Police Brutality Violations

Police brutality is one of the most serious and divisive human rights violations in the United States. The excessive use of force by police officers persists because of overwhelming barriers to accountability. This fact makes it possible for officers who commit human rights violations to escape due punishment and often to repeat their offenses. In recent years, the United States has seen countless acts of police brutality, such as the most recent case study captured on video in a high school classroom. According to witnesses, a sophomore student at Spring Valley Highschool refused her teacher’s request to stop using her phone in class. Despite repeated requests, she was eventually asked to leave the classroom to avoid further distrubance to the other students. New York Times article states that an administrator ultimately

The video of the episode, which spread across social media in the hours after it happened, drew renewed attention to concerns about the treatment of African-Americans by law enforcement officers. NBC news includes that "Fields, 34, was initially suspended without pay, and the FBI, the Justice Department and state law enforcement have opened separate investigations into the brutal take down" (NBCNEWS). A memo of the results of the department's investigation says deputies, in instances where the suspect is in a seated position and is nonthreatening, are trained to use "tactical communication to try to talk them into compliance." If that fails, deputies can use "pain compliance techniques," but aren't supposed to "throw or push away a suspect" unless the person is trying to harm them. The female student was not severely injured, although her attorney said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that she "has a cast on her arm, she has neck and back injuries. The student was also seen attmepting to fight back by throwing a few swings at Officer