...the Moral Justification of Force in the UK Police Consequentialism and the Use of Deadly Force Among Police Personnel in the UK Against a backdrop of a democratic society, the use of deadly force by the police in countries such as the UK seems implausible for human rights activists. First, police officers are expected to uphold the human rights of every individual hence, civilian rights are always preserved even in criminal cases where the due process of law is considered to be the golden standard in the judicial system. Thus, threading the line between regulations and policies of the agency as well as the ethical and moral dilemma in the use of deadly force predisposes police officers to question the legitimacy as well as the moral justifications in their use of deadly force. While several philosophical theorists have argued for different justifications through philosophical theories, the theory of consequentialism appears to be the one that closely justifies the use of deadly force among the police. Before examining the moral and ethical arguments for the use of deadly force using the consequentialist paradigm, let us first examine the important aspects of deadly force and the use of it by the UK police. First, deadly force as defined by Geller and Scott (23) pertains to the force reasonably capable of causing death or bodily harm. According to this definition, an act that can kill should be consumated before it can be considered as a deadly force hence; threats are not considered...
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...Use of Force Brenda Love Mississippi Valley State University Mrs. Rochelle Cobbs Law Enforcement Systems/Practices CJ 384-Spring 2015 March 22, 2015 Use of Force Abstract This paper addresses the reasons why police use force and how police use force to apprehend suspects. There are several elements that should be considered before police use force. These elements include: if the police officer has reasonable cause to use force to arrest the person, if use of force will help protect the officer and others, and if the police offer should result to using deadly force. These elements are things that all officers are trained on, but officers have to use their own instincts on the way that they will use force based on various specified situations. This paper will observe the reasons why police use force and focuses on how police may use force to control situations. Introduction Force can be defined as restraining someone or something by use of strength, by command, or by use of weapons and/or animals. Police officers may use force when making an arrest. Samaha (2014, p. 155) states “Whether the manner of an arrest was reasonable is affected by whether the amount of force, if any, was reasonably necessary.” Due to each patrol, crime scene, and situation being different, police officers have to go with their instincts and use their knowledge and skills to take control of the situation. After several reports of police brutality, the Supreme Court began to observe...
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...nation — are deeply divided over whether a police officer who killed an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson, Mo., should be charged with a crime. The law that determines when police can use deadly force generally gives officers considerable leeway in making that split-second decision about whether they need to kill to save themselves or others. Police officers are also automatically authorized, based on training in most states, including Missouri, to use deadly force if a suspect tries to grab the officer’s gun. Wilson has told investigators that Brown tried to get his gun during a scuffle in which Brown was reaching into Wilson’s patrol car. Law enforcement experts say the legal standard, established by two Supreme Court rulings from the 1980s, has made it hard for prosecutors to obtain convictions in cases of alleged use of excessive force. Experts say the high court rulings and Officer Darren Wilson’s account give investigators several reasons to find Wilson justified in shooting to kill 18-year-old Michael Brown. A teenager in Washington, D.C. named Michael Brown was shot dead after he allegedly flashed a knife to the police officers assigned in the area near Ferguson, causing his death (Flatow, 2014). Witnesses, however, tell that Brown was unarmed, and the police officers ruthlessly shot him six times on a Tuesday afternoon. Tensions and criticisms arose since the circumstances that were considered in the use of deadly force were unjustifiable (Siddiqui, 2014). This...
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...Use of Excessive Force by Police Use of Excessive Force by Police Police officers are given a significant amount of discretion simply due to the nature of the job. Officers are faced with many threatening situations forcing them to react quickly, yet appropriately. They have the power to infringe upon any citizen’s rights to freedom and therefore they must use this power effectively. One major concern with the amount of discretion officers have is their power to decide when to use force or when to use lethal force. Manning (1997) argues that it is generally accepted that police should be allowed to use force. He also explains that there are an uncertain amount people who agree on as to what constitutes excessive force. The line between what is necessary and what is extreme is very thin and hard to see. Use of force is no doubt one of the most important aspects in policing; however, force should also be used with great discretion. The community policing style is defined by David Allender (2004) as a philosophy of full-service, personalized policing where the same officer patrols and works in the same are on a permanent basis, from a decentralized place, working in a proactive partnership with citizens to identify and solve problems. The most important factors to community policing include personalization, partnership and problem solving (Allender, 2004). The idea is to create a relationship with citizens that are both trustworthy and honest. When officers begin to use force...
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...The Use of Police Force Police officers in today’s society are given a significant amount of discretion simply due to the nature of the job. These officers are often faced with many threatening situations forcing them to react quickly and properly. They have the power to infringe upon any citizen's rights to freedom and therefore they must use this power within the limits of the law. One major concern with the amount of discretion an officer has is their ability to decide when to or not to use lethal force while apprehending a subject. Manning (1997:295) argues that it is generally accepted that police should be allowed to use force when necessary. He also goes on to explain that there is an uncertainty amongst citizens as to what constitutes excessive force. The link between what is necessary and what is extreme is very marginal. The use of force is no doubt one widely debated aspect in policing; however, excessive force should also be used with great discretion. If officers do not use force on every suspect they encounter, then they may be creating a negative environment for the community. As defined by David Allender (2004:18-19), community policing is a philosophy of full-service, custom-made policing where the same officer patrols and works in the same area on a mandatory basis, from a decentralized place, working in a proactive partnership with citizens of that community to identify and solve problems as a team. The most important factors pertaining to community...
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...Introduction In common law, there is a phrase used to describe justified police shootings. This particular phrase is referred to as lawfully apprehended, meaning that the arrest, and the precautions that are taken to make the arrest, must be lawfully reasonable. Then there is a term for those who shoot to kill, assisted suicide, which is death by a cop. This can be either justified or unjustified, depending on the circumstances. For example shooting someone who poses a danger to his or herself as well as others, justified, versus the shooting and killing of a person who had a wallet in his pocket, unjust. Before I dive into the significance of police shootings as it is witnessed throughout the world, I would like to compare a couple of things. Are Police officers who shoot to kill any better than civilians who...
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...There is no question that limiting the use of deadly force is making the job more difficult. It is not that I think police should be given free reign and just be able to shoot and kill anyone the choose. What I am saying is if an armed felon is fleeing the scene of a crime, or they come towards the officer in a threatening manner, then they should be able to use deadly force. The more restrictions that are imposed on officers, educates the general public as to what the police can and cannot do. The general public will use that information to their advantage to find ways to get around the system. They know that limits are placed on the police officers and the general public will test those limits. Just like a child that knows just how far they...
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...Use of Force The use of force is inevitable in police work. In many situations the lives of officers or civilians can be taken by not using force when necessary or using it improperly. Many factors come into play when an officer decides to use force. This includes is the use of force justified, has the officer been properly trained to use force, and will the department be held liable if the force is used improperly? There are two types of force in police work. One is non deadly force and the other is deadly force. Non deadly force is force that, when used, is not likely to result in serious bodily injury or death. Now just because it is not deadly does not mean you can run around and be using non deadly force because you feel like it. To use this type of force you need to have reasonable force. Reasonable force is limited to the amount of force necessary to accomplish lawful results. Say Officers are arresting a man that is kicking and punching, those officers can use only enough force that is necessary to control the situation. If the officers were to start throwing punches back that is excessive force because now they are adding to the fire and not just trying to control the situation. One huge problem for officers is that reasonable force is subjective. This means it all depends on the situation. One thing might be reasonable force for one cop but may even be excessive force for the other due to situations and perhaps even the size of the officer. Due to the intense job...
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...Laws regulating the use of force differ, but usually officers may not use deadly force unless they or other persons are threatened with seriously bodily harm or death. They may use as much non-deadly force as is reasonably necessary to make an arrest, control a crowd, or engage in any other legitimate police functions. Generally, a police officer cannot use deadly force to apprehend a misdemeanant (someone who commits a misdemeanor, a less serious offense than a felony), but in some states the act of fleeing is a felony. If a person flees after an arrest, the officer may be permitted to use deadly force, even if the original offense for which the arrest was made was a misdemeanor. Until recently, most jurisdictions permitted officers to fire at a fleeing felon, but these policies have changed. Today federal and many local and state law enforcement agencies prohibit use of deadly force unless human life is threatened. Even when a statute permits police to fire a deadly weapon at a fleeing felon, the courts may rule that under some circumstances this action violates the felon’s constitutional rights. According to Weisburd, and Williams, Greenspan, and Hamilton, and Bryant (2001). “American society has long entrusted to its police the authority to use force in the pursuit of justice, law, and order. This authority is often glorified in books, television, and movies, where the police are seen as constantly responding to violent felons with equally violent reactions. But the reality...
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...Abstract Police brutality coupled with the use of force has become a social highlight throughout the last few years. It is an ever-increasing problem that is in dire need of immediate action to be taken before things spiral further out of control. This paper suggests approaches that can be used to help reduce the use of force that has become a highlighted topic. Introduction Police officers have a vital role in their communities; they are the ones community members turn to in a time of need. “To protect and serve” has been one of the most recognizable phrases in law enforcement. However, because of more recent conflicts and the negative media against police officers, this phrase has little meaning. In recent news, it has been said and shown that many police officers have been abusing the power given to them. One of the more recent, and notorious cases being the Ferguson shooting that involved a white police officer shooting an African American named Michael Brown in August 9th 2014 (Department of Justice, 2015 pg. 4). The issue itself is not necessarily about race, but more so officers using excessive force with the use of improper weapons handling, and abusing the power granted the moment they take their oath. As a result of these recent incidents, new methods must be applied in the manner in which peace officers conduct themselves in diverse and complex situations, along with the way they are held accountable for their actions. Police Use of Excessive Force Although...
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...Critical Issues in Policing Being a police officer in today’s world is a very dangerous job. Officers is faced with one of the most demanding jobs to do in the criminal justice system. Officers deal with all types of criminals who break the law. We have seen officers lose their life while wearing the badge trying to apprehend a suspect or even questioning an individual. Police departments across the country have lost officers due to the hands of criminals. The dangers police personnel face is at an all-time high. Police officers deal with the public on a daily basis. Officers is constantly in the community eye while on duty which makes officers an easy bull's eye for criminals. Police officers also make traffic stops which is a very dangerous situation for the officer. The officer can certainly get shot or killed by making a traffic stop on an individual. Another danger police officers face is dealing with high speed chases. Not only due the officer got to watch out for himself but also the officer have to watch out for the drivers on the public roads. We have seen so many tragedies from officers losing their life while pursuing a suspect in a high speed chase. When a pedestrian or a driver lose their life to a high speed chase. The family of the person who life was lost due to the high speed chase would likely sue. In some cases we have seen officers stress level rise to a high level due to the loss of that person. Officers also have to deal with the criminals they lock up...
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...of the use of excessive force by U.S. police departments continue to generate headlines more than two decades after the 1992 Los Angeles riots brought the issue to mass public attention and spurred some law enforcement reforms. On Staten Island, N.Y., the July 2014 death of Eric Garner because of the apparent use of a “chokehold” by an officer sparked outrage. A month later in Ferguson, Mo., the fatal shooting of teenager Michael Brown by officer Darren Wilson ignited protests, and a grand jury’s decision not to indict Wilson triggered further unrest. In November, Tamir Rice was shot by police in Cleveland, Ohio. He was 12 years old and playing with a toy pistol. On April 4, 2015, Walter L. Scott was shot by a police officer after a routine traffic stop in North Charleston, S.C. The same month, Freddie Gray died while in police custody in Baltimore, setting off widespread unrest. The policeman in the South Carolina case, Michael T. Slager, was charged with murder based on a cellphone video. In Baltimore, the driver of the police van in which Gray died, Caesar Goodson, was charged with second-degree murder, with lesser charges for five other officers. There have been no indictments in the earlier cases. These follow other recent incidents and controversies, including an April 2014 finding by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), following a two-year investigation, that the Albuquerque, N.M., police department “engages in a pattern or practice of use of excessive force, including...
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...threat of serious bodily harm either to the police officer or others, it has not been considered unreasonable to prevent escape by using the force of deadly harm. Some of the facts in the case is that the police were doing their routine job and get a call of a burglary taking place and the cops handle the call as normal. The suspect was leaving the scene of the crime....
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...Police Killings of Unarmed Blacks Introduction According to Fox News, the recent Baltimore riots following the controversial arrest and death of Freddie Gray has left the city with an estimated $20 million in damages (FoxNews, May 28 2015). Besides these damages caused by Baltimore riots, the long-lasting economic impact in Baltimore is even larger than that of natural disasters since businesses see Baltimore as a less attractive place to invest. Additionally, earlier in 2014, after Michael Brown’s shooting and Eric Garner’s chokehold death, violent protests against police killings of unarmed blacks had already taken place across America in many cities. Those outbursts led to huge economic loss and were harmful for social stability. Freddie Gray, Michael Brown and Eric Garner were not the only black unarmed men killed by police. The Guardian’s statistics illustrates how disproportionately black Americans are killed by police: among the 102 unarmed victims killed by police this year, 32% were African Americans compared with 15% of white people (Swaine, Laughland and Lartey, June 1 2015). In other words, unarmed black Americans were more than twice as likely to be killed during encounters with police as white people. Consequently, those outbursts or protests are rooted in legitimate anger toward a justice system that has in many ways failed them. Not as simple as "thugs" and "criminals" Some public and leaders consider Gray’s death not serious enough...
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...Critical Issues in Policing Being a police officer in today’s world is a very dangerous job. Officers is faced with one of the most demanding jobs to do in the criminal justice system. Officers deal with all types of criminals who break the law. We have seen officers lose their life while wearing the badge trying to apprehend a suspect or even questioning an individual. Police departments across the country have lost officers due to the hands of criminals. The dangers police personnel face is at an all-time high. Police officers deal with the public on a daily basis. Officers is constantly in the community eye while on duty which makes officers an easy bull's eye for criminals. Police officers also make traffic stops which is a very dangerous situation for the officer. The officer can certainly get shot or killed by making a traffic stop on an individual. Another danger police officers face is dealing with high speed chases. Not only due the officer got to watch out for himself but also the officer have to watch out for the drivers on the public roads. We have seen so many tragedies from officers losing their life while pursuing a suspect in a high speed chase. When a pedestrian or a driver lose their life to a high speed chase. The family of the person who life was lost due to the high speed chase would likely sue. In some cases we have seen officers stress level rise to a high level due to the loss of that person. Officers also have to deal with the criminals they lock up...
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