by using escalations of force. However, sometimes police exceed the minimum amount required to diffuse an incident or protect them, which leads to misconduct or undue violence when not warranted.

Whenever a law enforcement officer places an individual under arrest or is involved in a deadly force scenario the officer has used some degree of force. The incidents where an office has to make a split second decision and use physical force to control a situation is known as “Use of Force.” The use of force varies as situations present themselves to the officer and they must decide what level of force is necessary to control the situation. Often the use of force is subject to much debate and not a year goes by without some media coverage of some law enforcement officer accused of using excessive force. In dozens of studies of police use of force there is no single,

Categorical imperative guides all conduct. A person should never act in a way in which the rule behind an action should not become a universal law, meaning an act is morally right if and only if its maxim is universal. With this being said, on a personal level having to use deadly force against someone violating the law is completely wrong if the officer is just taking advantage of his/her position, but ethically what has to be done has to be done especially in the law enforcement

There are many factors that go behind the use of force. These factors include how the officers are trained, the situation the officer is in, the suspect’s behavior whether it is cooperation or

The maintenance of law and order can be an unpredictable and hazardous endeavor. In 2015, more than 50,000 law enforcement officers were assaulted in the line of duty, including more than 900 assaulted with a knife or other cutting instrument (FBI, 2016b). The public can reasonably expect an officer to face an edged weapon attack every eight hours and be injured during such an attack every third day. The public can also reasonably expect law enforcement officers to use lethal force to repel such attacks. The use of lethal force is generally permitted when an officer has a reasonable belief that such force is necessary to prevent “imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to the officer or to another person” (Department of Justice [DOJ], 1995).

According to freedictionary.com the deffination of Deadly Force is “Police officers may use deadly force in specific circumstances when they are trying to enforce the law. Private citizens may use deadly force in certain circumstances in Self-Defense. The rules governing the use of deadly force for police officers are different from those for citizens.” (Freedictionary.com)