Essay On Police Use Of Force

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Police officer’s use of force has been a controversial topic the past few years, though it is not a new issue, it has been causing much more outrage in society, mostly due to video evidence that cell phones have made easier to obtain and the media reports that make it seem like police brutality is a common occurrence. During lectures, it was mentioned that police officers have protocols in which they must use force if the suspect is a threat, such as levels to how much force police can use depending on how much of a threat the suspect is. Most officers will follow protocol, but what about those that do not? There have been incidents involving police brutality and excessive use of force, such as the killings of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin. These incidents caused public outrage and claims that there are injustice and racism in the system. …show more content…

Eduardo Miranda repeatedly tased and stomped a suspect during an arrest (Global news, Paola Loriggio, sept 2017), the short-tempered and hostile attitudes the police officers in the video had, is not one that is expected from a respected authority. The officers were charged with unlawful or unnecessary use of authority and discreditable conduct (Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press. 2017) but are still going through trials. The journal article “Quick on the Draw” (Christopher M. Donner, Jon Maskaly, Alex R. Piquero, and Wesley G. Jennings) talks about the connection between the excessive use of force by the police and low self-control, which can be seen through the harsh manner the officers in the video acted in. The journal article also describes other factors of use of force, such as its impact on the public’s view of police, and why it is used. The different ways police use of force is perceived, the causes police have for using force, and the effects it has on community and police relations are some major factors in this topic and will all be

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