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Should Police Officers Use Less Lethal Weapons Essay

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Many citizens believe that officers should shoot an armed criminal in the arm or leg, or have officers just use less lethal weapons like a taser or pepper spray against someone with a lethal weapon like a knife. Lastly, many citizens believe that officers should be able to deescalate the situation instead of escalating straight to violence with a weapon. One of the myths people tend to believe is why don’t officers just shoot the defendant in the arm or leg to get them to drop the weapon instead of killing them. Of course, it may sound or look cool in movies but when it comes to real life situations officers can’t do that. Police are trained to shoot until a threat is eliminated. It states in an article “shooting to wound may not stop …show more content…

In some instances, police officers do use less lethal weapons but when it comes to a less lethal weapon and a lethal weapon you're not going to get very far. A taser is not going to do much for someone that is running at you with a knife or shooting at you with a gun. This article states, “Officers are trained to ‘shoot to kill’ Much of policing involves a series of judgment calls made while adrenaline is high. Experts say police officers are trained to assess whether they feel an interaction with a citizen could turn deadly. If tensions reach that point, officers are told the use of lethal force would then be warranted” (Sakuma 2016). When it comes to a person that is unarmed then yes, they have less lethal weapons out and ready. Also, police officers are not obligated to use a taser or a less lethal weapon when faced with a lethal weapon. It states “keeping officers safe is the highest priority. An officer isn't expected to do something that might leave him in danger, simply because it's less violent to the victim. And police simply don't feel either tasers or leg shots are reliable ways to disable a suspect” (Lind 2014). This goes to show no officer should put themselves in danger when faced with a lethal …show more content…

In reality police officers de-escalate the situation 99 percent of the time. The public only sees that 1 percent of the time where things get out of control because that is what the media likes to blow up (EugenePoliceDept 2011). When police officers are not able to de-escalate the problem, it is mainly because the offender does not have control over his mind and emotions due to mental illness or drugs they have consumed. When it comes to dealing with de-escalating a situation there are multiple steps an officer has to take, according to Wolfe, De-escalation begins with good information from dispatch, proper tactics, and training to prepare an officer to respond. Persuasion is the most needed but least trained component of de-escalation, but without these components, no positive outcome can be expected (Wolfe 2017). It may seem like it happens in more than one present but again that is because the media makes those police and offender encounters go viral and everyone starts making their own opinions and assumptions about the situation. Most of the time when the situation is unable to be de-escalated it is because the police officer is unable to get contact with the offender, or the offender is not in the right headspace to listen and have a one-on-one conversation to calm the offender. This article states “If a subject is unable or unwilling to listen and respond to what you are saying, the

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In other instances, if the opposing threat is brandishing a weapon, then law enforcement do have the right to retaliate by shooting their guns, as this is part of their

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later that night he leaped at a swat member with a kitchen knife, and the swat member had to shoot to save his life (MacDonald 16). All cops are trained for fast and appropriate responses in any situation, but especially dangerous ones. If a man attacks an officer, he will end up shot by a taser or a real handgun or rifle. The assailant in this case was a major threat to an officer 's life. The officer was forced to react..

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In today’s modern society, many feel that is okay for a police officer can kill a man armed with a harmful weapon at any cost. On many news channels, there are various amounts of articles and reports about a police officer committing this act. Even though a police officer has the right to take action against an armed man, this could be argued in many circumstances. In the 2013, Sammy Yatim was a young adult with a mental illness and was armed with a weapon on a streetcar in Toronto. Yatim was confronted by Const.

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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.

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His neighbor appears to be intoxicated and becomes violent when the officer reaches for his handcuffs. He takes a swing at the officer and then attempts his escape. Thirty years prior, the officer would have had the option to draw his weapon and fire or risk a dangerous car chase. Thankfully, he has a Taser gun on his belt. He is able to draw, fire, and apprehend the subject with little effort and no loss of life.

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According to The Washington Post, out of 356 police brutality cases in The United States, 365 were men and 80 were woman. Of those 356, 80 percent of them were carrying life threatening objects such as; knifes, guns, machetes, 49 of them were unarmed and carrying no weapons, and 16 percent were carrying a fake gun or unarmed. Police are allowed to use deadly force when they feel their life’s, or the lives of other innocent by standards are in danger, but according to this research most of the people were not carrying deadly weapons. Of those in the same brutality cases, 8 of them were under 18 years old, 55 were 18-24 years old, 118 were 25-34 years old, 94 were 35-44 years old, 62 were 45-54 years old and 39 of them were 55 years or older.

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Most of the police officers misuse their positions in law enforcement, possibly due to “power trip”, and are no help to citizens. The allegations of brutality, in the case of Officer Johannes Mehserle, focused on whether or not the officer was guilty of a wrongful death towards Oscar Grant. According to officer Mehserle, he alleges that he thought the gun was his Taser, but instead was his handgun that shot Grant.

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The main goal of a officer is to gain control of situation, to protect and serve the community. So if they can 't regulate the problem, by using the low levels of force, then they simply must increase the amount of force. Also

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Police brutality will be an issue until a solution is created. Many individuals are victims of this form of assault on daily basis. The liberties held by law enforcement are challenged each time they perform their duties. Police officers should abide by the same laws that each citizen is expected to abide by. Although police officers are granted with the right to determine laws as constitutional, civilians are sometimes treated in ways that are beyond unlawful.

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For decades now, the controversy over deadly force has continued to show up in the news when police officers have acted in a manner that some citizens find just while others deem completely unfair. Many lawsuits stemming from shootings and crimes have found their way to local courts or the Supreme Court to deal with this issue. A portion of the U.S. population finds deadly force unnecessary when non-lethal weapons such as pepper spray or batons just as easily subdue the criminal. In addition, these citizens argue that officers might be liable for cases filed against them if they use excess force on people that seem suspicious but have not actually committed a crime. On the other hand, the opposing argument in favor of deadly force states that

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