This creates a situation that allows police officers discretion in the way they think about what they see and how they handle those with whom they come in contact. There has been an effort by the research community to examine issues concerning how police act and respond in general and what police do specifically when they interact with citizens. A conspicuous void in the research effort has been the lack of attention paid to the process by which police officers form suspicion about a suspect whether or not a formal intervention such as a stop was made. Officers in Savannah, Georgia were observed and debriefed after they became suspicious about an individual or vehicle. Observers accompanied officers on 132, 8-hour shifts, during
Final . The author, Seth Holmes, a physician-anthropologist, writes in the tradition of Agee, Murrow, and Steinbeck in exposing the social injustices that are a part of agriculture, sympathetically casting a human face on backbreaking work, and speaking truth to power. Seth Holmes ' ethnography study Fresh Fruit Broken Bodies is an analysis on the different problems going on with migrant workers in the United States the problems they face in their pursuit of survival, structural forces that impel migration and put individuals, families, and entire communities at a disadvantage of one kind or another. This book specifically connects to three topics we have discussed in introduction to Anthropology, which include economic life and exchange, politics
Some officers could allow their anger and adrenaline interfere with their professional judgement. This is sometimes done by exerting excessive force for personal gratification.
The Australian police force is one of the most noticeable and influential agencies of social control within society. Because of this, the NSW Code of Practice signifies in attempting improving the liability of the NSW Police to the community it serves. The Code of Practice complements the NSW Police’s code of Conduct & Ethics by providing an ethical framework for police, by reinforcing the need for all officers to act with honesty and integrity. These codes are created upon members of the NSW Police acting in accordance to morals and values such as treating everyone with respect, courtesy and fairness and powers are applied correctly and sensibly. These ethics aim to improve the Police’s NSW Police Force Code of Practice as it requires officers to put good practice into place.
One common opinion is that officers should not use more force than is necessary or reasonable, and even then, that force should be used only as a last resort. “Police use force to affect civilians’ conduct. On a day-to-day basis, they do so most often by employing the least degree of force available to them, their mere presence. Cops wear uniforms and drive distinctly marked cars so that, without saying a word, they may have an effect on citizens’ behavior” (Fyfe, 38). When an officer’s presence fails to fulfill the desired conduct, the next course of action for said officer would be verbalization.
Police work is unpredictable and is very dangerous. In some situations, officers may have to utilize use-of-force tactics in order to gain control of a certain situation. This essay will focus on the discussion of polices discretion to use force limited to a suspect who is being “uncooperative” and what mitigating factors may escalate or de-escalate force response by an officer. Written guidelines have the effect to limit the amount of discretion that an officer might use during stressful and dangerous situations in which they find themselves.
There is not a clear consensus on what type of force is suitable in every case due to the impossible task of controlling for all the variables in the incidents that police officers encounter, which is why police exercise a great deal of discretion to determine what would be a reasonable response, “Police use discretion because no set of policies and procedures can prescribe what to do in every circumstance” (Miller, et al., 2013, p. 46). Often, these decisions are made in the blink of an eye, where an officer must assess a situation and determine what level of force is applicable, if any, and
Third, was the suspect actively resisting arrest or attempting to escape?” (Wallentine, 2007) If these questions do not apply to the situation, excessive force should not be
More often than not, in police brutality or police misconduct, the abuse is more subtle than a torturing aspect. Sometimes, the officers will simply push limits and boundaries in order to recieve a statement from a witness. Similar to prosecutors, officers of the law are assigned the task of making sure our society is as safe as it can be. Occasionally, their determination to keep the city safe can sometimes lead them to crossing the line and abuse the power of their badge.
Police officers use the amount of force necessary to ease the situation, arrest an individual, or protect themselves and others from harm. A certain amount of people understand that excessive force is required in different situations. There are moments when police officers will be obligated to use excessive force to calm the situation. For example; Rahtz said, “Then you have others who understand that in some situations, force is not only necessary but is required, if serious, injury or death is avoided” (Rahtz, 2007). Force can be necessary and understood
The Escalation of Force: Specifically Less-Lethal Alternatives “What gets us killed isn’t the ability to apply lethal force; it’s the reluctance to use it, and the reason we’re reluctant is that we can’t make informed decisions. The rules of engagement that allow us to use lethal force mean that we have to tolerate a lot more abuse and risk. With a non-lethal-weapon option, you don’t have to accept the conditions offered” (Wilkinson, 2008) Law enforcement officers are one of the most visible arms of government, as they are only members of society legally authorized to take life or inflict serious injury to preserve order and enforce the law and therefore, they are entrusted with substantial authority and discretion (Miller, 2010).
Officers cannot go out and make choices of their own freely without underlying consequences. Criminal justice officials are governed by laws, rules and codes of ethics when exercising discretion. Discretion varies among officers of different positions. Patrol officers and their
There have been many stories where the lives of citizens and officers have been taken by the incorrect use of force. There is no universal definition of the use of force by police officers. When the use of force comes into play, the correct conclusions must be made as to when the force is necessary, whether the officer has
In some cases, police officers exert excessive force on individuals. The amount of force should be necessary for the situation. For example, a police officer should not use a weapon because a civilian will not obey an initial command. In the article, When Does Force Become Excessive?,
It is easy to learn about a subject from a book, but it is an entirely different matter to learn about a subject through real life experience. I hope to learn how to serve and protect while implementing the law correctly, especially in today’s world when the level of support for police officers is very low and the level of misconduct cases concerning the police are very high. It is not easy to know what to do in every situation, especially when some reactions are needed with very little or no time to think about. It is one thing to hear about a crime happening and the response that would be best to give, and another thing to need
