Previous work completed by Jillbee7, order #106076 . I would like Jillbee7 to write this paper as well. Thank you.
Based on the previous order (attached below), I would like this paper to go into detail about the use of force in law enforcement. This can include the history of the use of force and techniques used today. This paper should be 30 pages long. References should be in the same format as the paper below (10 sources is enough).
Previous paper (research proposal):
The Use of Force in Law Enforcement
Chapter 1 – Introduction and Problem Statement
During a law enforcement officer’s time of duty, it is almost certain that a question concerning the whether use of force and, if so, how much reasonable force is needed arises, usually when arresting criminal suspects. Because an arrest and the subsequent investigative detentions are considered seizures of persons and property, the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution must govern them. However, part of this investigation
will be whether it is actually necessary and reasonable to use force, as preventative measures against crime have changed the statistics.
Enforcement officers must have and show probable cause in order to make a valid arrest. The manner in which arrests are carried out must not only be justified at their inception, but the level of force that may be used, must be considered "reasonable."(Hall, p. 1)
The word “reasonable” continues to come up and be debated in all courts of law, as the Constitution and other codes state that force may be used if it is constitutionally reasonable to arrest suspects considered dangerous or to defend life when necessary.
The Constitution puts forth a standard of "reasonableness" in the Fourth Amendment, saying that the word is not conducive to "precise definition," but that each individual case must be viewed separately. Seen from the perspective of a reasonable law enforcement officer at the scene, cases are considered, not with hindsight, but in consideration of the fact that split-second judgments must often be made “in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving-about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation" (Graham, pp. 396-397).
In deciding the circumstances that govern reasonableness in using particular levels of force, the Supreme Court has shown that it depends upon “the severity of the crime;” “whether the suspect poses an immediate threat to the safety of the officers or others;” and “whether the suspect actively is resisting arrest or attempting to evade arrest by flight” (Hall, p. 1). Recent cases may reassess law enforcement officers’ applying force when making arrests.
Chapter Two – Review of Literature:
When reviewing the literature dealing with the use of force in law enforcement, it is necessary to look at Supreme Court cases which have dealt with the use of force by officers, such as Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989), Beck v. Ohio, 379 U.S. 89 (1964), and Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520 (1979). The decisions by the Supreme Court in Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1, 8 (1985) deals with “reasonable force.”
The Federal Bureau
, another branch of law enforcement, must deal with how much force to use when performing official duties, as well. The FBI’s Uniform Crime Report has a yearly report called “Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted,” in which it gives the statistics of FBI officers feloniously killed during the past year. Most of the officers (16 out of 57) killed in 2007 were involved in arrest situations.
Title LXII of the Criminal Code, in Chapter 627, describes justifying the use of physical force by law enforcement officers. Beyond the standard ability to use force to restrain a criminal arrestee, it also addresses defense of the officer or a third person, preventing escape, and being careful not to harm innocent bystanders (Title, 627:5).
The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is a valuable resource for finding out how the public views police use of force. Every three years, the Police-Public Contact Survey interviews a sample of the national public to estimate how often they are pulled over in traffic and whether the police use force in their contacts with the public in the performance of their duty. Over 60,000 people, 16 and over were questioned every third year from 1995 through 2005. The results of the survey are found in PDF format and ASCII text, with recent supplements (in 2008) added, online at the U.S. Department of Justice * Office of Justice Programs Bureau
of Justice Statistics website. (BJS, 2009).
Chapter 3 -- Methods
The method of investigation
will be to peruse the statistics and papers written on the subject of the use of force by law enforcement officers.
The ability to use force has been given to law enforcement officers, but the term in question is “reasonable.” The ramifications of this term will be perused and defined in detail. As used currently, “reasonable” means different forms and extents in the use of force by officers in the line of duty to arrest criminals or defend themselves and others against criminals.
Whether and how law enforcement officers use force and what tools they use in order to subdue criminals by force will be the second aspect of this investigation
. It appears that in different circumstances certain tools and defense weapons are used. If, in certain circumstances, certain weapons are out of proportion to the crime and the circumstances in which they are used, then this needs to be investigated.
Whether police officers actually use force (deadly or non-deadly) in the performance of their duty and how much this force is used will be investigated through the careful analysis of criminal victimization data collections. It appears that the use of force is descending and that the public is not reporting the use of force as often in this decade. Emergency Room statistics may be examined, as well, to determine whether the use of force by law enforcement officers has actually been an aspect of public injury.
Finally, looking at city level surveys of crime victimization and citizen attitudes, the perception of the public concerning whether community policing is effective, compared with statistics of incidents of use of force by police or law enforcement officers will tell whether the declining use of force has affected community policing tactics in subduing criminals.
Chapter 4 – Findings
It is expected that this investigation
of the use of force by law enforcement officers will find that declining use of deadly force has not affected levels of crime either negatively or positively. What may be found is that the public’s perspective of the role of law enforcement officials and police has changed to a more positive one of respect and compliance with the law.
The use of force by law enforcement officers has been allowed by the Constitution and the Criminal Code of the United States of America, when subduing criminals or in defending officers or citizens from criminal attack. But the changing views of the courts and the public has not kept up with the actual trends in the law, and the public is not aware of the statistical decline of violent victimization from 1973 to the present, nor to the dramatic decline in property crime victimizations during the same period (BJS, p. 2).
The curtailing of the use of force and substitution of more productive activities by law enforcement officers was the subject of an experiment by the Kansas City Police Department with dramatic positive results. During this age of technical advances, the use of pro-active, preventative actions, rather than defensive actions after the fact, may be the logical substitution for use of force by law enforcement officers. It is much better to prevent crimes or control them, than to have to use force as a reaction, to stop them and risk the lives of not only the criminals, but of police officers and innocent citizens. (Kelling, p. 8)
Beck v. Ohio, (1964). U.S. Supreme Court, 379 U.S. 89.
Bell v. Wolfish, (1979). U.S. Supreme Court, 441 U.S. 520.
of Justice Statistics, (2009). Crime and Victims Statistics. U.S. Department of Justice * Office of Justice Programs. Reviewed July 14, 2009 at http://www.ojp.gov/bjs/cvict.htm#ncvs.
(2008). Law enforcement officers killed and assaulted, Uniform Crime Report. Oct. 14, 2008. Reviewed July 15, 2009 at http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/killed/2007/documents/summaryleoka2007.pdf.
Graham v. Connor, (1989). U.S. Supreme Court, 490 U.S. 386.
Hall, John C., (1997) Police Use of Nondeadly Force to Arrest., Law Enforcement Bulletin, Oct. 1997. Reviewed July 14, 2009 at: http://www.fbi.gov/publications/leb/1997/oct975.htm.
Illinois v. Lafayette, (1983). U.S. Supreme Court, 462 U.S. 640.
Kelling, George L., Tony Pate, Duane Dieckman, Charles E. Brown (1974)The Kansas City preventative patrol experiment – A summary report. (PDF). Police Foundation. Reviewed July 15, 2009 at http://www.policefoundation.org/pdf/kcppe.pdf.
Tennessee v. Garner, (1985). U.S. Supreme Court, 471 U.S. 1, 8.
Title LXII, (1971). Justification, Criminal Code, Chapter 627:5, 518:1. 1981, 373:1-3, eff. Aug. 22, 1981. Reviewed July 15, 2009 at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/RSA/html/LXII/627/627-5.htm
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Reference: Social Trends in America, Vol. 4. Reviewed July 24, 2009 at http://social.jrank.org/pages/1332/Law-Enforcement-Use-Force.html
Limitations on Use of Force in Law Enforcement. (N.J.S.A. 2C:3-7b) (1983). Reviewed July 24, 2009 at http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/charges/jury/justif008.htm.
McElvain, J.P. And Kposowa, A.J., )2003-08) "Police brutality and internal affairs investigations" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Atlanta Hilton Hotel, Atlanta, GA Reviewed online July 23, 2009 at http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p106568_index.html
Olson, Robert K., (2004), News Release. Police Executive Research Forum. Washington, D.C.
Oregonian, The, (2009). Report: fewer complaints of police officers' use of force. The Oregonian, 14 Jul, 2009. Reviewed July 23, 2009 at http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/07/report_fewer_complaints_of_pol.html
Payne, James L. (2004). A History of Force. Sandpoint, Idaho: Lytton Publishing.
Rodney King beating 3/3/1991 in Los Angeles, Youtube. Reviewed July 22, 2009 at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROn_9302UHg
Scrivener, Ellen M. (1994). Controlling Police Use of Excessive Force: The Role of the Police Psychologist. National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. W.D.C. Reviewed July 22, 2009 at http://www.ncjrs.gov/txtfiles/ppsyc.txt.
Tennessee v. Garner, (1985). U.S. Supreme Court, 471 U.S. 1, 8.
Title LXII, (1971). Justification, Criminal Code, Chapter 627:5, 518:1. 1981, 373:1-3, eff. Aug. 22, 1981. Reviewed July 15, 2009 at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/RSA/html/LXII/627/627-5.htm.
U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) (2008), Use of force. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). Reviewed July 23, 2009 at http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=1374
Wilson, Michael, and Moore, Solomon, (2009). As officers face heated words, their tactics vary. The New York Times, 24 Jul 2009.