We know that police officers use excessive force, and they also use their authority to verbally abuse people. So what causes police officers to abuse their authority, and (or) leads to brutality? One of the challenges with this is that not every citizen reports a police brutality, whether they see one happening, heard of one happening from their friends or family or if they themselves were a victim of one. Another challenging issue too is that we know some brutalities are not reported; therefore it makes it harder to measure those versus what is actually reported. Police brutality wouldn’t be an issue if we didn’t have to police our law enforcement officers.
Civilians are forced to own guns to feel secure and protected. Therefore, owning guns may create many more unsafe situations that might put innocent citizens in danger. For many, Michael Brown's case is one of the many examples of why there is little trust between minority groups and police forces. As per Republican Senator of Kentucky Rand Paul, African-American citizens do not feel respected by police. Additionally, African-Americans are convinced that police treat blacks and whites differently.
Controlling Police Brutality The police have served an integral part in society as out protectors. Throughout the years, however, scholars as well as we citizens have begun to question the use of force, racism and internal corruption as well as other forms of misconduct by our officers of the law. The excessive use of force by police officers persists because of overwhelming barriers to their accountability. For instance, when police do get in trouble, it is normally a slap on the wrist, a lecture or loss of a vacation day as it stated in the article “Good Cop Bad Cop.” This fact makes it possible for officers who commit these violations to escape punishment and then often repeat their offenses. Every report of abuse is often met with denial or explanation of why the abuse was necessary instead of taking any real action like a suspension or removal of their badge in most cases.
Police Brutality Steven O’Neal Period 5 There is something that has been on the rise ever since 9/11 and not many Americans know what this is, a sad, but true fact. This is police brutality, where cops abuse their power given to them by law, and mistreat/break rules and regulations. Skateboarders, to wood carvers in Seattle, police around the country have mistreated their power. As many of you know, last year the police officer Ian berk knowingly shot a Native American wood carver named john t. Williams. But what most of you probably don’t know, is that this cop got away with murder, the shooting of john Williams was declared unjustified, and a normal citizen with this charge would do anywhere from 25 years to life in prison.
Police brutality is abuse by law enforcement, where a police officer feels that because he/she has a badge and a gun therefore it puts them above the law and they can use unnecessary force against another individual. Racial profiling is the tactic of stopping someone because of his or her skin color. Racial profiling mainly targets young Black and Latino men and is believed to be a justified form of law enforcement. the 1991 beating of Rodney King highlights abuse as one of the most pressing civil rights issues in the United States. It demonstrates that racism is still very real and that people continue to be treated based on the color of their skin.
All factors of the situation should be taken into consideration when using this discretion. Some of these factors include the seriousness of the offense, attitude of the suspect, position and preference of the victim, relationship between the suspect and victim, evidence of the offense, and minority status of the parties (Black, 1971.) Police officers tend to have an overall common goal in ridding their community of crime. Although this goal falls within the wishes of residents in the community as well, there is typically a negative view when it comes to police officers. Some officer’s actions have labeled an entire force as racist, rude, and abusive.
The citizens feel they are guilty until proven innocent. There can be uprising in communities where these actions are taking place causing more instability in high crime areas. When a suspect is arrested, they are more likely to resist arrest due to the perception that they may be abused while in custody. The law enforcement code and the cop code are tied to public perceptions on the role of law enforcement because the citizens believe the complete force is corrupt due to the actions of a few officers. The actions of just a few officers are put on the news for viewers to see.
The term also refers to patterns of misconduct within a given police department or special unit, particularly where offenses are repeated with the acquiescence of superiors or through other ongoing failure to correct them (Saucier 2001). Police brutality is the abuse of authority by the unwarranted infliction of excessive force by personnel involved in various aspects of law enforcement while in performance of their official duties. The term is also applied to abuses by corrections personnel in municipal, state and federal penal facilities including military prisons. While the term police brutality is
(Police Brutality.info, 2008) When does police brutality begin? Police brutality begins at times when police officers don’t think the citizens are watching out for their wrong doings. Police like using excessive force in areas such as Sobriety Checkpoints, Traffic stops, University sport events and celebrations. Although these are some of the places where brutality
I firmly believe that police brutality is too often overlooked. And I also believe that I will one day expose the chinks in the armor of the New York Police Department. Police brutality is the act of a law officer abusing a citizen either through physical contact, verbal assaults, or threats. Police brutality is often referred to as an over excessive use of force. Some would believe that this abusive force may sometimes be necessary for criminals that seriously need to be apprehended and are not complying with orders, but that force should only extend to a certain degree, which is just enough to subdue that criminal.