Trends in Use of Force
The amount of effort necessary by police to elicit cooperation from a reluctant person in the setting of law enforcement. When it is legally required to use power to compel the actions of another person, such force must be acceptable. Excessive force is defined as using more energy than a police officer reasonably feels required (Salter, 2021). A security guard may face criminal charges if they use excessive force during an arrest, an investigative stop, or other actions. A police officer may also be held accountable for failure to protect another officer utilizing excess violence.
Witnesses of excessive use of force and police brutality, as well as their relatives, are frequently left in despair following the occurrence, mainly when no factual inquiry is conducted. There are instances when going to court is the only choice, yet with obstacles like qualified immunity, the judicial system is no guarantee of victory. In incidents of excessive force, perfect can shield police personnel in difficult-to-evaluate situations when the line between disproportionate and permissible use is blurry. To be eligible for this immunity, authorities must demonstrate that a reasonable person in their position would not have recognized that their acts violated established rules.
Excessive force and police misconduct are not limited to incidents of lethal force; they can also be found in circumstances when injuries are modest yet arise from unjustified use of force. To be deemed reasonable and in accordance with the United States Constitution, the use of physical violence must cease when the need for the staff is no longer present, such as when a suspect is effectively detained, or a circumstance has de-escalated. To put it another way, an officer is not permitted to punish offenders who no longer constitute a threat.
Graham v. Connor Application
Graham was accused of taking by a police officer as he quickly fled the store in the notable incident of Graham vs. Connor. Graham had really left the business because he wanted to attend to his diabetes condition right away. He hastily left the store to go to the next because there was a huge line. The cop pursued him, pulled him over, and arrested him. They refused to listen to him and did not believe him. They used force on him and mishit him. There were several bruises and fractures. His leg was shattered, and he passed out briefly as a result of his health condition. They concluded he was inebriated and refused to show any documentation that he was, in fact, a diabetes sufferer.
Graham filed a lawsuit in court alleging civil rights violations and the use of excessive force. Nevertheless, his allegations were denied related to the police officer’s motive. The Supreme Court remanded the case, and a sound and accurate assessment were developed to be applied in similar circumstances. The case resulted in the creation of an objective sensitivity test while assessing an official’s operations (Obasogie, 2020). In the long term, case law would progress that criterion to something that may be characterized as, given the reality known at the time, would a suitably prepared and competent official behave along these lines.
To summarize, the degree of force used at the time of the original event was not legal. Officer Conor and his squad were just following Graham because they were suspicious of his peculiar conduct as he visited and departed the business in the smallest amount of time. Graham never constituted a threat to anyone’s life, and he was never discovered to be engaged in any criminal conduct that warranted his arrest.
References
Obasogie, O. K. (2020). More than bias: How law produces police violence. BUL Rev., 100, 771.
Salter, A. (2021). A psychological perspective on police brutality: Current statistics, characteristics, and trends regarding excessive use of force. Web.