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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 8:06 pm
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Results for police use of force
183 results foundAuthor: Queensland Police Service Title: Review of the Queensland Police Service Taser Trial. Summary: This review describes the Queensland Police Tasers Trial and provides an overview of issues related to the use of tasers. Details: Brisbane: Queensland Police Service and the Crime and Misconduct Commission, 2009 Source: Year: 2009 Country: Australia URL: Shelf Number: 116479 Keywords: Police Use of ForceTasers |
Author: Delgado, Fernando Riberio Title: Lethal Force: Police Violence and Public Security in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo Summary: The Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo have been plagued for years by violent crime, much of it carried out by illegal drug-trafficking gangs. Reducing this violence and containing these gangs represents a daunting and at times dangerous challenge for the police forces. Too often, however, rather than curbing the violence, police officers in both states have contributed to it through the unjustifiable use of lethal force. The Rio and Sao Paulo police have together killed more than 11,000 people since 2003. In nearly all these cases, the officers involved have reported the shootings as legitimate acts of self-defense. In Brazil, these cases are referred to as "resistance" killings. Given that police officers in both states do face real threats of violence from gang members, many of these "resistance" killings are likely the result of the use of legitimate force by the police. Many others, however, are clearly not. After a comprehensive, two-year investigation into policing practices in Rio and Sao Paulo, Human Rights Watch has concluded that a substantial portion of the alleged resistance killings reported in both states are unlawful extrajudicial executions. In addition, some police officers are members of "death squads" or, in the case of Rio, illegal armed militias, which together are responsible for hundreds of murders each year. In many purported resistance killings and killings by death squads, police officers take steps to cover-up the true nature of the killing, and police investigators often fail to take necessary steps to determine what has taken place, helping to ensure that criminal responsibilty cannot be established and that those responsible remain unpunished. Impunity for extrajudicial executions committed by police officers remains the norm. A principal cause of this chronic impunity is the fact that the criminal justice systems in both states rely almost entirely on police investigators to resolve these cases. So long as this arrangement remains unchanged, police impunity will prevail, police killing rates will stay high, and the states' legitimate efforts to curb violence and lawlessness will suffer. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2009 Source: Year: 2009 Country: Brazil URL: Shelf Number: 117402 Keywords: Police MisconductPolice Use of ForceViolent Crime |
Author: Victoria. Office of Police Integrity Title: Review of Use of Force by and against Victorian Police Summary: This report presents the outcome of a review of the effectiveness of the policies, data collection, reporting, training and monitoring of the use of force by and against Victoria police members. Details: Melbourne: Government Printer, 2009. 77p. Source: Parliamentary paper; session 2006-2009, no. 165 Year: 2009 Country: Australia URL: Shelf Number: 117606 Keywords: Police Use of Force |
Author: Smith, Michael R. Title: A Multi-Method Evaluation of Police Use of Force Outcomes: Final Report to the National Institute of Justice Summary: This exploratory study was primarily concerned with the investigation of factors related to injuries that may occur to police officers and citizens during use of force events. The report is divided into the following eight chapters: 1) introduction; 2) an overview of the extant literature and what is currently known about how injuries occur in violence encounters betweeen police and citizens; 3) discusses how the survey was conducted and what was learned about less lethal technologies, policies, training and use of force data collection mechanisms in U.S. law enforcement agencies; 4) presents the results from the three agency-level datasets that were analyzed (Seattle, Miami-Dade, Richland County) and what incident-level variables influenced injury outcomes in those jurisdictions; 5) discusses the multiagency analysis that brought together more than 25,000 use of force records from 12 agencies and examined both policy-related and incident-level predictors of injuries; 6) presents the results from the longitudinal analysis of injury data in Orlando and Austin and discusses the effect that the decision to adopt the Taser had on officer and suspect injuries in the two cities; 7) reports on the findings from interviews with officers and suspects involved in actual use of force encounters and what factors may have contributed to their injuries; and 8) discusses the implications of the findings for policy, training, and future research. Details: Unpublished report. 2009. v.p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 118770 Keywords: Police Use of ForcePolice-Citizens EncountersTasers |
Author: Canada. Commission for Public Complaints Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Title: RCMP Use of the Conducted Energy Weapon (CEW): Final Report, Including Recommendations for Immediate Implementation Summary: The increasing reliance by the RCMP upon the conducted energy weapon has generated significant expressions of public concern. This report presents a systematic review of RCMP policies and practices following its adoption of the conducted energy weapon. Details: Ottawa: Commission for Public Complaints Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, 2008. 78p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2008 Country: Canada URL: Shelf Number: 115540 Keywords: Complaints Against the PolicePolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Center for Constitutional Rights Title: Racial Disparity in NYPD Stops-and-Frisks: The Center for Constitutional Rights Preliminary Report on UF-250 Data from 2005 through June 2008. Summary: This report presents the following preliminary findings: 1) The NYPD's use of stop-and-frisk is on the rise; 2) The NYPD continues to disproportionately stop and frisk Black and Latino individuals; 3) Blacks and Latinos are more likely to be frisked after an NYPD-initiatited stop than Whites; 4) Blacks and Latinos are more likely to have physical force used against them during a NYPD-initiatied stop than Whites; 5) Stops-and-frisks result in a minimal weapons yield and/or contraband yield; and 6) The proportion of stops-and-frisks by race does not correspond with rates of arrest of summons. Details: New York: Center for Constitutional Rights, 2009. 20p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 119179 Keywords: Police DiscretionPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolicing (New York City)Racial ProfilingSearches and Seizures |
Author: Morton, Sarah Title: Public Attitudes Towards Tasers - Results from an Opinion Poll Summary: This paper outlines findings from a survey of public attitudes towards Tasers in the U.K. The survey explored public awareness of Tasers; support for the trust in the police to use Tasers; and situation in which it is deemed acceptable to use a Taser. Details: London: Home Office, 2010. 5p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2010 Country: United Kingdom URL: Shelf Number: 119227 Keywords: Police Use of ForcePublic OpinionTasers |
Author: Andersen, Morten Koch Title: Failing Judicial Systems, Torture and Human Rights Work in Sri Lanka: A Study of Police Torture in Sri Lanka Summary: The study seeks to explore the routine use of torture by the police and illuminate the widespread violence and human rights violations that are part of everyday life in Sri Lanka. It seeks to show the apparent neglect of the Sri Lankan state to stop these atrocities and provide adequate protection and remedies for the victims by ignoring publicly available information provided by state commissioned investigations and reports on the continuously declining state of affairs in the police force and the general deteriorating of human rights in the country. Details: Copenhagen, Denmark: Rehabilitation and Research Centre for Torture Victims; Hong Kong: Asian Human Rights Commission, 2009. 80p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2009 Country: Sri Lanka URL: Shelf Number: 119532 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice Misconduct (Sri Lanka)Police Use of ForceTorture |
Author: Stone, Christopher, Chair Title: Reducing Inherent Danger: Report of the Task Force on Police-on-Police Shootings Summary: Since 1981, some 26 police officers across the United States have been shot and killed by fellow police officers who have mistaken them for dangerous criminals. These fatal shootings are doubly tragic, first because both the shooters and victims in such situations are risking their lives to enforce the law and protect the public, and second because many of these deaths are preventable. The dangers that give rise to these deaths are inherent in policing, but those dangers can be reduced and more deaths prevented. Over the last fifteen years, ten of the fourteen officers killed in these mistaken-identity, police-on-police shootings have been people of color. The two most recent of these fatal, police-on-police shootings took place in New York State, and in both cases the victims were off-duty, African-American police officers: Officer Christopher Ridley, killed in Westchester County (NY) in January 2008; and Officer Omar Edwards, killed in Harlem (NY)in May 2009. These two most recent tragedies reverberated powerfully, not only within the ranks of law enforcement but with the broader public. In press accounts, public debate, and informal conversations among police officers, we heard widespread speculation about the role that race may have played in these shootings, not based on any specific evidence of bias in these two cases, but emanating instead from the widely shared suspicion that race plays a role in many police confrontations, as it does in American society generally. This report examines the issues and implications arising from police-on-police shootings and confrontations, especially between on-duty and off-duty officers, between uniformed and undercover officers, and between officers of different races, nationalities and ethnicities, seeking to prevent such incidents in the future. Our work offers many lessons, from methods to improve training and tactics to defuse police-on-police confrontations before they become fatal and improve the investigation of police-on-police shootings, to procedures that can improve the treatment of the officers and families involved. Equally important, our work offers a chance to better understand the role of race in policing decisions generally and to identify specific actions that police agencies and government at every level can take to reduce the effect of racial bias, even unconscious racial bias, in police decisions to shoot in fast-moving, dangerous situations. Details: Albany, NY: New York State Task Force on Police-on-Police Shootings, 2010. 138p. Source: Internet Resource Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 119525 Keywords: Police Decision-MakingPolice DiscretionPolice TrainingPolice Use of ForcePolice-on-Police Shootings |
Author: Taylor, Bruce Title: Comparing Safety Outcomes in Police Use-of-Force Cases for Law Enforcement Agencies That Have Deployed Conducted Energy Devices and a Matched Comparison Group That Have Not: A Quasi-Experimental Evaluation Summary: How law enforcement agencies (LEAs) manage the use-of-force by officers is perhaps one of the most important tasks that they will undertake. One weapon that has been advanced as a way to reduce injuries for officers and suspects is the Conducted Energy Device (CED). The purpose of our project, conducted from late 2006 to 2008, was to produce scientifically valid results that will inform LEA executives’ decisions regarding CED use. The goal of our study was to produce practical information that can help LEAs establish guidelines that assist in the effective design of CED deployment programs that support increased safety for officers and citizens. We conducted one of the first quasi-experiments to compare LEAs with CED deployment (n=7) to a set of matched LEAs (n=6) that do not deploy CEDs on a variety of safety outcomes, controlling for a variety of incident factors (force used by officer, time frame of incident, suspect race/gender/age, suspect resistant behavior, and suspect weapon use) and agency-level factors (agency policy on CEDs, size/density of LEA, and population density for jurisdiction). For the LEAs that deployed CEDs, we collected two years of data before CED deployment and two years of data after CED deployment. For the non-CED sites, we collected four years of data over a similar period. Overall, we found that the CED sites were associated with improved safety outcomes when compared to a group of matched non-CED sites on six of nine safety measures, including reductions in (1) officer injuries, (2–3) suspect injuries and severe injuries, (4–5) officers and suspects receiving injuries requiring medical attention, and (6) suspects receiving an injury that resulted in the suspect being taken to a hospital or other medical facility. (We refer to this last category as “hospitalization,” although we have no data on the extent to which officers or suspects who went to a hospital or other medical facility were admitted and stayed overnight, as opposed to simply receiving an evaluation or treatment and being released.) Also within CED agencies, in some cases the actual use of a CED by an officer is associated with improved safety outcomes compared to other less-lethal weapons. For five of the eight comparisons, the cases where an officer used a CED were associated with the lowest or second lowest rate of injuries, injuries requiring medical attention, or injuries officer was taken to a medical facility such as hospital or medical clinic for treatment of an injury due to a use-of-force incident requiring “hospitalization” (see comment in previous paragraph). There were no differences between the CED and the non-CED sites on the outcomes of the number of suspect deaths, officer severe injuries, and officer injuries requiring hospitalization. The evidence from our study suggests that CEDs can be an effective weapon in helping prevent or minimize physical struggles in use-of-force cases. LEAs should consider the utility of the CED as a way to avoid up-close combative situations and reduce injuries to officers and suspects. Details: Washington, DC: Police Executive Research Forum, 2009. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 23, 2010 at: http://www.policeforum.org/upload/CED%20outcomes_193971463_10232009143958.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/upload/CED%20outcomes_193971463_10232009143958.pdf Shelf Number: 116527 Keywords: Nonlethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsStun GunsTaser Guns |
Author: Collins, Nicole Title: Operational Evaluation of the New Zealand Taser Trial Summary: The NZ Police Taser trial was conducted from 1 September 2006 to 31 August 2007 in the Police Districts of Auckland, Waitematā, Counties Manukau and Wellington. This arose from a review initiated by the NZ Commissioner of Police following the fatal shooting of Stephen Wallace in 2000. This review examined less lethal weapons options for managing violent individuals to ensure tactics and equipment are the most effective, and least likely to endanger the safety of police, the public and offenders. A conducted energy weapon, or electro muscular incapacitation device was identified as a potentially relevant option. Prior to the start of the trial police undertook a literature review about the use of electro muscular incapacitation devices by police agencies, and the scientific and medical research about the impact of these devices. Standard Operating Procedures were developed to guide the trial and the use of Tasers, and a comprehensive staff training package was developed based on international good practice. District Device Coordinators were appointed in each of the trial areas to oversee the implementation of the trial and to conduct audits of Taser use. An external Medical Advisory Group was established to review the medical records of those who were exposed to a Taser discharge and to provide expert medical advice on areas of risk. Police also engaged with various organisations and individuals about the trial. New Zealand Police evaluated the Taser trial, with the overall aim of assessing the use of Tasers in an operational environment in order to identify key issues about use and effectiveness of the device, the potential benefits and risks to staff and public safety and public opinion on police Taser use. The evaluation, conducted by a combined internal and external evaluation team, used a wide range of qualitative and quantitative data including: international literature; incident and injury data from the Tactical Options Report database; incident data from police Taser discharge files, offence information from the National Intelligence Application database, a survey and in-depth interviews with officers; a national survey of 1200 people; media coverage; and the external report provided by the Medical Advisory Group. This evaluation report provides detailed analysis of each of these data sources. Details: Wellington, NZ: New Zealand Police, 2008. 192p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 1, 2010 at: https://admin.police.govt.nz/resources/2008/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial-2008.pdf Year: 2008 Country: New Zealand URL: https://admin.police.govt.nz/resources/2008/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial/operational-evaluation-of-nz-taser-trial-2008.pdf Shelf Number: 119713 Keywords: Less Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Bobb, Merrick Title: A Bad Night at Powell Library: The Events of November 14, 2006 Summary: At the behest of UCLA Acting Chancellor Norman Abrams, PARC was engaged to investigate a November 2006 incident in which the UCLA campus police repeatedly tasered a UCLA student who refused to produce his student identification after hours in the main campus library. PARC conducted a seven-month investigation of the facts, including exhaustive research on the Taser itself, on the policies and practices of other universities and police departments regarding use of the Taser, and on the best and recommended practices regarding the Taser formulated by the leading authorities and experts on the question, including model policies drafted by police organizations such as the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF). Details: Los Angeles, CA: Police Assessment Resource Center, 2007. 117p. Source: Iinternet Resource: Accessed October 13, 2010 at: http://www.parc.info/client_files/UCLA/UCLA%20Taser%20Report%20August%20Final.pdf Year: 2007 Country: United States URL: http://www.parc.info/client_files/UCLA/UCLA%20Taser%20Report%20August%20Final.pdf Shelf Number: 119940 Keywords: Campus PoliceColleges and UniversitiesPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Jamaicans for Justice Title: Killing Impunity: Fatal Police Shootings and Extrajudicial Executions in Jamaica: 2005-2007 Summary: This report updates prior studies on the practice of fatal police shootings and extrajudicial executions in Jamaica, as well as the pattern of impunity that feeds it. In addition to providing the latest empirical evidence on police killings, we examine the recent functioning of the authorities, mechanisms, and procedures charged under Jamaican law with ensuring that police who exceed their legal mandate in the use of lethal force are held accountable. Details: Kingston, Jamaica: Jamaicans for Justice; Washington, DC: International Human Rights Clinic, George Washington University Law School, 2008. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 13, 2010 at: http://www.jamaicansforjustice.org/docs/08063025G0.pdf Year: 2008 Country: Jamaica URL: http://www.jamaicansforjustice.org/docs/08063025G0.pdf Shelf Number: 119943 Keywords: Extrajudicial ExecutionsPolice CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Nicholson, Sarah Title: Taser Trap: Is Victoria Falling for It? Summary: The Federation of Community Legal Centres has long argued that Tasers are not a panacea for police use of lethal or near lethal force. Death or serious injury in Victoria in connection with Taser use is a real possibility. In particular, there are real risks of death or serious injury associated with Taser use on vulnerable groups or in particular situations. These vulnerable groups include people with mental illness, people with pre-existing health issues and people who are drug and alcohol affected. Evidence from overseas, and increasingly from Australia, suggests that Tasers are prone to misuse and ‘usage creep’ – the term used to describe when the use of a device extends beyond the boundaries for use set by policies and procedures. We have already seen Victoria Police ‘usage creep’ in connection with capsicum spray and there is substantial evidence of ‘usage creep’ in other jurisdictions in relation to police Taser use. We know that use of lethal force by police can be avoided in many instances with tactical communication, non-violent intervention and other lower use of force strategies. This has been emphasised in reports reviewing police shootings in Victoria, including reviews undertaken by the Office of Police Integrity and reviews commissioned by Victoria Police. It is not a simplistic question of whether someone would prefer to be Tased than shot. In many cases, incidents can be resolved without the use of any force whatsoever. Victoria Police was first authorised to use Tasers in 2003. Until recently, Taser use by Victoria Police was limited to two specialist units, the Special Operations Group and Critical Incident Response Teams. On 1 July 2010 however, under a 12-month pilot, Tasers were issued to general duties police in two regional areas of Victoria, Bendigo and Morwell. The decision to extend Taser use to general duties officers was made in the face of comprehensive analyses questioning the safety of Tasers and reports criticising police use of force in Victoria. Victoria Police and the Victorian Government have largely made decisions about use of force issues, including decisions on Taser use, without seeking public input and without providing the public with clear, evidence-based reasoning for decisions. This contrasts with other jurisdictions both overseas and in Australia where police, governments and police oversight bodies have acknowledged the strong public interest in police Taser use and have facilitated public debate through the public release of Taser reviews and relevant police operating procedures. In the absence of transparency and accountability by Victoria Police around these issues, the Federation and its member community legal centres sought to make public key documents around Tasers and the use force, by requesting information from Victoria Police and by using procedures under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic). Over the past three years, we have obtained: · data showing how Tasers have been used by Victoria Police specialist units; · copies of Victoria Police Taser use policies; and · documents relating to Victoria Police’s management of use of force issues and decisions about Taser use by Victoria Police. The first section of this report provides background information on Tasers and issues around their safety and use by police. The second section of this report analyses Victoria Police policies relating to Taser use. Our analysis shows that Victoria Police Taser policies are inconsistent and policies for specialist units do not take into account known risk factors and do not comply with internationally accepted best practice for Taser use and relevant human rights considerations. The third section of this report analyses data showing how Tasers have been used by Victoria Police specialist units. Details: Melbourne: Federation of Community Legal Centres - Victoria, 2010. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 4, 2010 at: http://www.communitylaw.org.au/cb_pages/federation_reports.php Year: 2010 Country: Australia URL: http://www.communitylaw.org.au/cb_pages/federation_reports.php Shelf Number: 120185 Keywords: Police Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (Australia) |
Author: Griffin-Valade, LaVonne Title: Police Taser Use: Incidents Generally Resolved, But Some Practices and Policies Could Be Improved Summary: In the few interactions between the police and the public that involve the use of force, the Portland Police Bureau allows officers to use a variety of techniques and tools. Among these are conducted energy devices, referred to as “Tasers” in this report. Tasers and other less lethal tools allow officers to control situations with a far lower risk of death or serious injury than when a gun is used, and without requiring personal contact with the subject. This report presents an audit of the Portland Police Bureau’s policies and practices for using Tasers. The review found: Taser use was mostly effective in resolving incidents in a sample of 50 cases from 2009, although officers often used more than one cycle; Portland Police followed Bureau Taser policy in several key areas, but fell short on meeting some supervisory and documentation requirements; and Portland Police Taser policy is largely in line with other cities and with model policy recommendations developed by a nationally-recognized professional police association. Details: Portland, OR: Office of the City Auditor, 2010. 52p. Source: Internet Resource: Report #386: Accessed November 27, 2010 at: http://www.portlandonline.com/auditor/index.cfm?a=326891&c=51639 Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.portlandonline.com/auditor/index.cfm?a=326891&c=51639 Shelf Number: 120288 Keywords: Police Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (Portland, Oregon) |
Author: Western Australia. Corruption and Crime Commission Title: The Use of Taser Weapons by Western Australia Police Summary: A Taser weapon is a weapon carried by Western Australia Police (WAPOL) officers which uses a high voltage, low power charge of electricity to either induce involuntary muscle contractions that cause temporary incapacitation or to cause pain. Since 2007, WAPOL officers have used the weapon as an alternative use of force to minimise injury to themselves or others when confronted with potentially violent situations. Taser weapon use is governed by a policy which dictates that Taser weapons are not to be used for compliance. The threshold for use stipulates the focus on preventing injury (to both officers, and to the public). The Commission examined Taser weapon use in Western Australia from 2007 to 2009. This examination consisted of an analysis of complaints and matters notified to the Commission, WAPOL data from 2007 to 2009, and a detailed analysis of WAPOL Use of Force reports between July and September 2009. The majority of Taser weapon use by WAPOL officers is appropriate even though the WAPOL policy threshold for Taser weapon use is one of the lowest in Australia. A low threshold means WAPOL officers are authorised to use a Taser weapon in more situations than other police in Australia. Taser weapons have become the force option of “choice” in Western Australia, resulting in significant decreases in the use of OC spray, handcuffs and empty hand techniques. Taser weapon use increased from 49% in 2007 to 74% in 2008 and declined to 65% in 2009. This represents an overall increase in Taser weapon use of 25%. Most Taser weapon use occurred on weekends between 9:00 p.m. and 3:00 a.m. The most significant trend was the increase of Taser weapon deployment against subjects who were physically resisting arrest, increasing from 22% in 2007 to 43% in 2009. The use of firearms has doubled since the introduction of Taser weapons, from 6% of all uses of force in 2007 to 12% in 2009. Given that Taser weapons were expected to reduce the number of situations where officers were involved in physical altercations, it was expected that injuries would decrease overall. This has not occurred. The number of hospitalisations of WAPOL officers between 2007 and 2009 remained relatively stable at under 2% of incidents. Injuries to officers increased from 9% of all use of force incidents in 2007 to 12% in 2008 and 11% in 2009. Generally speaking the injuries received by police officers were minor, including bruises, abrasions or minor lacerations and muscle sprains. In all cases these injuries resulted from an assault by another person or from struggling with a person. Police officers actually received more injuries in Taser weapon-related incidents than in non-Taser weapon incidents (17% of cases compared to 15% of cases). Taser weapons are an effective force option in situations where there is a real risk of serious injury to an officer or other person, however there is potential for misuse. There is also a real and significant risk that Taser weapons will be subject to mission creep, that is, that a Taser weapon will be used in situations where it was not intended to be used and where such use is potentially excessive or improper. Between July and September 2009, potential misuse was involved in 7% of Taser weapon incidents. Of these, 38% involved using the Taser weapon as a threat. The remaining 62% involved potentially improper or excessive Taser weapon deployment. International and national research shows Taser weapon use can result in death in certain circumstances. Death or serious injury can be caused by the fact that a Taser weapon causes incapacitation (leading to, for example, death by drowning or falling); by the ignition of flammable substances; or as a result of ventricular fibrillation and/or asphyxiation. While no deaths in Western Australia have been directly attributed to Taser weapon use, the risks of injury and death, and of mission creep, are potentially increased when a Taser weapon is used on the young, the elderly, people with an existing health condition, drug users and the mentally ill. Notwithstanding the high percentage of appropriate use, the Commission’s analysis of Taser weapon incidents has led to the identification of misuse of Taser weapons in Western Australia. WAPOL officers are using Taser weapons: (1) for compliance and in other situations in contravention to WAPOL Taser weapon policy, although in most cases this is identified and dealt with appropriately through WAPOL misconduct systems and processes; (2) in situations where such use is potentially improper or excessive, including against people whose level of resistance appears to present only a small chance of harm to officers, and this type of use appears to be increasing; (3) disproportionately against indigenous people, and the proportion of such Taser weapon use is increasing (from 16% of all Taser weapon use in 2007 to 30% in 2009); and (4) against people in high risk groups including individuals with a mental illness, those who are suffering from substance abuse, or those who are otherwise exhibiting signs of extreme psychological distress. In a small proportion of these cases, effective communication and de-escalation techniques are not being utilised prior to the Taser weapon use. [13] The Commission has developed its recommendations after considering current national and international trends and are aimed at: decreasing the misuse of Taser weapons, and the potential for misconduct by WAPOL officers in relation to Taser weapon use; maintaining public confidence in the way WAPOL officers use force to go about their duties; preventing the potentially excessive or improper use of Taser weapons against high risk groups such as indigenous people; people with a mental illness or otherwise suffering from extreme psychological distress; those people with small body mass; and people suffering from serious health conditions; ensuring the continued availability of Taser weapons for the use of WAPOL officers as a means of reducing the likelihood that officers will be killed or seriously injured by the actions of violent and aggressive members of the public; and reducing the likelihood that a fatality will occur in Western Australia as a result of Taser weapon use by a WAPOL officer, and reducing the likelihood that serious injuries will occur as a result of Taser weapon use by a WAPOL officer. Details: Perth: Corruption and Crime Commission, 2010. 110p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 1, 2010 at: http://www.ccc.wa.gov.au/Publications/Reports/Published%20Reports%202010/Full%20Report%20-%20Use%20of%20Taser%20Weapons%20by%20WAPOL.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Australia URL: http://www.ccc.wa.gov.au/Publications/Reports/Published%20Reports%202010/Full%20Report%20-%20Use%20of%20Taser%20Weapons%20by%20WAPOL.pdf Shelf Number: 120335 Keywords: Police Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (Western Australia) |
Author: Martin, Andre Title: Caught in the Act: Investigation into the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services' Conduct in Relation to Ontario Regulation 233/10 Under the Public Works Protection Act Summary: Regulation 233/10, passed to enhance security during the G20 summit, should never have been enacted. It was likely unconstitutional. The effect of Regulation 233/10, now expired, was to infringe on freedom of expression in ways that do not seem justifiable in a free and democratic society. Specifically, the passage of the regulation triggered the extravagant police authority found in the Public Works Protection Act, including the power to arbitrarily arrest and detain people and to engage in unreasonable searches and seizures. Even apart from the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the legality of Regulation 233/10 is doubtful. The Public Works Protection Act under which it was proclaimed authorizes regulations to be created to protect infrastructure, not to provide security to people during events. Regulation 233/10 was therefore probably invalid for having exceeded the authority of the enactment under which it was passed. These problems should have been apparent, and given the tremendous power Regulation 233/10 conferred on the police, sober and considered reflection should have been given to whether it was appropriate to arm officers with such authority. This was not done. The decision of the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services to sponsor the regulation was unreasonable. Even had Regulation 233/10 been valid, the government should have handled its passage better. Regulation 233/10 changed the rules of the game. It gave police powers that are unfamiliar in a free and democratic society. Steps should have been taken to ensure that the Toronto Police Service understood what they were getting. More importantly, the passage of the regulation should have been aggressively publicized, not disclosed only through obscure official information channels. Perversely, by changing the rules of the game without real notice, Regulation 233/10 acted as a trap for the responsible – those who took the time to educate themselves about police powers before setting out to express legitimate political dissent. All of this makes for a sorry legacy. The value in hosting international summits is that it permits the host nation to primp and pose before the eyes of the world. Ordinarily Ontario and Canada could proudly showcase the majesty of a free and democratic society. The legacy of the passage and administration of Regulation 233/10 is that we failed to do that well. Details: Ottawa: Ombudsman Ontario, 2010. 127p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 10, 2010 at: http://www.ombudsman.on.ca/media/157555/g20final1-en.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Canada URL: http://www.ombudsman.on.ca/media/157555/g20final1-en.pdf Shelf Number: 120436 Keywords: Freedom of SpeechPolice BehaviorPolice Use of ForcePolicing (Canada)Public Order |
Author: Morayef, Heba Title: Work on Him Until He Confesses: Impunity for Torture in Egypt Summary: Torture is widespread in Egypt—used by law enforcement officers for Criminal Investigations and State Security Investigations (SSI) in a deliberate and systematic manner to glean confessions and information or to punish both criminal and political detainees. Since most torture cases are not prosecuted, police abuse is common and law enforcement officers are free to act with impunity. For example, SSI officers are not permitted to detain people but frequently carry out enforced disappearances and interrogate and abuse suspects. The government maintains that incidents of torture are isolated and that it investigates each one. While prosecutors open investigation files on each formal complaint, a number of factors prevent most cases progressing to court, including police intimidation of victims and witnesses who pursue complaints, the prosecution’s limited resources and lack of independence, an inadequate legal framework, and the fact that police from the same unit as the alleged perpetrator are responsible for gathering evidence and summoning witnesses. This report documents the obstacles that exist to prosecuting law enforcement officers for torture and finds the government is failing to provide torture victims effective remedy, or to deter such abuses in the future by holding perpetrators accountable. “Work on Him until He Confesses” urges the Egyptian government to investigate all credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment, even in the absence of a formal complaint. Prosecutors should conduct these inquiries promptly, impartially, and thoroughly, ensuring they investigate all those allegedly responsible, including superiors, and without involving alleged abusers in gathering evidence. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2011. 95p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 11, 2011 at: http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2011/01/30/work-him-until-he-confesses-0 Year: 2011 Country: Egypt URL: http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2011/01/30/work-him-until-he-confesses-0 Shelf Number: 120670 Keywords: Police CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForceTorture (Egypt) |
Author: Ndebele, Thuthukani Title: Broken Blue Line: The Involvement of the South African Police Force in Serious and Violent Crime in South Africa Summary: South Africans have become accustomed to media reports alleging the involvement of policemen or 'people dressed in police uniforms' in serious crimes. The Institute and its Unit for Risk Analysis have become increasingly concerned at the number and nature of these reports. To try and determine the scale of the problem, the Institute assigned a researcher to source as much information as possible on the involvement of police officers in committing crime. The results were alarming. The Institute consulted journalists, media reports, and information from the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD). Within a week, a list of over 100 separate incidents alleging and/or confirming the police's involvement in serious crimes was drawn up. The Institute's researchers stopped looking for more incidents after compiling this list of the initial 100. This report provides an analysis of these 100 incidents and proposes a number of policy interventions for the Government to consider. The Institute has been encouraged that the administration of President Jacob Zuma has done away with much of the crime denialism that characterised the Mbeki era and also that General Bheki Cele seems sincere about re-instilling discipline and order in his police. This report is conceived to capitalise on these positive developments and to support legislators and the police in making better policing policy in South Africa. The report will be made available to MPs, MPLs, the South African Police Force, and the media. Top tier Institute subscribers can log in to download the report below. Other users and interested parties may purchase the report online. Details: Johannesburg: South African Institute of Race Relations, 2011. 32p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 22, 2011 at: http://www.sairr.org.za/services/publications/occasional-reports/files/001%20-%20Broken%20Blue%20Line%20-11.02.2011.pdf Year: 2011 Country: South Africa URL: http://www.sairr.org.za/services/publications/occasional-reports/files/001%20-%20Broken%20Blue%20Line%20-11.02.2011.pdf Shelf Number: 120844 Keywords: Police Corruption Police Misconduct Police Use of Force |
Author: IDASA Title: Women and Law Enforcement in Zimbabwe Summary: The women of Zimbabwe have had varying experiences with national law enforcement agencies and many of them are unpleasant. These experiences are the same regardless of whether the women are activists or not, but perhaps worse for female activists. Police officers have been responsible for some of the most serious human rights and rule of law violations in Zimbabwe today. Police brutality in Zimbabwe extends to opposition politicians, students, trade unionists, journalists and members of civil society organisations, this paper however focuses on women. Women have encountered torture, assault, harassment, intimidation, and imprisonment at the hands of the police, who act in breach of their professional and legal obligations. The police have a responsibility to respect human rights, but the fate of women activists, especially those from Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) members, tells a different story. In a series of reports from 2007, WOZA demonstrated the perils of both being an activist and female5, showing the kinds of abuse and the consequences of abuse at the hands of the police. From a sample of 1983 WOZA members, 42% reported assault, 33% reported physical torture, 64% reported humiliating and degrading treatment, and 78% reported political threats. Many violations occurred during the course of protests where the police were the perpetrators, but it was also the case that equally many took place in police custody. The female members of the NCA have also suffered the same fate; as they stated in a 2009 study, 70% of the perpetrators of violence were from various branches of the police force6. Assault was the most common violation, mentioned by 80% of these members, and the weapons used in the assaults were baton sticks and booted feet, part of the uniform of the police. The brutality meted out against female civil rights activists, is well documented, with one of the most notorious cases being that of Jestina Mukoko, Director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project. Jestina was abducted from her home by members of the Central Intelligence Organization on December 3, 2008, and held captive in police custody for several weeks, where she was brutally beaten, tortured, forced to confess to an alleged plot to mount a terrorist incursion from neighboring Botswana, and subsequently imprisoned before being brought to court, where she was eventually granted bail on February 27, 2009. Jestina‟s experience of police intimidation was not an isolated incident; another example is the case of Gertrude Hambira, now living in exile in South Africa after being harassed by senior law enforcement agents and members of the Joint Operations Command [JOC]. Police abuse is not the privy of women activists, even women who attempt to report domestic violence are frequently disrespected, and often told to go back home and resolve their differences with their partners. The Domestic Violence Act came into force in 2007, and was hailed as one of the most progressive laws for the advancement of women in Zimbabwe. Despite this Act being in place, women continue to be subjected to abuse by their partners as there is a general reluctance by the police to enforce the Act and protect abused women. The manner in which the police handle women will potentially undercut women‟s confidence in the police‟s ability to deal with domestic violence issues. Many police officials view domestic violence as a “private” matter, best left behind closed doors. This has resulted in attitudes and systems that minimize police responses and discourage specialized responses to women who are victims. The conduct of the police is a breach of Section 5 of the Domestic Violence Act, and numerous international treaties, as they frequently decline to listen to complaints, investigate them, advise complainants, facilitate access to medical assistance, and ensure the women are aware of the legal remedies at their disposal. Whilst women are protected by law as citizens of Zimbabwe, this becomes ineffective when the protection cannot be implemented, and especially when the ones supposed to offer protection are perpetrators of violence and intimidation. Women and children should be confident and feel secure when they see a policeman or a soldier. There is need to restore confidence in law enforcement agents so that they protect women and their dignity. Details: Harare, Zimbabwe: Research and Advocacy Unit, 2011. 13p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 15, 2011 at: http://peacewomen.org/assets/file/Resources/UN/ssr_womenlawenforcementzimbabwerau_rau_01march2011.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Zimbabwe URL: http://peacewomen.org/assets/file/Resources/UN/ssr_womenlawenforcementzimbabwerau_rau_01march2011.pdf Shelf Number: 121007 Keywords: Police Misconduct (Zimbabwe)Police Use of ForceViolence Against Women |
Author: Hannan, Maria Title: Deaths In or Following Police Custody: An Examination of the Cases 1998/99 - 2008/09 Summary: Deaths in or following police custody are a controversial area of policing, and they represent some of the most high profile cases handled by the IPCC. They impact on trust and confidence in the police, particularly in Black and minority ethnic communities. The number of deaths in or following police custody is relatively small, but each death represents a tragedy. Despite the high profile nature of this area relatively little research has been conducted into it, or were carried out some time ago. Forces have a statutory duty to refer all deaths following police contact, including those that occur in or following police custody, to the IPCC. The IPCC reports on these deaths as part of our annual statistics into deaths during or following police contact. This study examines deaths in or following custody over an extensive period in order to identify trends, and, most importantly, the lessons that can be learnt for policy and practice to prevent future tragedies. The research used completed investigations to gather data on all 333 deaths which occurred between 1998/99 and 2008/09. The study looks at trends in the incidents, and examines a range of themes – the use of restraint, mental health and suicide, alcohol and drugs, risk assessment and medical provision, and investigation and investigations outcomes. The final report makes a series of recommendations for police forces and the health service which aim to improve policy and practice in this area. Details: London: Independent Police Complaints Commission, 2010. 93p. Source: Internet Resource: IPCC Research Series Paper:17: Accessed March 23, 2011 at: http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/Pages/deathscustodystudy.aspx Year: 2010 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/Pages/deathscustodystudy.aspx Shelf Number: 121103 Keywords: Deaths in Custody (U.K.)Police MisconductPolice Use of ForceRisk Assessment |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice. Civil Rights Division Title: Investigation of the New Orleans Police Department Summary: The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) has long been a troubled agency. Basic elements of effective policing — clear policies, training, accountability, and confidence of the citizenry —have been absent for years. Far too often, officers show a lack of respect for the civil rights and dignity of the people of New Orleans. While the majority of the force is hardworking and committed to public safety, too many officers of every rank either do not understand or choose to ignore the boundaries of constitutional policing. Some argue that, given the difficulty of police work, officers must at times police harshly and bend the rules when a community is confronted with seemingly intransigent high levels of crime. Policing is undeniably difficult; however, experience and study in the policing field have made it clear that bending the rules and ignoring the Constitution makes effective policing much more challenging. NOPD’s failure to ensure that its officers routinely respect the Constitution and the rule of law undermines trust within the very communities whose cooperation the Department most needs to enforce the law and prevent crime. As systematic violations of civil rights erode public confidence, policing becomes more difficult, less safe, and less effective, and crime increases. The deficiencies in the way NOPD polices the City are not simply individual, but structural as well. For too long, the Department has been largely indifferent to widespread violations of law and policy by its officers. NOPD does not have in place the basic systems known to improve public safety, ensure constitutional practices, and promote public confidence. We found that the deficiencies that lead to constitutional violations span the operation of the entire Department, from how officers are recruited, trained, supervised, and held accountable, to the operation of Paid Details. In the absence of mechanisms to protect and promote civil rights, officers too frequently use excessive force and conduct illegal stops, searches and arrests with impunity. In addition, the Department’s culture tolerates and encourages under-enforcement and under-investigation of violence against women. The Department has failed to take meaningful steps to counteract and eradicate bias based on race, ethnicity, and LGBT status in its policing practices, and has failed to provide critical policing services to language minority communities. The problems in NOPD developed over a long period of time and will take time to address and correct. The Department must develop and implement new policies and protocols, train its officers in effective and constitutional policing, and institutionalize systems to ensure accountability, foster police-community partnerships, improve the quality of policing to all parts of the City, and eliminate unlawful bias from all levels of NOPD policing decisions. Recommendations on achieving these changes are attached to this Report. We look forward to working with NOPD and the City of New Orleans to address the violations of constitutional and federal law that we identified, by developing and implementing a comprehensive blueprint for sustainable reform that will: (1) reduce crime; (2) ensure respect for the Constitution and the rule of law; and (3) restore public confidence in NOPD. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, 2011. 158p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 8, 2011 at: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/nopd_report.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/nopd_report.pdf Shelf Number: 121279 Keywords: DiscriminationGender BiasPolice BehaviorPolice MisconductPolice Recruitment and SelectionPolice ReformPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community RelationsPolicing (New Orleans) |
Author: Queensland. Crime and Misconduct Commission Title: Evaluating Taser Reforms: A Review of Queensland Police Service Policy and Practice Summary: Tasers were first introduced by the Queensland Police Service (QPS) in 2002, when they were allocated to the service’s Special Emergency Response Team. Following a trial in 2007–08, the QPS expanded their use into the general policing environment. In June 2009, a 39-year-old man in Brandon, north Queensland, died after being tasered by police. In response, the Minister for Police, Corrective Services and Emergency Services, the Hon. Neil Roberts MP, initiated a joint QPS–Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) review to ensure that QPS policy, procedures, training and monitoring processes reflected best practice. The review made 27 recommendations intended to improve policy, training and monitoring practices. It was agreed that the recommendations would be treated as interim recommendations for 12 months, subject to continuous monitoring by the QPS and the CMC. Significant policy changes represented in these recommendations included: restricting the use of Tasers to situations where there is a risk of serious injury to a person • prohibiting officers, unless in exceptional circumstances, from deploying Tasers for multiple or prolonged cycles, and against people who are handcuffed or are of particularly small body mass • emphasising the possible link identified in the literature between Taser deployments and death, particularly where multiple and/or prolonged discharges are involved or where the person has underlying health problems, is under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or has already been exposed to oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray. These policy changes were also reflected in new training initiatives. In April 2010, the then Queensland Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations, the Hon. Cameron Dick MP, asked the CMC to undertake this independent evaluation. To address our terms of reference, we sought to determine: • whether each of the 27 recommendations from the QPS–CMC review has been implemented • what effects the revised policy and training have had on Taser use • how QPS officers used Tasers in the 10 months after the introduction of the revised policy, particularly in relation to risk factors identified in the literature • whether there are any emerging trends in use, including ‘mission creep’ (the tendency for police to, over time, use Tasers in situations for which they were not intended) • what monitoring and continuous improvement processes are in place in the QPS with respect to Tasers • what recent advances have been made in international best practice, and whether there are any gaps in QPS policy and practices. As the first formal review of QPS Taser use since the introduction of the revised policy and training, the CMC regarded this evaluation as a starting point that would provide baseline data for further monitoring and review. Since the QPS would necessarily be the primary source of data in the first instance, we relied mostly on information from a range of QPS sources, including a formal submission, policies, procedures and training materials, consultations with officers, and QPS Taser usage data. We will consult more widely in future reviews of Taser use in the QPS. Possible limitations of the data used in this evaluation include the potential for inaccuracies and incompleteness in the Taser usage data. The recommendations resulting from the evaluation cover a range of areas including: improving aftercare for people subjected to Taser deployment; decreasing Taser use against Indigenous people and individuals from at-risk groups; and enhancing decision making by QPS review panels ensuring QPS policy, training and procedures fully reflect best practice. Details: Brisbane: Crime and Misconduct Commission, 2011. 186p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 29, 2011 at: http://www.cmc.qld.gov.au/data/portal/00000005/content/51149001303357290759.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Australia URL: http://www.cmc.qld.gov.au/data/portal/00000005/content/51149001303357290759.pdf Shelf Number: 121576 Keywords: Nonlethal WeaponsPolice DiscretionPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (Australia) |
Author: Independent Police Complaints Commission (U.K.) Title: Stockwell One: Investigation into the Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell Underground Station on 22 July 2005 Summary: This document is the report of the IPCC's investigation into the fatal shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by officers of the Metropolitan Police Service at Stockwell Underground Station on 22 July 2005. The report is in three parts: • The main investigation report that was completed and submitted within six months by 19 January 2006. • The operational recommendations arising from the incident that were completed and submitted by 14 March 2006. • A short addendum to the main report that sets out the results of further enquiries requested by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) which was submitted in June 2006. C. The primary purpose of the report was to meet the statutory obligations of the IPCC following an investigation of this kind. These are to advise the CPS of any criminal offence that may have been committed and to provide it with the evidence necessary to come to its decision about any prosecution; to enable the 'responsible authorities' of the officers concerned, in this case the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), to consider what action they may need to take in relation to discipline or other matters; in cases of exceptional gravity such as this, to inform the Home Secretary of the circumstances; and finally, to assist the Coroner in relation to any Inquest. Details: London: Independent Police Complaints Commission, 2007. 170p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 3, 2011 at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/08_11_07_stockwell1.pdf Year: 2007 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/08_11_07_stockwell1.pdf Shelf Number: 121606 Keywords: Police Misconduct (U.K.)Police Use of Force |
Author: Independent Police Complaints Commission (U.K.) Title: Stockwell Two: An Investigation Into Complaints about the Metropolitan Police Service’s Handling of Public Statements Following the Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes on 22 July 2005 Summary: The following report deals with the second Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigation into matters arising from the shooting of Mr Jean Charles de Menezes at Stockwell Underground Station in London on 22 July 2005. This investigation has been referred to as ‘Stockwell 2’ to distinguish it from the first IPCC investigation into the circumstances of the shooting itself. This second investigation followed allegations from the family of Mr de Menezes that the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Ian Blair, and others had knowingly made public inaccurate information or failed to correct inaccurate information placed into the public arena. The report is written in a way intended to help the reader understand the sequence of events. The report highlights who knew what, and when, throughout the relevant period and within discrete areas of activity, at the scene of the shooting, at New Scotland Yard (NSY), the Home Office and other places within the Metropolitan Police area. Details: London: Independent Police Complaints Commission, 2007. 142p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 4, 2011 at: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2007/aug/ipcc-menezes-report.pdf Year: 2007 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2007/aug/ipcc-menezes-report.pdf Shelf Number: 121615 Keywords: Complaints Against PolicePolice Misconduct (U.K.)Police Use of Force |
Author: Kaminski, Robert J. Title: A Descriptive Analysis of Foot Pursuits in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Summary: Greater attention has been paid to the risks associated with police foot pursuits in recent years by both the law enforcement community (e.g., Bohrer, Davis & Garrity, 2000; Burke, Owen & Nilson, 2005; and the media (e.g., Graham, 2009; Pfeifer, 2007; Simpson, 2007). One of the focal concerns has been foot pursuits in which law enforcement officers discharged their firearms. An investigation by Simpson (2007) found that 12% of 33 suspects shot and killed by deputies in DeKalb County occurred during a foot pursuit. An internal review by the Philadelphia Police Department found that nearly half of police shootings from 1998 to 2003 occurred during foot a pursuit (Graham, 2009). Bobb (2003, 2005) found in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) that 27% of 44 shooting incidents 2003-2004 involved foot pursuits and that 22% of 239 shootings 1997-2002 occurred during or at the termination of a foot pursuit. Although these statistics highlight the potential for deputy-involved shootings (DISs) and fatalities during foot chases and are thus useful for motivating the development of policies and training to reduce their incidence, sampling first on fatalities or on DISs and subsequently examining how many incidents involved foot pursuits exaggerates the risks associated with this tactic (this is commonly referred to as the “base rate problem”; see, e.g., Garner and Clemmer, 1986; Kaminski and Sorensen, 1995). To accurately assess the likelihood of DISs and fatalities associated with foot pursuits, one must first sample or select all foot pursuits over some specified period of time and then examine how many involved shootings, fatalities, or other outcomes of interest. Although sampling first on foot pursuits would almost certainly show that shootings and fatalities are statistically rare events relative the total number of pursuits, there has unfortunately been no research to date using this approach. Accurate estimates of risk would be especially informative for law enforcement executives contemplating the adoption of more or less restrictive foot pursuit policies. DISs and fatalities, of course, are not the only potential hazards associated with foot pursuits. An arrest-based use-of-force study in one municipal agency found that pursuits increased the odds of officer use of force by 345% (Kaminski, DiGiovanni, and Downs, 2004). A limitation of this study, however, was that foot pursuits were not distinguished from motor vehicle pursuits. In other research, Brandl (1996) and Brandl and Stroshine (2003) analyzed the activities officers were involved in when they were injured accidentally or intentionally (i.e., assault-related injuries). They found that between 12 and 14 percent of injury incidents involved officers chasing suspects on foot and that the vast majority of injures were accident-related, but detailed analyses of foot pursuits were not presented. More recently, Kaminski (2007) surveyed over 250 deputies employed by the Richland (SC) County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) regarding their experiences with foot pursuits. Sixty-two of 187 responding deputies (33%) reported being injured intentionally by suspects and 80 of 186 (43%) reported being injured accidentally during at least one pursuit since they began working for the RCSD (career-based estimates). Although the majority of injuries were minor, intentional injures caused deputies to miss an estimated 273 days of work and to work in a reduced capacity for 358 days. Accidental injuries caused deputies to miss an estimated 496 days of work and to work in a reduced capacity for 575 days. These estimates must be interpreted with caution, however, as respondents represented a nonrandom (59%) sample of deputies from the RCSD and recall is likely to be problematic for career-based estimates, especially for deputies with long tenures. Although the above studies begin to fill the gap in research on foot pursuits, none were able to analyze fatalities or firearm discharges associated with foot pursuits because such events were too rare, at least in the jurisdictions examined. It is important to note, however, that although fatalities and firearm discharges during foot pursuits appear to be rare, such findings should not negate or minimize the importance of policies and training designed to manage foot pursuits. Serious injuries and fatalities do occur during foot pursuits and all reasonable means should be taken to minimize their occurrence. Further, as suggested by findings from Kaminski (2007), even minor injuries may substantially impact agencies in terms of work days lost. Because few studies on foot pursuits have been conducted to date, the purpose of the present study is to provide a basic descriptive analysis of reported foot pursuits that could be linked to information contained in the Department’s Personnel Performance Index database (PPI). Information on the types of force used by and against deputies during foot pursuits, the types of injuries sustained and other information is presented. Details: Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina, Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice, 2010. 24p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed September 6, 2011 at: http://www.cas.sc.edu/crju/research/lacsd.footpursuits.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.cas.sc.edu/crju/research/lacsd.footpursuits.pdf Shelf Number: 122655 Keywords: Fleeing SuspectsFoot PatrolPolice InjuriesPolice Pursuits (Los Angeles)Police Use of ForcePolice-Involved Shootings |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice. Civil Rights Division Title: Investigation of the Puerto Rico Police Department Summary: The Puerto Rico Police Department is Puerto Rico’s primary law enforcement agency. Its mission is critical: To protect and serve the residents of Puerto Rico by designing and implementing policies and practices that control crime, ensure respect for the Constitution and the rule of law, and enable the Department to enjoy the respect and confidence of the public. Many hard working and dedicated PRPD officers serve the public with distinction under often challenging conditions. Unfortunately, PRPD is broken in a number of critical and fundamental respects that are clearly actionable under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. § 14141 (“Section 14141”). Based on our extensive investigation, we find reasonable cause to believe that PRPD officers engage in a pattern and practice of: • excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment; • unreasonable force and other misconduct designed to suppress the exercise of protected First Amendment rights; and • unlawful searches and seizures in violation of the Fourth Amendment. In addition to these findings, our investigation uncovered other deficiencies of serious concern. In particular, there is troubling evidence that PRPD frequently fails to police sex crimes and incidents of domestic violence, and engages in discriminatory policing practices that target individuals of Dominican descent in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment, the Safe Streets Act, and Title VI. At this time, we do not make a formal finding of a pattern and practice violation in these areas, in part because PRPD does not adequately collect data to evaluate these issues. However, we are quite concerned that PRPD lacks basic systems of accountability to ensure that all individuals are treated equally by PRPD officers, regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, or sex as required by federal law. Furthermore, our investigation raises serious concerns that PRPD policies and practices are woefully inadequate to prevent and address domestic violence committed by PRPD officers. We find that these deficiencies will lead to constitutional violations unless they are addressed. PRPD’s continued failure to keep necessary data in light of our findings and despite knowledge of these indicators of a very serious problem, may constitute a pattern and practice that violates federal law. We recognize that PRPD faces significant challenges as Puerto Rico’s primary law enforcement agency. The unconstitutional acts that we have identified arise at a time of crisis in public safety. Contrary to national trends, violent crime increased overall in Puerto Rico by 17% from 2007 to 2009. In 2010, Puerto Rico saw the second highest number of murders in its history, a trend that is escalating in 2011. The clearance rate for murders remains below the national average. Some Puerto Rico officials maintain that drug trafficking and social deterioration are fueling the wave of violent crime. However, increasing crime cannot be used to justify continued civil rights violations or the failure to implement meaningful reforms. Constitutional policing and effective law enforcement are inextricably bound. Public safety depends on the trust and cooperation of the community, which in turn depends on constitutional police practices that respect civil rights. Our previous efforts in working with large police departments strongly suggest that by addressing the civil rights concerns we raise in this report, the Commonwealth will not only meet its constitutional duty, but also reduce crime, improve public safety, and increase community confidence. i For many years, victims’ families, civic leaders, legislators, and civil rights advocates have voiced concerns over chronic mistreatment by police. For example, over the past decade, various legislative measures have called for comprehensive investigations of police misconduct, greater education and training, and an accounting of public funds spent on civil rights lawsuits against the Commonwealth. Other grass-roots and advocacy organizations have sent letters to Puerto Rico officials denouncing allegations of discrimination against people of Dominican descent, and civic and professional organizations have issued investigative reports detailing numerous civil rights violations at the hands of police. PRPD officers have also called for agency reforms. One police affinity group representing thousands of officers attributed widespread low morale among officers to verbal abuse from supervisors, indifference to officers’ personal problems, lack of support and training, absence of motivational and educational activities, deficient equipment and materials, and late payment. The public’s demands for remedial action are fueled in part by the appalling number of officer arrests and convictions for serious misconduct and criminal activity. Among these are: the killing of family members by two police officers in the “Massacre of Las Piedras” in 2007; the videotaped shooting of a civilian by a Tactical Operations Unit (“TOU”) officer during a birthday celebration in Humacao in 2007; the shooting death of a PRPD lieutenant by a sergeant at a police station in Yabucoa in 2007; the conviction of multiple officers assigned to the Mayagüez Drug Unit for planting drugs in 2008; the conviction of the director of the Special Arrests and Extraditions Unit and several of his officers on drug-related charges in 2009; the conviction of a lieutenant directing the weapons registry at PRPD headquarters as part of an illegal gun licensing scheme in 2009; the indiscriminate use of batons and chemical irritants against protesters at the Capitol in June 2010; the shooting death of an unarmed young man who was reportedly aiding police following a robbery in September 2010; and the arrest of 61 PRPD officers as part of the largest police corruption operation in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (“FBI”) history in October 2010. In the report that follows, we discuss the wide range of issues that were the focus of our investigation and the findings that result from our review. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, 116 p., app.; Executive Summary Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 4, 2011 at: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/documents/prpd_exec_summ.pdf (executive summary) Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/documents/prpd_exec_summ.pdf (executive summary) Shelf Number: 122984 Keywords: Police AccountabilityPolice AdministrationPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolicing (Puerto Rico)ViolenceViolent Crime |
Author: Amnesty International Title: No Evidence of a Crime: Paying the Price for Police Impunity in Ukraine Summary: Human rights abuses are practised systematically by the police in Ukraine, despite increasing efforts to combat the problem and growing public outrage. institutional failings and high levels of corruption in the Ministry of Internal Affairs mean that people who come into contact with the police are at risk of a wide range of abuses, from verbal attacks to torture and other ill-treatment, including fatal injuries. investigations into these events are often delayed, ineffective and biased, which only encourages the police in a culture of impunity. This report is a result of interviews carried out by Amnesty International in March and April 2011 with victims, lawyers and human rights defenders. It includes case histories, analyses the problem of torture and ill-treatment in Ukraine and makes recommendations to the government. Amnesty International makes a variety of recommendations which will help the government fulfil its international obligation to combat torture and other ill-treatment. These include: the establishment of a fully resourced, independent agency to investigate all allegations of human rights violations by law enforcement officers, including the police; better safeguards for detainees in police custody; and the establishment of an independent organization with powers to monitor places of detention. Details: London: Amnesty International, 2011. 53p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 18, 2011 at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR50/009/2011/en/8b104ee8-689f-4bc3-9fb2-2c68916be33b/eur500092011en.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Ukraine URL: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR50/009/2011/en/8b104ee8-689f-4bc3-9fb2-2c68916be33b/eur500092011en.pdf Shelf Number: 123043 Keywords: Human Rights (Ukraine)Police CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForceTorture |
Author: Eith, Christine Title: Contacts between Police and the Public, 2008 Summary: This report presents findings from a nationally representative survey of nearly 60,000 residents age 16 or older about their contact with police during the 12 months prior to the interview. Interviews were conducted between July 1, 2008 and December 31, 2008 as a supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). This report offers detailed information on face-to-face contacts with the police, including the reason for and outcome of the contact, resident opinion on police behavior during the contact, and whether police used or threatened use of force during the contact. The report describes the demographic characteristics of residents involved in traffic stops and incidents in which the police used force. It also provides comparative analysis with prior survey findings. Highlights include the following: The percent of U.S. residents age 16 or older who had face-to-face contact with police declined from 2002 (21.0%) to 2005 (19.1%) and declined again in 2008 (16.9%). White (8.4%), black (8.8%), and Hispanic (9.1%) drivers were stopped by police at similar rates in 2008. Male drivers (9.9%) were stopped at higher rates than female drivers (7.0%). Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2011. 28p. Source: Internet Resource: Special Report: Accessed October 18, 2011 at: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/cpp08.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/cpp08.pdf Shelf Number: 123055 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen Interactions (U.S.)Police-Community RelationsPublic Opinion Towards PoliceVehicle StopsVictimization Surveys |
Author: Stoughton, Corey Title: Taking Tasers Seriously: The Need for Better Regulation of Stun Guns in New York Summary: Tasers or “stun guns,” deliver up to 50,000 volts of electricity intended to incapacitate their victims. Long lauded as safer alternatives to deadly force, Tasers are in use by 16,000 law enforcement agencies in the U.S.—including 350 in New York State—and have been linked with hundreds of deaths. More than a dozen New Yorkers have died after Taser shocks, some in police custody and others with mental illness whose families turned to law enforcement for help, only to suffer mortal loss. Since February 2004, news reports have documented five deaths after Taser shocks in Suffolk County alone. Scores more across the state have been hurt or humiliated when officers, lacking consistent guidelines and thorough training, deployed Tasers inappropriately. To better identify and understand patterns of Taser use in New York State, the New York Civil Liberties Union analyzed 851 Taser incident reports from eight departments across the state as well as 10 departments’ guidelines for Taser use, obtained through the state Freedom of Information Law and public sources. These records show that officers misuse and overuse these weapons, resorting directly to Tasers rather than less intrusive police tactics to calm, subdue or arrest people they encounter. They also suggest a lack of awareness of the risks of multiple, prolonged shocks; of the particular danger Tasers pose to vulnerable populations; and of the need to avoid sensitive areas of the body, including the chest. While some studies tout the benefits of Tasers as a tool for law enforcement, the absence of sound policy, training and guidelines to direct the powerful weapons’ proper, lawful use contributes to this disturbing pattern of misuse and overuse and puts the state’s residents and visitors at unnecessary and unjustifiable risk. The NYCLU’s analysis found: Nearly 60 percent of reported Taser incidents did not meet expertrecommended criteria for justifying Taser use—criteria that limit the weapon’s use to situations where law enforcement officers can document active aggression or a risk of physical injury. Fifteen percent of incident reports indicated clearly inappropriate Taser use, such as officers shocking people who were merely passively or verbally noncompliant with a police order, or where a suspect was already handcuffed or restrained. Only 15 percent of documented Taser incidents involved people who were armed or who were thought to be armed, belying the myth that Tasers are most frequently used as an alternative to deadly force. More than one-third of Taser incidents involved multiple or prolonged Taser shocks, which experts link to an increased risk of injury and death. More than 1 in 4 (27 percent) of Taser incidents involved shocks directly to subjects’ chest area, despite explicit 2009 guidelines by the weapon’s manufacturer instructing users to avoid firing Tasers at the chest area, citing a risk of “potential cardiac consequences. In 75 percent of incidents, no verbal warnings were reported, despite expert recommendations that verbal warnings precede Taser firings. Half of the jurisdictions surveyed do not, in fact, require officers to issue verbal warnings. Forty percent of the Taser incidents analyzed involved at-risk subjects. Taser experts caution against Taser use on children, the elderly, the visibly infirm and individuals who are seriously intoxicated or mentally ill — “the very individuals” most likely to be in contact with police, according to the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Of these incidents, 30 percent involved situations where officers were called to assist with a mentally disturbed individual with no indication or suggestion of criminal activity. People of color are overwhelmingly represented in Taser incidents. Of all incidents in which race was recorded, 58 percent involved black or Latino New Yorkers. In Albany, where 28 percent of the population is black, 68 percent of Taser incidents involved black subjects; similar disproportionalities were evident in Syracuse and Rochester. As the NYCLU’s analysis demonstrates, these problems are directly linked to the fact that use-of-force policies governing the use of Tasers lack consistency and, with the exception of the NYPD, do not comply with the recommendations of national law enforcement experts that have developed model policies for Taser use. Moreover, seven of the eight jurisdictions surveyed by the NYCLU analysis appear to rely exclusively on training materials provided by TASER International, the weapon’s manufacturer—an approach that experts widely condemn as inadequate preparation for crucial decisions in the field. In addition to these fundamental flaws in policy and training, law enforcement agencies are not doing enough to monitor and supervise the use of Tasers in the field. The incident reports obtained by the NYCLU showed grossly inconsistent and incomplete record-keeping, a significant obstacle to accountability and proper assessment of the risks and rewards of Tasers. Defining and practicing the “appropriate use” of Tasers remains the outstanding challenge in the effort to ensure that Tasers do not cause more harm than good. Accordingly, the NYCLU recommends the following: 1. New York State law enforcement agencies must reform use-of-force polices and Taser training programs to comply with nationally recognized expert guidelines, such as the guidelines created by the United States Department of Justice and the Police Executive Research Forum. 2. The State of New York must play an active role in promoting and achieving universal adoption of these expert-recommended policies and guidelines, and in ensuring that local agencies coordinate their Taser policies and training programs. 3. The State of New York and local law enforcement agencies must require accurate, complete reporting and robust monitoring of Taser use. Such reporting should be made available to the elected officials responsible for oversight of law enforcement agencies and to the citizens whose taxes support them. Details: New York: New York Civil Liberties Union, 2011. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed October 2, 2011 at: http://www.nyclu.org/files/publications/nyclu_TaserFinal.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.nyclu.org/files/publications/nyclu_TaserFinal.pdf Shelf Number: 123072 Keywords: Non-lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (New York City) |
Author: Steinberg, Nik Title: Neither Rights Nor Security: Killings, Torture, and Disappearances in Mexico’s “War on Drugs” Summary: Five years since President Felipe Calderón declared “war” on organized crime in Mexico and dispatched the military to confront the country’s drug cartels, the government’s policy is failing on two fronts. It has not succeeded in reducing violence, and has resulted in a dramatic increase in grave human rights violations, which have only exacerbated the climate of violence, lawlessness, and fear that exists in many parts of the country. Based on extensive research in five states — Baja California, Chihuahua, Guerrero, Nuevo León, and Tabasco — Neither Rights Nor Security presents compelling evidence of the systematic use of torture by Mexican security forces, as well as the involvement of police and soldiers in scores of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. These are not isolated acts. Rather as the testimonies of victims, eyewitnesses, and evidence from public information requests and official government statistics show, these abusive tactics are endemic to Mexico’s counternarcotics efforts. The violations persist in large part because the members of security forces who commit them are virtually never held accountable. Many cases languish in the military justice system. And even when investigations are opened in the civilian justice system, prosecutors repeatedly fail to take basic steps such as identifying and interviewing witnesses. Nevertheless, government officials are often quick to dismiss victims’ allegations as false and to cast victims as criminals. Such accusations compound the suffering already inflicted by these serious violations and place the burden on victims and their families to conduct investigations themselves. Neither Rights Nor Security demonstrates how this pattern of abuse and impunity is undercutting Mexico’s efforts to reduce violence, dismantle criminal networks, and restore the rule of law in parts of the country where it has been badly damaged. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2011. 218p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 10, 2011 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/mexico1111webwcover_0.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Mexico URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/mexico1111webwcover_0.pdf Shelf Number: 123278 Keywords: DisappearancesDrug CartelsDrug TraffickingHomicidesHuman Rights (Mexico)Organized CrimePolice Use of ForceTortureViolence |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: 2011 Electronic Control Weapon Guidelines Summary: One of the defining characteristics of police organizations is that they have been given legal authority to use physical force, and one of the most critical challenges for police departments is the constant struggle to ensure that their use of force is legitimate. Over the last few decades, there has been a growing awareness that police must strive not only to prevent unnecessary or excessive uses of force but also to ensure that communities perceive their police to be acting properly when they use force. As a result of this greater attention to use-of-force issues, there have been substantial improvements in policies, practices, and results. These include significant reductions in officer-involved shootings, creation of early intervention systems to detect possible excesses in individual officers’ use of force, greater mechanisms for accountability and transparency regarding use-of-force issues, and training of officers to de-escalate situations when possible using verbal techniques and other nonlethal methods of controlling an incident. Another advancement has been the development of new less-lethal weapons, which give police a wider range of options to choose from in dealing with persons who resist police authority in various situations—in some cases because they have a mental illness or are under the influence of drugs. Each new less-lethal weapon brings its own set of advantages and limitations that must be managed if officers are to choose the best options in a given situation. In 2005, the COPS Office and PERF came together to produce a set of policy guidelines regarding the use of what were then called Conducted Energy Devices and now are called Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs). Police practitioners and other experts met in Houston and were able to hammer out a strong set of guidelines on ECW use. The guidelines offered practical guidance on the situations in which ECWs are useful and those in which they are not the best option, as well as advice about best practices for training, supervision of officers’ ECW activations, and other issues. The COPS/PERF guidelines of 2005 were adopted by many departments, and they helped those agencies to ensure that ECWs were used properly. Since 2005, researchers have continued to conduct studies of ECWs, and thousands of police departments have gained real-world experience with them. As a result, the COPS Office asked PERF to update the 2005 guidelines, reflecting these developments. PERF conducted background research, including a survey of nearly 200 law enforcement agencies regarding ECW deployments, as well as interviews of police chiefs and other experts. PERF and the COPS Office then convened a conference in Philadelphia in August 2010 where 150 police executives, researchers, doctors, attorneys, and others discussed the use of ECWs in light of five years’ worth of experience in the field. This publication is the result of those efforts, providing an updated and improved version of the initial guidelines to reflect the state of the field regarding ECWs. The 2011 guidelines also reflect a general consensus in policing that ECWs play an invaluable role in providing officers with another type of less-lethal weapon that can be effective in many situations, but they should not be seen as an all-purpose weapon that takes the place of de-escalation techniques and other options. In addition, ECWs have limitations, so officers must be prepared to switch to other strategies if an ECW is not producing the desired result. Details: Washington, DC: Police Executive Research Forum and the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2011. 60p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 19, 2011 at: http://www.policeforum.org/library/use-of-force/ECWguidelines2011.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/library/use-of-force/ECWguidelines2011.pdf Shelf Number: 123412 Keywords: Non-Lethal ForcePolice Use of ForceStun Guns (U.S.)Tasers |
Author: Whitfield, Emily Title: A Force to be Reckoned With: Taser Use and Policies in 20 Arizona Law Enforcement Agencies Summary: This special report represents the most comprehensive survey of Taser use by law enforcement agencies in Arizona to date. To our knowledge, it is also the first independent examination of the relationship between Taser use and the frequency of deployment of lethal force by police in Arizona. Police use of Tasers has been controversial since the release of TASER International’s first highpowered Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs) to agencies in the early 2000s. While billed as an alternative to lethal force including firearms, according to Amnesty International at least 330 people have lost their lives after being exposed to police Tasers between 2001 and 2008. In addition, a 2011 report by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) – a branch within the U.S. Department of Justice – found that Tasers have indirect or secondary effects, such as injury from falling, that can result in death. The NIJ cautioned that the effects of Tasers on certain vulnerable populations, such as small children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with heart conditions, are not well understood. As more incidents involving Tasers have come to light in the age of YouTube and the 24-hour news cycle – from the 2007 University of Florida episode that coined the phrase “Don’t Tase Me, Bro,” to ongoing reports of tragic deaths and serious injuries inflicted by Tasers – criticism of police use of the weapon has mounted around the country. Arizona has not escaped this controversy. Many U.S. law enforcement and correctional agencies in the United States are using Tasers today. In Arizona, where TASER International has its corporate headquarters, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arizona asked large police departments and sheriff’s offices about the number and percentage of officers armed with a Taser; virtually every sworn officer is provided with one. The ACLU of Arizona supports the responsible use of less-lethal weapons such as Tasers. We recognize that there are times when police officers must use such force to protect their lives and the lives of others. However, all too often, Tasers are used “preemptively” against citizens that do not present an imminent safety threat, and even offensively as a pain compliance tool. What’s more, both TASER International training materials and agency policies anticipate that officers will use the weapon as a pain compliance tool. The purpose of this report is to illuminate specific facts about Taser use by Arizona law enforcement officers and to use those facts as a starting point for a conversation about the need for meaningful reform. Details: Phoenix: American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, 2011. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 19, 2011 at: http://www.acluaz.org/taserreport Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.acluaz.org/taserreport Shelf Number: 123410 Keywords: Non-Lethal ForcePolice Use of ForceStun Guns (Arizona)Tasers |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice. Civil Rights Division. United States Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington Title: Investigation of the Seattle Police Department Summary: On March 31, 2011, the Civil Rights Division opened an investigation of the Seattle Police Department (SPD) pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Following its comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department on December 16, 2011, announced its findings that the SPD has engaged in a pattern or practice of officers using excessive force. The Justice Department also announced that its investigation raised serious concerns that some of SPD's policies and practices, particularly those related to pedestrian encounters, could result in unlawful discriminatory policing. Additionally, on November 23, 2011, the Justice Department released a technical assistance letter that provided our specific recommendations regarding SPD's practices relating to an officer's protections against self-incrimination pursuant to the U.S. Supreme Court case of Garrity v. New Jersey. The documents on this page provide more information about the investigation, the Justice Department's findings, and next steps. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 2011. 67p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 13, 2012 at: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/documents/spd_findletter_12-16-11.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/spl/documents/spd_findletter_12-16-11.pdf Shelf Number: 123599 Keywords: DiscriminationPolice Misconduct (Seattle)Police Use of ForceRacial Profiling in Law Enforcement |
Author: Moumneh, Rasha Title: “They Hunt Us Down for Fun”: Discrimination and Police Violence Against Transgender Women in Kuwait Summary: In 2007 the Kuwaiti parliament outlawed “imitating the opposite sex”, paving the way for police to arbitrarily detain, torture, and sexually harass and abuse transgender women in Kuwait with impunity. Despite a formal state recognition of Gender Identity Disorder, arrests of transgender women continue unabated. The police often take advantage of the law to blackmail transgender women for sex, and redress for police abuse is difficult, if not impossible, for fear of reprisal and re-arrest. The law does not criminalize any specific act or behavior, but rather an appearance whose interpretation is left entirely up to the whims of the police, giving them free reign to decide who is breaking the law and how it is broken. This report documents the abuse, violence, and persecution faced by transgender women at the hands of the police as well as the discrimination they face on a daily basis as a result of this law. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2012. 73p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 17, 2012 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/kuwait0112ForUpload.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Kuwait URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/kuwait0112ForUpload.pdf Shelf Number: 123645 Keywords: Bias CrimesHate CrimesPolice Use of ForceSexual AbuseSexual AssaultSexual HarassmentSexual ViolenceTransgenderViolence Against Women (Kuwait) |
Author: Jenks, David Title: Examining Police Integrity: Categorizing Corruption Vignettes Summary: A growing body of literature on police officer integrity focuses on their perceptions of corruption vignettes. The current analysis examines those vignettes using a factor analysis of Klockars’ et. al. survey data of police officers in the United States. Results indicate that the historically used vignettes cluster into two factors, one that reflects more serious, and one that reflects less serious, corrupt behavior. The vignettes regarding an off-duty business and accepting free meals and other gratuities may not be perceived as corruption. Implications for research and practice are discussed. Details: Geneva: DCAF (Center for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces), 2012. 22p. Source: IPES/DCAF Working Paper No. 40 Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: Shelf Number: 123866 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Corruption (U.S.)Police MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Independent Police Complaints Commission Title: Corruption in the Police Service in England and Wales - Part I Summary: The Independent Police Complaints Commission has published the first part of its report regarding corruption in the police service. The report, which was requested by the Home Secretary earlier this summer, outlines the various aspects of behaviour by police officers and staff that can be considered as corrupt. It also has information about the number of referrals the IPCC receives and examples of some corruption cases the organisation has investigated. The report also contains a review of learning and recommendations made in individual corruption investigations. This identified some common themes such as supervision and leadership; misuse of computer systems and policies and procedures - the latter being particularly related to the claiming of expenses and use of corporate credit cards. IPCC Interim Chair Len Jackson, said: "This report sets out, in high level terms, what the IPCC's experience of investigating corruption within the police service of England and Wales has been so far. During its lifetime the Commission has received corruption related referrals from police forces that have resulted in a number of investigations; some of these have been particularly high profile and involved officers of the highest rank. "It is clear that allegations of corruption against any rank of officer, such as those we have seen in the last few months, severely damages the reputation and standing of all forces and officers. "Our second report, which will follow before the end of this year, will provide further analysis of referrals and identification of issues and lessons to be learned for the police service as a whole. It will also comment on the public's views of police corruption and its impact on wider confidence in policing, as well as exploring what further powers and resources would be required if the IPCC were to take a greater role in the investigation of corruption issues in the future.” Police forces and police authorities are required by law to refer complaints or conduct matters to the IPCC if the allegation includes serious corruption. This includes any attempt to pervert the course of justice, passing on confidential information in return for payment or other benefits, and the supply of seized controlled drugs, firearms or other material. In 2009, the Commission took the decision that it would increase its oversight of corruption matters and would develop its capacity to provide greater oversight of such cases. As a result during the last two to three years the Commission has managed, rather than supervised, the investigation of more cases and conducted independent investigations in a small number of high profile cases. Of the approximate 2,400 referrals received by the IPCC in 2010/11 that cover all types of allegations, more than 200 were classified as serious corruption. A similar number of corruption referrals were also received in both 2009/10 and 2008/9. The report was ordered by the Home Secretary, under powers set out in the Police Reform Act 2002, in a statement to the House of Commons in July 2011. The statement followed allegations concerning corrupt relationships between the police and the media generated by the News of the world phone hacking story. Details: London: IPCC Independent Police Complaints Commission, 2011. 35p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed on January 31, 2012 at http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/Documents/Corruption_in_the_Police_Service_in_England_Wales.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/Documents/Corruption_in_the_Police_Service_in_England_Wales.pdf Shelf Number: 122968 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Corruption (U.K.)Police Use of Force |
Author: Fowler, Deborah Title: Texas' School-to-Prison Pipeline: Ticketing, Arrest & Use of Force in Schools. How the Myth of the "Blackboard Jungle" Reshaped School Disciplinary Policy Summary: Schools in Texas have historically been safe places for teachers to teach and students to learn—even in high crime neighborhoods, yet student discipline is increasingly moving from the schoolhouse to the courthouse. Disrupting class, using profanity, misbehaving on a school bus, student fights, and truancy once meant a trip to the principal’s office. Today, such misbehavior results in a Class C misdemeanor ticket and a trip to court for thousands of Texas students and their families each year. It is conservatively estimated that more than 275,000 non-traffic tickets are issued to juveniles in Texas each year based on information from the Texas Office of Court Administration (TOCA). Low reporting of juvenile case data by Justice of the Peace courts to TOCA suggests that the number of non-traffic tickets issued to students may very well grossly exceed that number. While it is impossible to pinpoint how many of these tickets are issued by campus police, the vast majority of these tickets are issued for offenses most commonly linked to school-related misbehavior—disruption of class, disorderly conduct, disruption of transportation, truancy, and simple assaults related to student fights. “Criminalization” of student misbehavior extends to even the youngest students. In Texas, students as young as six have been ticketed at school in the past five years, and it is not uncommon for elementary-school students to be ticketed by school-based law enforcement. School-based arrest of students is not as common, but does occur—and often without prior notice to parents or a lawyer being present during initial questioning of the student. The increase in ticketing and arrest of students, in Texas and nationwide, has coincided with the growth in school-based policing. Campus policing is the largest and fastest growing area of law enforcement in Texas, according to its own professional association. With counselors stretched to handle class scheduling and test administration duties, school administrators and teachers are increasingly turning to campus police officers (also known as School Resource Officers or SROs) to handle student behavior problems. Today in Texas, most public schools have a police officer assigned to patrol hallways, lunchrooms, school grounds, and after-school events. According to media accounts, police officers in some Texas schools are resorting to “use of force” measures more commonly associated with fighting street crime—pepper spray, Tasers and trained canines—when a schoolyard fight breaks out or when students are misbehaving in a cafeteria or at a school event. The intent is to keep schools and students safe, but there can be unintended consequences to disciplining public school students in a way that introduces them to the justice system or exposes them to policing techniques more commonly used with adults. This report is the third in a series of Texas Appleseed publications exploring the impact of school disciplinary policies on school dropout and future involvement in the juvenile justice system. The “school-to-prison pipeline” is a phenomenon documented in a growing body of state and national research, and it is a destructive path all too familiar to the hundreds of teens incarcerated in Texas Youth Commission (TYC) facilities. Their stories highlight being repeatedly suspended, expelled, ticketed and referred to court for minor offenses before committing the offense that triggered their incarceration in TYC. Lock up in TYC is the “end of the pipeline” for some, while others will be transferred or commit a new offense resulting in their imprisonment in an adult corrections facility. After three years researching these issues through data analysis, literature review, direct observations and interviews with stakeholders, our main finding is clear: Texas can interrupt this destructive cycle and prevent the loss of more young people to the “school-to-prison pipeline” through early interventions focused less on punishment and more on creating positive school environments that address students’ academic and behavioral needs. Recommendations for reform are included in this report. Details: Austin, Texas: Texas Appleseed, 2010. 214p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 14, 2012 at http://www.texasappleseed.net/images/stories/reports/Ticketing_Booklet_web.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.texasappleseed.net/images/stories/reports/Ticketing_Booklet_web.pdf Shelf Number: 124138 Keywords: Police Use of ForceSchool Crime (Texas)School Resource Officers |
Author: International Crisis Group Title: Indonesia: The Deadly Cost of Poor Policing Summary: Indonesian communities are increasingly turning to violence to retaliate against the police for abuses, real or perceived. Some 40 attacks on police stations and personnel since August 2010 are clear evidence that community policing, the centrepoint of the police reform agenda, is not working; police are too quick to shoot, usually with live ammunition; and little progress has been made toward police accountability. In the absence of urgent reforms and mechanisms to address local grievances, public hostility is likely to grow. Police are supposed to be helping prevent conflict but too often they are contributing to its outbreak. Cultural, structural, individual, financial and educational barriers within the institution hinder behavioural change. Applicants join the police to wield power and earn money, and once on the force, there are few incentives, financial or professional, to build rapport with the communities they are supposed to serve. Policy directives on community policing from 2005 and 2008 have not trickled down to the sub-district precincts (kepolisian sektor, polsek), and those field officers who are committed to building good relations have limited impact because of frequent rotations. Community hostility is the cumulative result of police brutality; unwarranted demands for money; perceived arrogance; and lack of accountability, especially in cases of fatal shootings. Failure to investigate or punish errant officers triggers mob action, often involving arson, while community resistance to the arrest of those responsible for such violence intensifies if the police in question go free. The problem is compounded by the staffing of precincts with poorly-trained graduates of provincial police schools who receive inadequate firearms training, let alone instruction in community policing. In many cases, local elected officials have to take on the burden of negotiating a way out of the police-community standoff because there are no available institutional mechanisms to resolve grievances. This report looks in detail at three cases of community attacks on police stations that occurred in 2010 and 2011. All started from complaints about excessive use of force. In Buol, Central Sulawesi, citizens destroyed police facilities and forced police families to leave town after seven men were shot dead during a mass protest against the death of a teenager in police custody. This is one of the few cases in which officers were brought to court, but only because of the high death toll and media attention. One was acquitted, two were given slap-on-the-wrist sentences, and some two dozen others faced minor disciplinary sanctions. Many questions remain unanswered. In Kampar, Riau, residents vandalised a precinct after the arrest and beating of an innocent clan elder at a market. He was accused of illegal gambling because he was jotting numbers on a piece of paper, when in fact he was noting product prices. Trivial arrests like this frequently occur because police are rewarded for favourable crime statistics: the more arrests they make, regardless of the severity of the crime, the better they are seen to be doing their job. In Bantaeng, South Sulawesi, villagers attacked a precinct after a deadly police raid on alleged gamblers at a wedding party that killed one. The raiders did not come from that precinct, but it was the nearest one to the dead man’s home. Police claim they opened fire because they believed anger among the wedding guests over the gambling arrests put their commander’s life in danger. In fact they seem to have shot wildly in the dark without being able to see what they were shooting at. These incidents are emblematic of a much broader problem; the Indonesian government should stop treating them as isolated incidents. They represent a systemic failure which will continue to undermine the credibility of the police pledge to “serve and protect” the people and encourage further deadly violence unless the underlying causes of community hostility are addressed. Details: Brussels, Belgium: International Crisis Group, 2012. 32p. Source: Crisis Group Asia Report No. 218: Internet Resource: Accessed February 17, 2012 at http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/asia/south-east-asia/indonesia/218%20Indonesia%20--%20The%20Deadly%20Cost%20of%20Poor%20Policing.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Indonesia URL: http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/asia/south-east-asia/indonesia/218%20Indonesia%20--%20The%20Deadly%20Cost%20of%20Poor%20Policing.pdf Shelf Number: 124161 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community RelationsPolicing (Indonesia) |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) Title: Conducted Energy Devices: Use in a Custodial Setting Summary: These guidelines for the use of Conducted Energy Devices (CEDs) in custodial settings provide protections designed to ensure that CEDs are used in custodial settings only by deputies who have been trained in their use. CEDs are to be used by these deputies only against subjects who make a sudden attack or offer active physical resistance. In making a decision about the use of a CED, deputies must consider the entire context of a situation, including factors such as the subject’s history of violence and whether bystanders are at risk. The recommended policies also call for caution and evaluation of other options before a CED is used against elderly subjects, women believed to be pregnant, and persons with apparent physical disabilities that impair their mobility. The recommended policies also require the reporting of CED activations and prohibit using CEDs as a form of punishment. The NSA envisions that continued research into CED use, such as the U.S. Department of Justice’s current study of the impact of CED use on officers and suspects, will inform the development of additional policies governing CED use. Out of the 345 sheriffs’ agencies sent the survey, 288 returned completed surveys. The survey contained a series of open-ended and closed-ended questions about agency personnel and its detention centers, followed by questions on the agency’s mission; the number of CED-type weapons possessed; when, where, and by whom the CED weapons are authorized to be deployed; the agency’s other policies regarding CED deployment; training in CED use; and lawsuits related to CED weapons. Details: Washington, DC: Police Executive Research Forum, 2009. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 29, 2012 at http://www.bja.gov/pdf/PERFNSA_CED.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: http://www.bja.gov/pdf/PERFNSA_CED.pdf Shelf Number: 114886 Keywords: Conducted Energy WeaponsCorrections AdministrationCorrections OfficersNonlethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsStun GunsTaser Guns |
Author: University of California at Davis. Reynoso Task Force Title: UC Davis November 18, 2011 "Pepper Spray Incident" Task Force Report Summary: On November 18, 2011, University of California, Davis, police officers used pepper spray on students sitting in a line in the midst of a protest and “occupation” on the campus quad. Viral images of the incident triggered immediate and widespread condemnation of the police action. To assist the Task Force with fact finding and the identification of best practices in policing, the University engaged Kroll, Inc., an internationally known risk management firm. Kroll completed the final draft of its report on Feb. 22, 2012 (the “Kroll Report”). The Kroll Report describes at length the events leading up to this incident. In brief, at approximately 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 17, 2011, tents were erected on the Quad at the Davis campus. The Administration decided to remove the tents, instructing police to do so at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, November 18, 2011. While attempting to remove tents, the police arrested several individuals. Subsequently, in the midst of a growing group of people, the police officers employed pepper spray to remove several students linking arms in a line across a walkway in the Quad. The UC Davis protest focused on and drew strength from widespread discontent among students about the increase in tuition and fees at the University of California. The incident also took place against the backdrop of worldwide student protests, including demonstrations by the Occupy Wall Street movement, which triggered similar events across the nation. These protests presented challenges for all affected universities and municipalities in attempting to balance the goals of respecting freedom of speech, maintaining the safety of both protesters and non-protesters, and protecting the legitimate interests of government and the non-protesting public. In the immediate aftermath of the UC Davis incident, University of California President Mark G. Yudof announced the appointment of former California Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso to chair a Task Force to address the pepper spraying of UC Davis students. The President established the following charge to the Task Force: Receive and review the fact-finding report from Kroll concerning the events that took place on November 18, 2011; Based on that review, and subject to available information, issue findings regarding responsibility for the events of November 18; Provide recommendations to Chancellor Katehi and the President on improvements to police procedures, command protocols, and campus policies and oversight structures that will help ensure the rights and safety of nonviolent protesters and the entire campus community. Our overriding conclusion can be stated briefly and explicitly. The pepper spraying incident that took place on November 18, 2011 should and could have been prevented. Details: Davis, CA: University of California at Davis, 2012. 190. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 12, 2012 at: http://reynosoreport.ucdavis.edu/reynoso-report.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://reynosoreport.ucdavis.edu/reynoso-report.pdf Shelf Number: 124939 Keywords: Pepper SprayPolice Use of ForceStudent DemonstrationsStudent Protests (California) |
Author: Amnesty International Title: Police Violence in Greece: Not Just 'Isolated Incidents' Summary: Amnesty International has received a large number of allegations of human rights violations committed by law enforcement officials in Greece. Excessive force is used against largely peaceful protesters and journalists covering demonstrations, and there are frequent reports of ill-treatment of individuals during arrest or detention, including those belonging to vulnerable sectors of society. While the authorities accept that such violations occur, they have classed them as “isolated incidents” and fail to acknowledge the extent of this systemic problem. Moreover, police and judicial authorities frequently fail to conduct prompt and thorough investigations, and victims are unwilling to report abuses owing to a lack of confidence in the criminal justice system. As long as these deterrents remain absent, police are effectively free to repeat these crimes with impunity. Drawing on a wide range of material, Amnesty International makes urgent recommendations to the Greek authorities for implementation in law and practice. These include ensuring police exercise restraint and identify themselves clearly during demonstrations, improving safeguards for those in custody and creating a truly independent and effective police complaints mechanism. Details: London: Amnesty International, 2012. 64p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 5, 2012 at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR25/005/2012/en/edbf2deb-ae15-4409-b9ee-ee6c62b3f32b/eur250052012en.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Greece URL: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR25/005/2012/en/edbf2deb-ae15-4409-b9ee-ee6c62b3f32b/eur250052012en.pdf Shelf Number: 125479 Keywords: Police Brutality (Greece)Police MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Small Arms Survey Title: A Heavy Hand: The Use of Force by India’s Police Summary: India has approximately 2.4 million men and women in official policing, and their use of force is regulated both by the laws of the country and by internal rules and procedures. But there is growing consensus within India about the need for police reform. A Heavy Hand: The Use of Force by India’s Police—a new Issue Brief from the Small Arms Survey’s India Armed Violence Assessment project (IAVA)—examines the laws governing police use of force, the situations in which force is employed, the cultural factors that affect policing, lethal violence, and the prospects for effective reform. The Issue Brief’s findings include: Police are not sufficiently trained to deal with violence and challenges to their authority. Their salaries are low, with few perks, which helps foster a culture of corruption. Reported incidents of police firing on civilians rose from 791 in 2004 to 1,421 in 2010. The number of civilians killed in these incidents fell, but reported injuries grew. Indian law grants extraordinary discretionary powers of arrest to police officers. 'Encounter killings' by police—in which faked confrontations are used to justify extra-judiciary killings—are often perceived as an acceptable response to crime or terrorism. Incidents of excessive use of force by police are unlikely to be addressed until major reforms in the criminal justice system are put in place. Details: Geneva: Small Arms Survey, 2012. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: India Armed Violence Assessment, Issue Brief, No. 3: Accessed August 13, 2012 at: http://www.india-ava.org/fileadmin/docs/pubs/IAVA-IB3-A-Heavy-Hand.pdf Year: 2012 Country: India URL: http://www.india-ava.org/fileadmin/docs/pubs/IAVA-IB3-A-Heavy-Hand.pdf Shelf Number: 125996 Keywords: Armed Violence (India)Police MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolicing |
Author: Amnesty International Title: Known Abusers, But Victims Ignored: Torture and Ill-Treatment in Mexico Summary: Reports of torture and ill-treatment have risen sharply in Mexico during the militarized campaign of President Calderon’s administration to combat organized crime. The victims are often criminal suspects or simply people caught up in military and police public security operations. They face beatings, asphyxiation, drowning, electric shocks and death threats at the hands of officials usually with the aim of obtaining information or supposed confessions. Few dare to report their treatment, fearing reprisals and continued illtreatment. Those that do, face almost insurmountable obstacles to prevent information obtained by torture serving as evidence in criminal trials let alone securing justice for the abuses suffered. Impunity for torturers remains the norm encouraging its continued use as a means of investigation and punishment against perceived criminal suspects. The failure to enforce laws and uphold international human rights norms to prevent and punish torture and ill-treatment is routine. Despite the systematic use of torture and ill-treatment by members of the military and police, the government of President Calderon has ignored and dismissed this reality, leaving victims without access to justice. The hope that judicial reforms would end incentives to use torture has not materialized. Training programmes and other measures introduced over the last decade to combat torture and end impunity have failed. Nevertheless, the government refuses to acknowledge this situation, allowing the use of torture and illtreatment to become further ingrained at the same time as making general commitments to protect human rights. Details: London: Amnesty International, 2012. 46p. Source: Internet Resoruce: Accessed October 24, 2012 at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AMR41/063/2012/en/74354a01-4946-4301-b922-8d048782bfef/amr410632012en.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Mexico URL: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AMR41/063/2012/en/74354a01-4946-4301-b922-8d048782bfef/amr410632012en.pdf Shelf Number: 126788 Keywords: Human RightsOrganized CrimePolice Use of ForceTorture (Mexico) |
Author: Scott, Kenneth B. Title: Research Report: Evaluation of the Strathclyde Extended Deployment of Taser Pilot Summary: In June 2009 the Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police approved the establishment of a pilot project to extend the use of Taser to specially trained officers attending operational incidents involving violence or threats of violence. The aim of the Extended Deployment of Taser (EDT) Pilot was to assess the effectiveness of deploying Specially Trained Officers (STOs), who are not authorised firearms officers, on the front-line with Taser X26 devices as an additional tactical option in operational policing situations requiring the use of force. The Pilot ran from 20 April to 20 October 2010 and thirty response officers from two sub-divisions were selected for specialist training as STOs for the purpose of carrying Taser during their regular periods of duty.This evaluation sought to determine compliance of Specially Trained Officers with the Standard Operating Procedures for the deployment of Taser and reviewed in detail both the small number of incidents in which Taser was deployed within the Pilot (see 1 below), and a number of identified incidents in which STOs decided not to deploy Taser (see 2 below). It concluded that Specially Trained Officers complied with the Procedures and adhered to the requirement to use Taser in ways which were measured, justifiable and proportionate. Details: Dundee, Scotland: The Scottish Institute for Policing Research, 2012. 5p. Source: SIPR Research Summary No. 12: Internet Resource: Accessed November 3, 2012 at http://www.sipr.ac.uk/downloads/Research_Summaries/Research_Summary_12.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.sipr.ac.uk/downloads/Research_Summaries/Research_Summary_12.pdf Shelf Number: 126866 Keywords: Conducted Energy WeaponsNonlethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsStun GunsTaser GunsTasers |
Author: New South Wales Ombudsman Title: How Are Taser Weapons Used by the NSW Police Force? A Special Report to Parliament under s. 31 of the Ombudsman Act 1974 Summary: This is the second comprehensive investigation that my office has undertaken into the use of Taser weapons by the New South Wales Police Force (NSWPF). The first investigation was done at a time when Tasers were only used by police officers within specialist units of the NSWPF. Since that report in 2008, Taser weapons have been rolled out for use by all accredited general duties police officers in NSW. The increase in the number of Taser weapons and officers who can carry a Taser bring a greater risk that Tasers may be used inappropriately. The controls and accountability mechanisms for their use now need to be of the highest standard – to ensure not only proper use, but to minimise any opportunities for or risks of misuse. Also of concern is the potential that an over-reliance on Tasers will diminish police officers’ skills in important areas such as communication, negotiation and weaponless control. The Taser can be an effective device when it is used appropriately and in accordance with the law, the NSWPF tactical options model and Taser use procedures. However, Taser use must always be balanced against the potential danger to human life and the risk of serious injury to members of the community or police officers. On any assessment, the Taser is an intrusive and invasive weapon. It pierces the skin when the Taser probes are discharged and inflicts considerable pain on the person subject to the Taser. It can also lead to additional safety risks, depending on the circumstances of use and the nature of the interaction. Around Australia, there have been well publicised misuses of Taser which have led to significant and justified concern within the community. For these reasons, a Taser must be used only in situations where there is a real threat of harm or danger to police or members of the community. This investigation was commenced in October 2010 and it is the most comprehensive review of Taser use to date in Australia. We have evaluated data relating to 2,252 Taser use incidents, together with a detailed examination of 556 individual police Taser use incidents – where we closely analysed all police records as well as the video footage from the Taser Cam. Such a detailed review allowed us to not only examine the application of relevant police procedures and rules in each incident, but also how they were interpreted and applied by operational police and how the internal accountability and review system worked for each incident. Our findings support the ongoing use of Taser weapons by the NSWPF. We identified a small number of misuses or breaches of relevant Taser rules and procedures, and found that the accountability framework was strong and in most cases worked well. The positive nature of many of these findings is, I believe, a direct result of the strong accountability framework in place, the detailed rules and procedures for use, and the decision to have Taser Cam as a mandatory feature in each Taser. Notwithstanding our generally positive findings, we did identify incidents where the use of the Taser was inappropriate or where the internal review process was either inadequate or inconsistent. These cases point to some significant issues of concern around the interpretation of procedures and criteria for use of Tasers and the adequacy and consistency of the internal review processes. We have made 44 recommendations to ensure that what is essentially a good system is made better and stronger. There will always be a risk that Tasers can be misused. An enhanced accountability framework with greater clarity and guidance will help to further minimise the risk of Taser misuse – and, importantly, result in such misuse being identified and dealt with quickly and effectively. This investigation has required a significant amount of work by both staff from my office and senior and other police officers. It is important to record that the Commissioner of Police has been very supportive of the investigation. From the start, he committed to ensuring that we were given ready access to everything we needed to complete our review and analysis of Taser use. Details: Sydney: NSW Ombudsman, 2012. 202p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 5, 2012 at: http://www.ombo.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/6970/SR_Taser_Report_Oct2012_web.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Australia URL: http://www.ombo.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/6970/SR_Taser_Report_Oct2012_web.pdf Shelf Number: 126883 Keywords: Police Use of ForceStun GunsTasers (New South Wales, Australia) |
Author: Bobb, Merrick, J. Title: Managing the Risk of Misconduct for the King County Sheriff’s Office Summary: This report, Managing the Risk of Misconduct for the King County Sheriff’s Office, focuses on that agency's ("KCSO" or "Department") internal oversight of investigations of use of force and employee misconduct. We found that the investigations into misconduct of KCSO employees were of a high quality. It was clear what happened in the investigations and key interviews were conducted of suspects and witnesses. While the investigations of KCSO employees were of high quality, we nonetheless concluded that they could be improved. Thus, we found that KCSO's Internal Investigations Unit (IIU) functions well in its investigations. We could not, however, say the same about internal reviews and critiques of shootings and other uses of force. We reviewed all shootings occurring during 2005-2011. In none of those instances was a shooting held to be out of policy. After analyzing KCSO records, we recommend that the KCSO should create a Use of Force Review Board for all lethal and all non-lethal uses of force involving a KCSO employee, and that a parallel team of specially trained investigators should “roll out” to the on-scene investigations of significant uses of force. The recommended Use of Force Review Board should include three members: the head of training at KCSO, a citizen representative, and a rotating Chief. Additionally, we recommend that the Director of the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight (OLEO) have one nonvoting place on the Use of Force Review Board. The Use of Force Review Board should: Replace the Shooting Review Board Document all votes by members Meet reasonable yet speedy deadlines Release a statement after each review explaining how the Board arrived at its decision. The Director or another member from the OLEO team should roll out to deputy-involved shootings and other serious uses of force to question KCSO employees and conduct interviews, and take such further steps as may be necessary to fulfill OLEO's duties set forth in the ordinance. This report also includes recommendations for policy changes and other procedural reforms. We recommend changing the general use of force policy, Taser policy, and OC or pepper spray deployment policies, as well as policies for handling of high-risk individuals, firing to and from motor vehicles, and bean-bag deployment. We also recommend ending the 72 hour time period for KCSO employees to make a statement regarding their role in a use of force incident, and to instead take the statement immediately after an opportunity is given for the individual to consult with an attorney or union representative but before the individual is relieved of duty. The statement should be face-to-face and recorded and transcribed as part of an interview. If possible, the suspect should give an interview regarding the incident. Following use of force incidents, particularly in deputy-involved shooting cases, we recommend that the Department clearly record the date when the criminal investigation has begun and concluded, and that all internal deadlines following use of force incidents be adhered to. We found that the analysis of shooting incidents was incomplete and did not look at the incident in question from the perspective of administrative policy, tactical and strategic issues, discipline, and training. Moreover, interviews of the shooter and witness deputies, if taken at all, were missing from the files provided us. Thus, we recommend that uses of force incidents be better documented and that these records be retained indefinitely. Other aspects of the report cover investigations of alleged misconduct of KCSO employees, improvements to the early warning tracking system, and a discussion of the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight’s role for KCSO. We also criticize the 180-day provision in which to complete an administrative investigation. For particularly complex cases, or for a large docket of cases, the shortness of the deadline could mean that investigations do not conclude in time and discipline for misconduct cannot be meted out. The report concludes in a discussion of the 3 functions of OLEO and recommends that this office be bolstered in its staffing, structure, and authority. Details: Los Angeles: Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC), 2012. 78p. Source: Accessed December 3, 2012 at: http://kingcounty.gov/operations/oleo/reports.aspx Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://kingcounty.gov/operations/oleo/reports.aspx Shelf Number: 127110 Keywords: Police MisconductPolice Use of ForceSheriff's Departments |
Author: Stewart, James K. Title: Collaborative Reform Process: A Review of Officer-Involved Shootings in the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Summary: The use of deadly force against a citizen is the most serious act a police officer can take. It demands careful, impartial review and the highest professional standards of accountability. In November 2011, the Las Vegas Review Journal (LVRJ) published a five-part investigative series titled "Deadly Force: When Las Vegas Police Shoot, and Kill." The LVRJ series, using data provided by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD), reviewed officer-involved shootings (OIS) over the past 20 years. The LVRJ reported that although a number of these shootings were highly controversial and could have been avoided, LVMPD's internal accountability systems and the Clark County Coroner's Inquests had ruled that they were justified and held officers minimally accountable. As expected, the LVRJ investigative series raised concern about LVMPD's lack of police accountability both to the department's review bodies and to community stakeholders. In January 2012, in response to the LVRJ's investigative series, the director of the Office of Community Oriented Police Services (COPS Office), of the U.S. Department of Justice called LVMPD's Sheriff Gillespie. The director offered the assistance of the COPS Office through its Critical Response Technical Assistance grant to reduce OISs. Within a week of this phone call, Sheriff Gillespie sent members of his executive command to Washington, D.C., to meet with the COPS Office. They discussed the reforms that LVMPD was already undertaking to address the issue and the areas in which technical assistance would be beneficial. Simultaneously, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada (ACLUNV) filed a petition with the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division on behalf of the Las Vegas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The petition requested that the Civil Rights Division commence an investigation and pursue civil remedies to reform the LVMPD, claiming that the LVMPD "engaged in a pattern or practice of conduct by law enforcement officers . . . that deprives persons of rights, privileges or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States." Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2012. 158p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 13, 2013 at: https://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/Collaborative%20Reform%20Process_FINAL.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: https://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/Collaborative%20Reform%20Process_FINAL.pdf Shelf Number: 127612 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice Use of Force |
Author: Texas Civil Rights Project Title: Police Misconduct in San antonio: The Need for More Accountability, Transparency, and Responsiveness Summary: A string of incidents in the past few years has revealed a troubling pattern of misconduct by San Antonio police officers, ranging from illegal searches and sexual misconduct to unresponsiveness and indifference to victims. The thread connecting these incidents is the fact that better supervision, accountability, and transparency by SAPD could have prevented them. The Texas Civil Rights Project has documented many of these events, discovered through media reports, accounts from community members, SAPD records, and its own intake process. A review of SAPD’s response to many of these incidents shows that misconduct is often addressed too late — after an officer does something egregious, and too late for the department to try and remedy the officer’s dangerous habits and tendencies. SAPD itself has commissioned a number of independent auditors to study some of these issues. To its credit, some changes are beginning to take place, though many reforms have not yet been considered, fallen by the wayside, or have yet to be implemented. This report discusses a departmental culture that protects its own and is unwelcoming of supervision. Citizens report a variety of problems in dealing with the police, often when they are the victims and especially when they attempt to lodge complaints against the police. Internal Affairs’ policies and practices create a hostile environment for individuals reporting possible police misconduct. The agency also suffers from a serious lack of transparency that impedes public scrutiny, and many roadblocks protect officers against the possibility of serious repercussions for most of their actions. SAPD’s current police chief, William McManus, has made efforts to move the department in the right direction by listening to citizens’ concerns and pushing for changes. In order to encourage continued improvement on this front, this report provides forty-one (41) specific recommendations that address institutional problems in SAPD’s culture, training, and policies. The recommended changes focus on the following areas: • improving the investigation of citizen complaints through greater autonomy for investigators and providing better information and follow-up for complainants; • increasing supervisor accountability for misconduct by subordinates when the supervisor fails to report or address it; • facilitating supervisors’ oversight of police officers through the creation of standardized disciplinary guidelines and better monitoring of officers’ job performance; • supporting officers in dealing with the challenges and pressures of law enforcement through access to mental health services, employee assistance programs, and supervisor training; and, • equipping officers to deal better with victims and groups who are subject to discrimination, through regular in-service training and partnerships with community organizations, and adding two victim liaisons to the police force. Details: Austin, TX: Texas Civil Rights Project, 2011. 35p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 15, 2013 at: http://www.texascivilrightsproject.org/docs/sapd/Police_Misconduct_in_San_Antonio-TCRP_Human_Rights_Report.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: http://www.texascivilrightsproject.org/docs/sapd/Police_Misconduct_in_San_Antonio-TCRP_Human_Rights_Report.pdf Shelf Number: 127519 Keywords: Police Misconduct (San Antonio, Texas)Police Use of Force |
Author: New South Wales. Ombudsman Title: Ombudsman Monitoring of the Police Investigation Into the Death of Roberto Laudisio-Curti. A Special Report to Parliament under s.161 of the Police Act 1990 Summary: It is essential that police thoroughly and objectively investigate incidents where a person is killed or seriously injured during policing activities. The community and families of victims reasonably expect that investigators will determine what occurred and appropriately address any identified criminal conduct, officer misconduct or shortcomings in policy, procedures or training. The sudden and tragic death of Roberto Laudisio-Curti on 18 March 2012 raised issues of significant public interest both here in Australia and abroad after it was revealed that Mr Laudisio-Curti — an otherwise fit and healthy 21 year-old — died shortly after 11 officers used physical force, multiple Tasers, OC spray, handcuffs and a baton while attempting to arrest him for allegedly stealing two packets of biscuits from a convenience store. This office decided to actively monitor the police investigation into Mr Laudisio-Curti’s death to provide a level of reassurance to members of Mr Laudisio-Curti’s family and the community that the investigation would be conducted in an appropriate, accountable and transparent manner. The purpose of this report is to outline how police investigated Mr Laudisio-Curti’s death in the lead up to the coronial inquest and to explain how we monitored the police investigation. The report details issues we identified while monitoring the investigation and our concerns about the failure of investigators to adequately identify and address certain issues during the investigation. Details: Sydney: NSW Ombudsman, 2013. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 18, 2013 at: http://www.ombo.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/8395/SR_Ombudsman-monitoring-of-the-police-investigation-into-the-death-of-Roberto-Laudisio-Curti.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Australia URL: http://www.ombo.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/8395/SR_Ombudsman-monitoring-of-the-police-investigation-into-the-death-of-Roberto-Laudisio-Curti.pdf Shelf Number: 127991 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Misconduct (Australia)Police TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Newman, Gareth Title: Policing in South Africa: 2010 and Beyond. Conference Report Summary: This conference report focuses on the links between civil society and the police. The authors argue that there is a need to reconsider policing and connect it more to society. Crime is seen as a societal problem which can only be effectively combated when different societal actors are mobilized and when the interests of citizens are taken seriously. Issues addressed included: Police corruption; Policing the FIFA World Cup; Use of deadly force by policing; Police reform; and Community policing and policing partnerships. Details: Pretoria, South Africa: Institute for Security Studies, 2011. 47p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 9, 2013 at: http://www.issafrica.org/crimehub/uploads/PolicinginSA2010.pdf Year: 2011 Country: South Africa URL: http://www.issafrica.org/crimehub/uploads/PolicinginSA2010.pdf Shelf Number: 128337 Keywords: Police AdministrationPolice CorruptionPolice ReformPolice Use of ForcePolicing (South Africa) |
Author: Victoria Police Title: Evaluation of Victoria Police Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project Summary: The Taser X26 is a brand of conducted energy device (CED); a 'less lethal' device that is used to cause temporary incapacitation to a person. Emitting electricity via wires and probes, they are employed as a resolution option by national and international law enforcement agencies against persons causing or threatening serious harm to themselves or others. CEDs have been in use by specialist areas within Victoria Police since 2004 (Special Operations Group [SOG], 2004, and the Critical Incident Response Teams [CIRT], 2005). With these specialist areas responding from their bases in Melbourne, a service delivery gap exists in regional and rural areas of Victoria. In February, 2010, Victoria Police commenced a pilot project to trial CEDs in the Bendigo and Morwell response zones. Analysis of Use of Force data identified these response zones as having a higher number of incidents involving the use of force, persons with a mental illness, sieges and instances where offenders have used weapons against police. Even though police effectively resolve a high volume of these incidents on a daily basis without recourse to the use of force, the aim of the project was to introduce CEDs to general duties and Highway Patrol police from these pilot sites and provide them with an enhanced less lethal capability to minimise the likelihood of recourse to lethal force when responding to incidents of this nature. The trial commenced on the 4th of July, 2010, and initially ran for a twelve month period before being extended pending the outcome of a formal evaluation process. In August 2011, Victoria Police's Deputy Commissioner for Regional and Road Policing, Mr Kieran Walshe APM, instigated an evaluation of the Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project. This evaluation examined and assessed the project that saw the equipping of front line police at the pilot sites with the Taser X26 CED. In order to ensure the evaluation was robust and objective, Victoria Police approached New South Wales Police seeking the assistance of an appropriately experienced senior officer. Assistant Commissioner Alan Clarke APM, the Chairperson of the NSW Police Force Taser Executive Committee, was subsequently engaged to lead the evaluation with assistance provided by staff from the Victoria Police Inspectorate. This final evaluation of the Victoria Police Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project builds upon the Interim Evaluation completed by the Conducted Energy Device Pilot Project team. The Evaluation Team, where appropriate, identified opportunities for improvement and made recommendations. The range of material examined during the evaluation supports the assertion that the CED is an effective weapon in assisting in the resolution of some incidents; this was further supported by the feedback supplied by the police attending the incidents where CED was used. Details: Melbourne: Victoria Police, 2011. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 24, 2014 at: http://www.police.vic.gov.au/content.asp?Document_ID=31234 Year: 2011 Country: Australia URL: http://www.police.vic.gov.au/content.asp?Document_ID=31234 Shelf Number: 132175 Keywords: Non-Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Amnesty International Title: Spain: The Right to Protest Under Threat Summary: In Spain, the economic crisis, austerity measures and cuts in basic social services have led thousands of people to take to the streets in recent years. Despite the peaceful nature of the overwhelming majority of demonstrations, there were reports of excessive use of force and ill-treatment by police, an increase in the number of fines being issued for participating in protests and abuses by law enforcement officials against journalists reporting on the rallies. The Spanish authorities have also expressed their intention to impose further restrictions on the holding of demonstrations, proposing amendments to the legislation directly affecting the exercise of this right. This report lays out Amnesty International's concerns in relation to the restrictions imposed on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in the context of demonstrations in Spain. It concludes that police used excessive force both through the misuse of anti-riot equipment during demonstrations and while detaining protestors. The report documents cases of ill-treatment of individuals under police custody, and highlights a number of concerns about the inadequate investigations being carried out by the authorities into alleged human rights violations committed by law enforcement officials. Details: London: Amnesty International, 2014. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 6, 2014 at: http://www.amnesty.ch/de/laender/europa-zentralasien/spanien/dok/2014/demonstrationsfreiheit-unter-druck/bericht-spain-the-right-to-protest-under-threat-.-april-2014.-84-seiten Year: 2014 Country: Spain URL: http://www.amnesty.ch/de/laender/europa-zentralasien/spanien/dok/2014/demonstrationsfreiheit-unter-druck/bericht-spain-the-right-to-protest-under-threat-.-april-2014.-84-seiten Shelf Number: 132256 Keywords: Demonstrations and ProtestsHuman RightsPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Torrey, E. Fuller Title: Justifiable Homicides by Law Enforcement Officers: What is the Role of Mental Illness? Summary: As a consequence of the failed mental illness treatment system, an increasing number of individuals with untreated serious mental illness are encountering law enforcement officers, sometimes with tragic results. "Justifiable homicides," in which an individual is killed by a law enforcement officer in the line of duty, may occur when criminals are being pursued, as in a bank robbery, or when an officer is threatened with a weapon, in other situations. We assessed available data on justifiable homicides between 1980 and 2008 and found the following: - Although the total number of justifiable homicides decreased by 5% between 1980 and 2008, those resulting from an attack on a law enforcement officer increased by 67%, from an average of 153 to 255 such homicides per year. - Although no national data is collected, multiple informal studies and accounts support the conclusion that "at least half of the people shot and killed by police each year in this country have mental health problems." - There are suggestions that many of the mentally ill individuals who were shot were not taking their medications. Some of them were also well-known to the law enforcement officers from previous encounters. - Studies suggest that approximately one-third of the shootings by law enforcement officers results from the victim attempting to commit "suicide-by-cop." - The transfer of responsibility for persons with mental illness from mental health professionals to law enforcement officers is both illogical and unfair and harms both the patients and the officers. In view of these conditions, it is recommended that: - The Department of Justice resolve to collect more complete and detailed information on justifiable homicides. - Mental health agencies be clearly assigned the ultimate responsibility for the care of persons with mental illness in their communities and held accountable for providing it. - More widespread use be made of assisted outpatient treatment (AOT) under which at-risk individuals who meet criteria established by the state are court-ordered to remain in treatment as a condition of living in the community - in the 45 states where it is authorized. - The five states without AOT laws on their books (Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Tennessee) enact and use them. Details: Arlington, VA: Treatment Advocacy Center and National Sheriffs' Association, 2013. 20p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 7, 2014 at: http://tacreports.org/storage/documents/2013-justifiable-homicides.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://tacreports.org/storage/documents/2013-justifiable-homicides.pdf Shelf Number: 132264 Keywords: HomicidesMental Health ServicesMentally IllMentally Ill OffendersPolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Use of Force Review: Cases and Policies Summary: The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) was commissioned by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to conduct a review of the Use of Force by CBP officers and agents. This review included all CBP use of deadly force events from January 2010 through October 2012 and CBP use of force policies, equipment, tactics, and training. Sources of information were government-furnished information, equipment and materials and CBP policy documents. PERF reviewed Customs and Border Protection Use of Force Policies and 67 case files related to Customs and Border Protection agents' use of deadly force. Case files were sorted in general categories to include: firearm response to subjects armed with firearms; firearm response to rocks thrown on land; firearm response to rocks thrown on water; firearms use against vehicles; and other firearm cases. The case reviews raise a number of concerns, especially with regard to shots fired at vehicles and shots fired at subjects throwing rocks and other objects at agents. Improvements are also recommended in initial reporting, investigation, incident review, weapons, personal protective equipment, and training. Recommendations for changes in policies flow from these case reviews. Two policy and practice areas especially need significant change. First, officers/agents should be prohibited from shooting at vehicles unless vehicle occupants are attempting to use deadly force--other than the vehicle--against the agent. Training and tactics should focus on avoiding positions that put agents in the path of a vehicle and getting out of the way of moving vehicles. Second, officers/agents should be prohibited from using deadly force against subjects throwing objects not capable of causing serious physical injury or death to them. Officers/agents should be trained to specific situations and scenarios that involve subjects throwing such objects. The training should emphasize pre-deployment strategies, the use of cover and concealment, maintaining safe distances, equipping vehicles and boats with protective cages and/or screening, de-escalation strategies, and where reasonable the use of less-lethal devices. Because these changes are significant departures from current practice CBP will need to craft an implementation strategy for re-orientation and training before new policies go into effect. Consideration should be give to assembling an expert panel to interact with members of CBP from all levels of the organization for discussion about the transition to the new policies and practices. There are several areas where CBP is engaged in best policing practices. Firearms qualification occurs four times a year. According to policy, exemptions are limited. This practice is critical given the environment in which CBP officers/agents work. In addition, CBP is to be commended for implementing a new incident mapping software program. This system allows examination of use of force and other incidents at both a highly detailed level and at a more macro level. This system will provide graphic support for leaders to spot trends and make strategic changes. CBP also has produced a very useful quick-reference guide "Documenting the Use of Force." Policy changes restricting the use of deadly force against vehicles and rock throwers should be incorporated into the guide. Details: Washington, DC: Police Executive Research Forum, 2013. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 11. 2014 at http://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/PERFReport.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/PERFReport.pdf Shelf Number: 132436 Keywords: Border Patrol, Use of ForcePolice Policies and PracticesPolice Use of ForcePolice Weapons |
Author: Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services Title: Review of Lethality Assessment Programs (LAP) Summary: Lethality assessments are risk assessment tools that were developed to provide law enforcement and other first responders with a simple and consistent method to measure the level of danger that a victim of intimate partner domestic violence is in given their current situation. The tool consists of a standard set of questions that are asked of the victim in a specific order; the responses that the victim provides to those questions help indicate the level of danger. It is important to note that these assessments are only one of many tools used in domestic violence (DV) intervention and that a lower risk score on the assessment questions does not necessarily mean that the victim is not in serious danger. This report describes what comprises a lethality assessment program (LAP), the goals of the program and how it works. It discusses the experiences of states and localities that have lethality assessment programs in operation, and in particular, what it takes to prepare for implementation of such a program. The report also lists some of the ways that implementation of a lethality assessment program would benefit Virginia as well as some of the costs that such an effort would incur. Finally, it discusses the recommended first steps to implementing a lethality assessment program within existing or with minimal resources. Details: Richmond, VA: Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, 2013. 25p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 16, 2014 at: http://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/research/documents/Lethality_Assess_Report_FINAL.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/research/documents/Lethality_Assess_Report_FINAL.pdf Shelf Number: 132470 Keywords: Domestic ViolencePolice ResponsePolice Use of ForceRisk Assessment |
Author: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Title: Use of Force Policy, Guidelines and Procedures Handbook. Summary: U.S. Customs and Border Protections (CBP) uniformed professionals too often face life-threatening confrontations as they secure Americas borders. A critical issue for CBP is determining how best to keep its agents and officers safe when confronted by dangerous situations. It is equally important that the American people have full confidence that our officers and agents use force in a manner consistent with agency policy and law enforcement best practices. In line with this mission, in October 2012, then Deputy Commissioner David Aguilar directed CBP to undertake a comprehensive review of CBPs use of force policy and execution. This review process included an internal review by CBPs Use of Force Policy Division, and an external, independent review by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), a non-profit police research organization that provides management services and technical assistance to support law enforcement agencies. Concurrently, while the CBP and PERF reviews were on-going, the Department of Homeland Securitys Office of the Inspector General also conducted a review of the CBP use of force program. The recommendations from these three reviews called for enhancements to use of force training and tactics, additional tools to provide for better analysis of use of force incidents and trends that will better inform policy decisions, a wider array of equipment options be made available to agents and officers, and improvement in particular areas of operational and tactical posture. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 2014. 117p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 16, 2014 at: http://soboco.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/OC-Signed-UofF_Policy-Handbook-NO-FOUO-May-2014-052814.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://soboco.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/OC-Signed-UofF_Policy-Handbook-NO-FOUO-May-2014-052814.pdf Shelf Number: 132476 Keywords: Border Patrol Border Security (U.S.) Police Use of Force |
Author: American Civil Liberties Union Title: War Comes Home: The Excessive Militarization of American Policing Summary: All across the country, heavily armed SWAT teams are raiding people's homes in the middle of the night, often just to search for drugs. It should enrage us that people have needlessly died during these raids, that pets have been shot, and that homes have been ravaged. Our neighborhoods are not war-zones, and police officers should not be treating us like wartime enemies. Any yet, every year, billions of dollars' worth of military equipment flows from the federal government to state and local police departments. Departments use these wartime weapons in everyday policing, especially to fight the wasteful and failed drug war, which has unfairly targeted people of color. Details: New York: ACLU, 2014. 98p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 10, 2014 at: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/jus14-warcomeshome-report-web-rel1.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/assets/jus14-warcomeshome-report-web-rel1.pdf Shelf Number: 132638 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice RaidsPolice Use of ForcePolicing (U.S.) |
Author: Main, Alexander Title: Still Waiting for Justice: An Assessment of the Honduran Public Ministry's Investigation of the May 11, 2012 Killings in Ahuas, Honduras Summary: On May 11, 2012, a joint Honduran and U.S. counternarcotics operation in the remote Ahuas municipality of northeastern Honduras resulted in the killing of four indigenous villagers with no apparent ties to drug trafficking. The four individuals - a 14-year-old boy, two women and a young man - were traveling in a small passenger boat when they were shot and killed by counternarcotics agents. Three other boat passengers were badly injured. According to Honduran authorities, the operation included 13 Honduran police agents, four State Department helicopters with mounted machine guns, eight U.S. government-contracted pilots and 10 U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents. In February 2013, DEA spokeswoman Dawn Dearden stated that the Honduran investigation of the incident had "concluded that DEA agents did not fire a single round" and that "the conduct of DEA personnel was consistent with current DEA protocols, policies and procedures." Though 58 members of Congress recently requested a U.S. investigation of the Ahuas killings, a State Department spokesperson has said "there will be no separate investigation." In the following issue brief we take a look at how the Honduran Public Ministry's investigation of the incident was conducted and examine the report on the investigation that the Honduran Attorney General (Fiscal general in Spanish) submitted to the State Department. We find that both the investigation and report have serious flaws including major omissions of key testimony and forensic exams, a one-sided description and analysis of events, and "observations" (in lieu of conclusions) that aren't supported by the evidence that is cited. Details: Washington, DC: Center for Economic and Policy Research and Rights Action, 2013. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 6, 2014 at: http://www.cepr.net/documents/publications/honduras-ahuas-2013-04.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Honduras URL: http://www.cepr.net/documents/publications/honduras-ahuas-2013-04.pdf Shelf Number: 132907 Keywords: Drug EnforcementDrug Trafficking (Honduras)HomicidesPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Ramirez, Eugene P. Title: A Report on Body Worn Cameras Summary: Technology is changing the role of law enforcement on a daily basis. The latest technology is having a profound impact on policies and procedures, on weapons systems, and even on how officers perform their daily duties. Yet, even with the latest technology available, the actions and tactics of law enforcement are constantly being criticized by the media and members of the public. Oftentimes juries return large verdicts against law enforcement agencies. However, a new law enforcement tool may actually reduce exposure to litigation and unwarranted citizens' complaints. A new paradigm for law enforcement should be one of accountability and transparency. One current way to assist law enforcement in being more accountable is by requiring officers to use a Body Worn Camera ("Body Cam" or "BWC"). The implementation of Body Cams is currently causing a worldwide debate across groups such as the Police Foundation, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Executive Research Forum and the American Civil Liberties Union. This one aspect of law enforcement is poised to have huge ramifications for how law enforcement interacts with its citizenry. Both law enforcement and local communities stand to benefit from the deployment of BWCs. There is no doubt that policies dealing with BWCs will become living and breathing documents that will evolve as the boundaries of this new technology are pushed. News media are replete with stories, almost on a daily basis, regarding law enforcement agencies across the world that now require an officer to use a BWC. Once again, California leads the way in deploying this new technology to help combat crime and reduce the exposure to litigation. Law enforcement agencies around the world are now delving into using BWCs. The decision to implement the use of body cams is merely an extension of the use of dash-mounted video cameras and audio recorders, both of which have been in use for years. The use of BWCs will prove to be of great value to those agencies who deploy the new technology. However, the decision to deploy BWCs is not without controversy. In the expectation that many agencies will determine that the deployment of BWCs is the right thing to do, this article will review suggested policy language, citing to both a recent PERF Conference and a recently released ACLU study on the use of BWCs. Details: Los Angeles: Manning & Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, Trester LLP, 2014. 23p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 9, 2014 at: http://www.parsac.org/parsac-www/pdf/Bulletins/14-005_Report_BODY_WORN_CAMERAS.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://www.parsac.org/parsac-www/pdf/Bulletins/14-005_Report_BODY_WORN_CAMERAS.pdf Shelf Number: 133179 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCamera TechnologyLaw Enforcement TechnologyPolice TechnologyPolice Use of Force |
Author: White, Michael D. Title: Police Officer Body-Worn Cameras: Assessing the Evidence Summary: Body-worn cameras represent the latest technological innovation for law enforcement. The perceived benefits of these cameras are far-ranging and touch on core elements of the police mission, including enhanced police legitimacy, reduced use of force, and fewer citizen complaints. Criticism of the technology centers on equally important issues, such as violations of citizen and officer privacy, and on enormous investments in terms of cost and resources. Unfortunately, there have been few balanced discussions of body-worn cameras and even fewer empirical studies of the technology in the field. As such, Police Officer Body-Worn Cameras: Assessing the Evidence provides a thorough review of the merits and drawbacks regarding the technology and assesses the available empirical evidence on each of those claims. Overall, this publication articulates the key questions surrounding the technology and provides a framework for informed decision-making regarding adoption and empirical evaluation of body-worn cameras. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, OJP Diagnostic Center, 2014. 60p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 9, 2014 at: https://ojpdiagnosticcenter.org/sites/default/files/spotlight/download/Police%20Officer%20Body-Worn%20Cameras.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://ojpdiagnosticcenter.org/sites/default/files/spotlight/download/Police%20Officer%20Body-Worn%20Cameras.pdf Shelf Number: 133180 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Camera Technology Law Enforcement Technology Police BehaviorPolice LegitimacyPolice Technology Police Use of Force |
Author: Police Foundation Title: Self-awareness to being watched and socially-desirable behavior: A field experiment on the effect of body-worn cameras on police use-of-force Summary: The Rodney King story is a potent reminder about the enormous power that police officers have and how it can sometimes be abused. That was the case of an African-American who was repeatedly beaten by Los Angeles police officers, and was arguably the impetus for the 1992 Los Angeles riots. The King incident signifies just how disproportionate use-of-force could shutter the reputation of the police and lead into social cataclysm. Importantly, there are still somewhat similar cases taking place1, despite efforts to stop such behavior through better training and prosecution of rogue officers. Are these incidents unavoidable? A voluminous body of research across various disciplines has shown that when humans become self-conscious about being watched, they often alter their conduct. Accumulated evidence further suggests that individuals who are aware that they being-observed often embrace submissive or commonly-accepted behavior, particularly when the observer is a rule-enforcing entity. What is less known, however, is what happens when the observer is not a "real person", and whether being videotaped can have an effect on aggression and violence. For instance, would the Rodney King incident be avoided had the officers known that they are being videotaped? Would frequency of police use of force be reduced if all interactions between officers and members of the public were under known electronic surveillance? We have tested whether police body-worn cameras would lead to socially-desirable behavior of the officers who wear them. Individualized HD cameras were "installed" on the officers' uniforms, and systematically-recorded every police-public interaction. We randomly-assigned a year's worth of police shifts into experimental and control shifts within a large randomized-controlled-field-experiment conducted with the Rialto-Police-Department (California). We investigated the extent to which cameras effect human behavior and, specifically, reduce the use of police force. Broadly, we have put to test the implication of self-awareness to being observed on compliance and deterrence theory in real-life settings, and explored the results in the wider context of theory and practice. Details: Washington, DC: Police Foundation, 2013. 14p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 15, 2014 at: http://www.policefoundation.org/sites/g/files/g798246/f/201303/The%20Effect%20of%20Body-Worn%20Cameras%20on%20Police%20Use-of-Force.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://www.policefoundation.org/sites/g/files/g798246/f/201303/The%20Effect%20of%20Body-Worn%20Cameras%20on%20Police%20Use-of-Force.pdf Shelf Number: 133308 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Camera Technology Law Enforcement Technology Police AccountabilityPolice Technology Police Use of Force |
Author: Maryland. Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention Title: FIRST REPORT TO THE STATE OF MARYLAND Under Public Safety Article S3-508: 2012 Electronic Control Device (ECD) Discharges Analysis Summary: On April 12, 2011 Governor O'Malley signed into law Senate Bill 652/House Bill 507, which was subsequently enacted under the Annotated Code of Maryland, Public Safety Article 3-508. This law requires law enforcement agencies that issue Electronic Control Devices (ECDs)1, also known as tasers, to report certain information regarding the use of those devices to the Maryland Statistical Analysis Center (MSAC) located in the Governor's Office of Crime Control & Prevention (GOCCP), under Executive Order 01.01.2007.04. MSAC and the Police and Correctional Training Commissions (PCTC) worked with law enforcement and legal representatives to develop a standardized, efficient, user-friendly format to record and report data required under this law. METHODOLOGY This report represents all ECD discharges by law enforcement during the 2012 calendar year that were reported to MSAC. The law requires the submission of annual ECD data to MSAC by March 31st of the following year. All data sets were received in an excel format, as required, and later combined, merged, standardized, and analyzed using IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) Statistics version 21.0 to formulate this report. IBM SPSS Statistics version 21.0 is a system package widely accepted and used by researchers and social scientists. For the purpose of this report, an ECD discharge means an ECD was fired at a person; it does not include an ECD that was fired during a training exercise. Also, accidental discharges, as well as an ECD fired at an animal, are not included in the report. Law enforcement agencies were required to electronically submit verification to MSAC regardless of whether the agency issued ECDs to its officers. MSAC received 100% compliance from all law enforcement agencies that were required to report. Law enforcement agencies that issued and used ECDs reported the following data: The number of times an ECD was discharged by the agency in the past year; The time, date, and location (zip code) of the discharge; The type of incident (e.g. non-criminal, criminal, or traffic stop) in which the person against whom the ECD was discharged was involved prior to the discharge; The reason for each discharge (e.g. non-threatening non-compliance, threat of force, and use of force); The type of mode used (e.g. probe, drive stun, or both) of the discharge; The number of ECD cycles, the duration of each cycle, and the duration between cycles of the discharge; The point of impact of each discharge (e.g., arm, back torso, buttocks, front torso, groin/hip, head, leg, neck, side, clothing, or miss); The race, gender, and age, of each person against whom the ECD was discharged; The type of weapon (e.g., firearm, edged, blunt force, or other), if any, possessed by the person against whom the ECD was discharged, and the threat of any weapon; Any injury or death resulting from the discharge other than punctures or lacerations caused by the ECD contact or the removal of ECD probes; and The type of medical care, if any, provided to the person against whom the ECD was discharged, other than the treatment for punctures or lacerations caused by the ECD contact or the removal of ECD probes. Details: Baltimore: Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention, 2013. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 23, 2014 at: http://www.jrsa.org/sac-spotlight/maryland/ecd-Data-2012.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://www.jrsa.org/sac-spotlight/maryland/ecd-Data-2012.pdf Shelf Number: 133400 Keywords: Electronic Control Devices (Maryland)Police Use of ForceStun GunsTaser |
Author: Gostomski, Amira Title: Vancouver Police Department: police officers' assessment of the effectiveness of the Crisis Intervention Training Program and its impact on their attitudes towards their interactions with persons living with serious mental illness Summary: The purpose of this research was to examine the effectiveness of the Vancouver Police Department's (VPD) Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) course in equipping police personnel with the knowledge and skills to effectively intervene with mental health consumers by encouraging non-violent, non-lethal crisis intervention and the minimal use of force. This study examined 83 (n=83) course evaluation questionnaires completed by the recipients of the CIT course at the VPD, statistical data from the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner (OPPC), and coroner's and media reports of deaths involving the mentally ill that resulted from police encounters. The analysis of the feedback from the CIT course participants revealed their enhanced awareness and knowledge about mental illness as well as an increased confidence in the disposition of skills and techniques learned during the training. The OPCC statistical data indicated a reduced number of complaints filed against the VPD; however no definite conclusions could have been drawn from this data. The analysis of deaths of the mentally ill killed by VPD officers did not reveal a specific trend after the enactment of the CIT course. Results of the study highlighted the necessity for the adoption of the VPD's CIT course model by all of the police departments in the province. Further recommendations for collaboration between law enforcement agencies in the province, mental health resources, and the implementation of various policies related to the CIT course were addressed. Details: Burnaby, BC, Canada: Simon Fraser University, 2012. 104p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed October 15, 2014 at: http://summit.sfu.ca/item/12182 Year: 2012 Country: Canada URL: http://summit.sfu.ca/item/12182 Shelf Number: 133924 Keywords: Crisis InterventionMentally Ill PersonsPolice Crisis Training (Canada)Police Education and TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Peters, Danya J. Title: Public Acquiescence of Police Brutality and Extrajudicial Killings in Sao Paulo, Brazil Summary: The purpose of the current research was to take a social psychological approach to understanding public acquiescence and support for extra legal police violence in Brazil. Data were drawn from research conducted by NEV- CEPID/FAPESP. The sample consisted of 1000 youth and adults age 16 and greater in the city of Sao Paulo who were representative of the general population based on sex, age, education level, occupation, and geographic area (with an oversampling of people from violent neighborhoods). T-tests and ANOVA techniques were utilized to explore group differences in support for citizen and police extra-legal violence based on race, social class, and gender. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was then used to estimate a mediational model of the relationships between environmental influences (direct and indirect victimization, as well as the presence of neighborhood incivilities), general justice related judgments and paradigms (the justice system as inefficient and ineffective, the traditional human rights paradigm, and the emerging human rights paradigm) and support for specific kinds of extra legal violence (support for citizen vigilante justice, support for procedural violence by the police, and support for retributive violence by the police). As hypothesized, direct victimization, indirect victimization, and neighborhood incivilities were all positively associated with fear of crime. In turn, fear of crime was negatively associated with adopting the emerging human rights paradigm and positively associated with viewing the justice system as inefficient and ineffective. Unexpectedly, fear of crime was not associated with a more traditional human rights paradigm. However, the emerging human rights paradigm was negatively associated with support for citizen vigilante justice, as well as support for procedural and retributive violence by the police. Conversely, the traditional human rights paradigm was positively associated with support for all three types of violence. Furthermore, viewing the justice system as inefficient and ineffective was positively associated with support for citizen vigilant justice and retributive violence, but, unexpectedly, was not related to support for procedural violence. Theoretical implications of the results are discussed. Details: Reno, NV: University of Nevada, Reno, 2006. 125p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed November 21, 2014 at: http://www.nevusp.org/downloads/down159.pdf Year: 2006 Country: Brazil URL: http://www.nevusp.org/downloads/down159.pdf Shelf Number: 134184 Keywords: Extrajudicial HomicidesHomicidesPolice Brutality (Brazil)Police MisconductPolice Use of ForceUrban AreasVigilantismViolence |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Operation Likofi: Police Killings and Enforced Disappearances in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo Summary: On November 15, 2013, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo launched "Operation Likofi," a police operation in Congo's capital, Kinshasa, aimed at ending crime by members of organized criminal gangs known as "kuluna." Gen. Celestin Kanyama, currently the police commissioner for all of Kinshasa, was the primary commander of the operation. Over the course of three months, police officers who participated in the operation extrajudicially executed at least 51 young men and teenage boys and forcibly disappeared 33 others. In raids across the city, police in uniform, often with black masks covering their faces, and with no arrest warrants, dragged suspected kuluna at gunpoint out of their homes at night. In many cases, the police shot and killed the unarmed youth outside their homes, while others were apprehended and executed in the open markets where they slept or worked or in nearby fields or empty lots. Many others were taken to unknown locations and forcibly disappeared. Police warned family members and witnesses not to speak out about what happened, denied them access to their relatives' bodies and prevented them from holding funerals. Congolese journalists were threatened when they attempted to document or broadcast information about Operation Likofi killings. Operation Likofi: Police Killings and Enforced Disappearances in Kinshasa is based on interviews conducted in Kinshasa with over 100 witnesses to abuses, family members of victims, police officers who participated in Operation Likofi, government officials, and others. Human Rights Watch calls on the Congolese government to hold those responsible for these abuses to account. General Kanyama should be suspended immediately pending a judicial investigation. The government should also provide information to family members on the fate or whereabouts of the victims. Details: Hew York: HRW, 2014. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 15, 2015 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/drc1114_forUpload_0.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/drc1114_forUpload_0.pdf Shelf Number: 134403 Keywords: DisappearancesGangsHomicidesOrganized CrimePolice Brutality (Congo, Democratic Republic)Police MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: ODS Consulting Title: Flexible Research Contract: Evaluation in the Community Safety Unit. Body Worn Video Projects in Paisley and Aberdeen: Self Evaluation Summary: 1.1 Body worn video (BWV) camera systems are now used by a significant number of police forces and warden services across the UK. In 2010 they were being used in more than 40 police force areas. The systems are hands free and provide video and audio recording which are time and date stamped. They make it possible to record offences and to capture evidence. 1.2 In Renfrewshire, body worn video cameras were trialled (using just three head mounted cameras) in 2006/07. A larger scale approach (using 38 cameras) was introduced in June 2009 and is still in operation. This programme was reviewed by Strathclyde Police after the first eight months of operation (June 2009-January 2010).1 1.3 In Aberdeen, a pilot programme using body worn videos started in June 2010. This was reviewed after three months of operation.2 Since the review, the programme has been extended. 1.4 Those involved in the two areas (Strathclyde Police; Renfrewshire Council Environmental Warden Service; and Grampian Police) sought support to assist them to scope and evaluate the business benefits of using body worn video cameras. 1.5 They applied to the Scottish Government‟s Community Safety Unit for evaluation support from their Evaluation Support Framework Contract. The application was successful and the Community Safety Unit appointed ODS Consulting to provide an agreed modest level of evaluation support. 1.6 The evaluation work was overseen by a Project Board, made up of senior staff from Strathclyde Police, Grampian Police and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. A Project Team, including operational staff from each of these organisations and from Renfrewshire Council, led in the evidence gathering to support the evaluation. 1.7 The evaluation draws together information from the previous reviews which have been undertaken; information produced in Scottish Government reports; fresh information gathered in each area; and information from the Criminal Justice Board‟s Management Information System. Details: Glasgow: ODS Consulting, 2011. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 15, 2015 at: http://www.bwvsg.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/BWV-Scottish-Report.pdf Year: 2011 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.bwvsg.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/BWV-Scottish-Report.pdf Shelf Number: 134405 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras (Scotland)Camera Technology Law Enforcement Technology Police Technology Police Use of Force Video Cameras |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Summary: "No answers, no apology" was how a mother described the response of the police in Malaysia to her inquiries about her son who was shot to death by police officers. Her experience is echoed by many other families whose relatives have been killed or injured by the Malaysian police. Based on in-depth interviews in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, and in Selangor, Johor, Kelantan, and Perak, this report documents failures by Malaysian authorities to adequately investigate allegations of deaths and mistreatment of persons in police custody, unjustified shootings, and excessive use of force in dispersing peaceful public demonstrations. There is typically no meaningful accountability for the police officers and officials implicated in such abuses. The police do not effectively investigate allegations of misconduct and the government has shown no inclination to ensure they do so. This impunity is facilitated by the lack of a robust, independent oversight body focused specifically on police accountability, and the police force's poor record of cooperation with existing oversight bodies, including the national human rights commission, SUHAKAM. Police secrecy about internal policies, such as standing orders on the use of force and firearms, further frustrates external investigations. Police need to be accountable to the public and should demonstrate that their policies and practices conform to international human rights standards. External pressure and oversight are important in improving accountability, and police leadership and effective supervision are critical to preventing abuse and misconduct. Human Rights Watch recommends that the Malaysian government create an independent, external commission tasked solely to receive and investigate complaints about police misconduct and abuse. Police authorities should establish an ombudsman's office empowered to receive and follow up on complaints of police abuse and take disciplinary action against officers. Those authorities should also share internal police standing orders with external oversight bodies and reform those orders to bring them into compliance with international human rights standards. Details: New York: HRW, 2014. 128p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 22, 2015 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/malaysia0414_ForUpload.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Malaysia URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/malaysia0414_ForUpload.pdf Shelf Number: 134443 Keywords: Human Rights Abuses (Malaysia)Police AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice InvestigationsPolice LegitimacyPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Starr, Sonja B. Title: Explaining Race Gaps in Policing: Normative and Empirical Challenges Summary: This piece explores the many kinds of quantitative claims that researchers and commentators regularly make about race and policing. Everyone agrees that there are enormous racial gaps in U.S. rates of stops, arrests, searches, and use of force. But there are dramatically conflicting claims as to why. Policing is hard to study, but the problem isn't just the data shortcomings with which the literature has long struggled. It's confusion about what questions we should be asking. Different kinds of numerical comparisons and research designs often imply sharply differing conceptions of what racial equality in policing means. These normative premises often go unstated, such that readers may easily miss these differences. The overarching objective of this Article is to highlight the connection between the normative and the empirical. I identify plausible conceptions of racial equality in policing and assess which empirical methods can best test those conceptions. The Article gives particular attention to how researchers should address two important research questions. The first is whether criminal conduct differences explain policing disparities. Empirical researchers as well as casual commentators typically purport to address this question either by comparing racial groups' shares of police interactions to their shares of crime, or by comparing two groups' ratio of police interactions to their ratio of crimes. Using examples and mathematical proofs, I show that neither of these comparison types answers the key question whether people with like criminal conduct are being treated the same way. These comparisons generally over-correct for racial differences in criminal conduct, misleadingly masking the size (or even reversing the apparent direction) of disparities in policing of people with the same conduct. Second, I examine how researchers should investigate the effects of racial discrimination - a morally important and legally central question, but one that poses serious causal inference challenges. I review several methods in the current literature, which offer useful insights but have substantial limitations, and critique the recently dominant "hit-rate" approach, which relies on faulty normative and empirical premises. Instead, I propose supplementing existing tools with a new approach: the use of "testers." Details: Unpublished Paper, 2015. 59p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 28, 2015 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2550032 Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2550032 Shelf Number: 134483 Keywords: Police Use of ForceRacial DisparitiesRacial Profiling (U.S.)Stop and Search |
Author: Athwal, Harmit, Bourne, Jenny Title: Dying for Justice Summary: Dying for Justice which gives the background on 509 people (an average of twenty-two per year) from BAME, refugee and migrant communities who have died between 1991-2014 in suspicious circumstances in which the police, prison authorities or immigration detention officers have been implicated. It concludes that: - a large proportion of these deaths have involved undue force and many more a culpable lack of care; - despite critical narrative verdicts warning of dangerous procedures and the proliferation of guidelines, lessons are not being learnt; people die in similar ways year on year; - although inquest juries have delivered verdicts of unlawful killing in at least twelve cases, no one has been convicted for their part in these deaths over the two and a half decades of the research; - privatisation and sub-contracting of custodial, health and other services compounds concerns and makes it harder to call agencies to account; - Family and community campaigns have been crucial in bringing about any change in institutions and procedures Details: London: Institute for Race Relations, 2015. 90p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 26, 2015 at: http://www.irr.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Dying_for_Justice_web.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.irr.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Dying_for_Justice_web.pdf Shelf Number: 135063 Keywords: Deaths in CustodyImmigrant DetentionMigrantsPolice Use of ForcePrisoners, Foreign (U.K.)Refugees |
Author: Coldren, James R. Chip, Jr. Title: CNA Out Front: Using Analysis for Police Organizational Transformation -- Issues for Police Conduct Summary: Policing in America is undergoing a radical transformation, based largely on the visions for change found in the Attorney Generals Smart Justice campaign and the Bureau of Justice Assistance Smart Policing Initiative. In addition, there is a stronger than ever push to integrate research and analysis into police operations and police decision making --- evidence-based policing. Still, reform in policing faces daunting challenges. Foremost among these challenges are the strained relations between police and communities of color, which can become volatile after the use of deadly use of force by police officers. Under it all, policing in America is based on trust between police and the communities they serve. When that trust is breached, policing becomes enormously challenging and social order is threatened. Based on its work with a number of police agencies across the country regarding innovation in policing, use of force assessment and reform, and after-action analyses of critical incidents, CNA believes that a focus on constitutional policing in academic and practitioner communities will further the progress that is underway in evidence-based policing. As part of its ongoing efforts to stimulate reform-minded dialogue around current issues in policing, CNA convened an Executive Session on September 7, 2014, to share information about the evolving practice-based research methodologies used to examine police conduct issues. Using data driven approaches to address police conduct concerns is a relatively new phenomenon. Too often, solutions to these challenges have lacked an empirical basis and are generally derived from the opinions of a range of police leaders and subject matter experts. Details: Arlington, VA: CNA Analysis & Solutions, 2014. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 21, 2015 at: https://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/CIM-2014-U-008848.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: https://www.cna.org/sites/default/files/research/CIM-2014-U-008848.pdf Shelf Number: 135327 Keywords: Evidence-Based Practices Police Behavior (U.S.) Police Discretion Police Misconduct Police Reform Police Use of Force |
Author: Amnesty International Title: The Human Rights Impact of Less Lethal Weapons and Other Law Enforcement Equipment Summary: Law enforcement agencies around the world regularly misuse so-called "less-lethal" weapons and equipment for torture and their use can also have deadly consequences, Amnesty International and the Omega Research Foundation said as they launched a new briefing at the United Nations Crime Congress in Doha, Qatar. The Human Rights Impact of Less Lethal Weapons and Other Law Enforcement Equipment details the medical and other risks associated with a wide range of weaponry and equipment used in policing, including crowd control during demonstrations, as well as in prisons. And it recommends stricter controls or, in some cases, bans to stem future abuses. Amnesty International and Omega acknowledge the importance of developing less-lethal weapons, equipment and technologies, to reduce the risk of death or injury inherent in police use of firearms and other existing weapons. When used responsibly by well-trained and fully accountable law enforcement officials, less-lethal weapons can prevent and minimize deaths and injuries to assailants, suspects and detainees, as well as protect the police and prison officers themselves. But such equipment can have damaging and even deadly effects if it is not used in compliance with international human rights law and standards. It can also have a particularly harmful impact on some people, including the elderly, children, and pregnant women, or those with compromised health. Amnesty International has documented how law enforcement officials commit a wide range of human rights violations using such equipment - including torture and other ill-treatment in custody, as well as excessive, arbitrary and unnecessary use of force against demonstrators. The briefing covers five categories of equipment: Restraints: thumb cuffs, fixed cuffs, leg irons and restraint chairs; Kinetic impact devices: police batons and other striking weapons, spiked batons and kinetic impact projectiles including plastic bullets, rubber bullets, baton rounds and bean bag projectiles; Riot control agents: chemical irritants such as tear gas and pepper spray, including those dispensed from fixed installation dispensers; Electric shock devices: Tasers and other projectile electric shock devices, stun batons, stun shields and body-worn electric shock equipment such as stun belts; Acoustic devices and other technologies used to disperse crowds: audible sound wave technology that emits a deterrent noise, as well as water cannon. In cases where the items have a legitimate use, the organizations recommend controls to prevent their misuse. In the case of new technology which is not yet adequately tested, suspension pending further research by independent experts is recommended. Lastly, the organizations call for prohibitions on equipment which has no legitimate purpose which cannot be achieved by safer alternatives. Less-lethal weapons and restraints have developed considerably since the adoption of some international human rights standards relevant to law enforcement. For example, since the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms were adopted in 1990, a range of ever more advanced weaponry and other technologies have come into use by law enforcement agencies around the world. With the exception of the USA and the European Union, the trade in security and law enforcement equipment is either unregulated or subject to laxer restrictions than the trade in conventional weapons. Amnesty International and Omega are calling for stricter controls, including a licensing system for transfers of law enforcement equipment to safeguard against its potential abuse by the end user. Details: London: AI, 2015. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 23, 2015 at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/human_rights_impact_less_lethal_weapons_doha_paper.pdf Year: 2015 Country: International URL: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/human_rights_impact_less_lethal_weapons_doha_paper.pdf Shelf Number: 135374 Keywords: Crowd ControlPolice Use of ForcePolice WeaponsTasers |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Tiger Chairs and Cell Bosses: Police Torture of Criminal Suspents in China Summary: After cases of police brutality against criminal suspects emerged in 2009 and 2010, China's government announced new measures to curb torture and wrongful convictions. These included restrictions on the conduct of interrogations and prohibitions on using detainee "cell bosses" to oversee other detainees. The Ministry of Public Security claims that the use of coerced confessions has dropped significantly as a result of the reforms. Tiger Chairs and Cell Bosses- based primarily on an analysis of hundreds of newly published court decisions and interviews with recent detainees, family members, lawyers, and former officials-finds that the measures adopted between 2009 and 2013 have not gone nearly far enough to fully address abusive interrogations. Some police officers deliberately thwart the new protections by taking detainees from official detention facilities or by using torture methods that leave no visible injuries. Procurators and judges may ignore clear evidence of mistreatment, rendering China's new "exclusionary rule" - which prohibits the use of evidence directly obtained through torture - of little benefit. Police torture of suspects in pre-trial detention remains a serious concern. Former detainees described physical and psychological torture, including being forced to spend days shackled to a "tiger chair," hung by the wrists, and deprived of sleep for prolonged periods. While measures adopted since 2009 appear to have reduced certain abuses, they are being grafted onto a criminal justice system that still offers police numerous opportunities to abuse suspects and affords the police enormous power to resist any judicial supervision. Absent more fundamental reforms in the Chinese criminal justice system that empower defense lawyers, the judiciary, and independent monitors, the elimination of routine torture and ill-treatment is unlikely. Details: New York: HRW, 2015. 143p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 13, 2015 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/china0515_ForUpload.pdf Year: 2015 Country: China URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/china0515_ForUpload.pdf Shelf Number: 135632 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePrisoner AbusePrisonersTorture |
Author: South African Institute of Race Relations Title: Broken Blue Line 2: The Involvement of the South African Police Service in Serious and Violent Crime in South Africa Summary: This is the second report of the Broken Blue Line project - the first having been published by the IRR in 2011. As in 2011 this 2015 report examines the extent to which the police are involved in perpetrating criminal violence. There should be no need for such a report as the police should be our primary line of defence against criminal violence. However, as you will read, in too many cases that line of defence has broken down and the supposed defenders have become perpetrators. As long as the police service remains a home to violent criminals it is very unlikely that South Africa will experience a sustained and significant decline in serious and violent crime. It is essential therefore that pressure be brought to bear on political authorities to take police criminality seriously and deal with it effectively. Creating such pressure is also one of the most effective means by which South Africa can support the efforts of hard working and committed members of the police service. Details: Johannesburg: IRR, 2015. 29p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 20, 2015 at: http://irr.org.za/reports-and-publications/occasional-reports/files/broken-blue-line-2-february-2015.pdf Year: 2015 Country: South Africa URL: http://irr.org.za/reports-and-publications/occasional-reports/files/broken-blue-line-2-february-2015.pdf Shelf Number: 135732 Keywords: Police CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: Use of Force Policy and Practices Study for Cleveland Division of Police Summary: The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) was retained by the Cleveland Division of Police (CDP) to conduct a comprehensive review of the Division's policies and practices related to the use of force. This study was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, PERF subject matter experts reviewed all of the Division's written policies and procedures related to the use of force, recommended changes where appropriate, and then evaluated policy changes made by the Division. The purpose of the review was to recommend that the Division implement use of force policies and procedures that were in line with current best practices. The following policies were designated by the Police Division for PERF review: - Standard Operating Procedure Manual: The Use of Deadly Force Investigation Team (UDFIT Manual) - GPO 1.1.22 Deadly Force Investigation Team (UDFIT) - GPO 1.3.16 Integrity Control Section Call-up Teams - GPO 2.1.01 Use of Force - GPO 2.1.02 Beanbag Shotguns - GPO 2.1.03 Firearm Discharge Investigations - GPO 2.1.04 Animal Incidents - GPO 2.1.05 Weapon Clearing Trap (Device used to safely clear weapons). - GPO 2.1.06 Taser - Electronic Control Device (ECD) The policy review and development process was conducted over a period beginning in January 2012 and concluding in September 2012. Working meetings were held with CDP officials to review existing policies, deliberate on potential use of force policy changes, review and discuss PERF's recommended changes, then review and formalize policy changes made by the CDP. The second phase of the study, which began in September of 2012, evaluated how the Division currently manages department processes that affect use of force practices, and the extent to which CDP has implemented use of force policies, procedures, directives and training. During this phase, PERF staff met with members of the CDP; subject matter experts evaluated the Division's use of force training, reporting, supervision, and investigations; and national law enforcement leaders facing similar challenges as in Cleveland were brought in to provide consultation for the Mayor and key appointees and the command staff of the Cleveland Division of Police. PERF's findings and recommendations are described in this report. The intended outcome of the study is to provide the Division with a roadmap to evaluate and strengthen (where necessary) how the Division controls and manages the use of force by officers. PERF performed the following tasks for the collection of information related to CDP's use of force issues: 1. An examination of existing policies related to police use of force. 2. Use of the following policy modification process - PERF made recommendations to revise existing use of force policies; those recommendations were reviewed by the CDP; the Division revised policies as they deemed appropriate; PERF performed a second review and commented on the modified policies; all input was used by the CDP to finalize changes to policies. 3. A review of a sample of use of use of force reports filed by Cleveland police officers. 4. An examination of a sample of internal investigation reports regarding the use of force. 5. Interviews with supervisory and command level personnel regarding use of force training, reporting, supervision, investigations and aftercare. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2013. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed May 26, 2015 at: http://archive.wkyc.com/assetpool/documents/130828031751_Use%20of%20Force%20Report.pdf Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://archive.wkyc.com/assetpool/documents/130828031751_Use%20of%20Force%20Report.pdf Shelf Number: 129787 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice MisconductPolice Policies and PracticesPolice Use of Force |
Author: Croslin, Chike Title: Independent Lens: Toward Transparency, Accountability, and Effectiveness in Police Tactics, Summary: Mandating that police wear body-worn cameras can help to improve relations between police and communities, and ensure greater accountability for police actions. But these requirements must be carefully and thoughtfully implemented within a much wider set of policy and practical policing reforms. These are the conclusions drawn from a new report released by the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice titled Independent Lens: Toward Transparency, Accountability, and Effectiveness in Police Tactics, that explores the potential and limitations of body-worn cameras for police. Recent police shootings of unarmed civilians, incidents of police misconduct, high levels of complaints against police, and costly settlements have highlighted the divisions that exist between police and residents, and the lack of trust that frequently exists between police and the communities they serve, particularly communities of color. In response, many are calling for new laws to require police officers to wear body-worn cameras to record their interactions with the public. Because this technology is relatively new and still largely untested, there exist myriad questions about the legality, usefulness, and effectiveness of such requirements" Independent Lens takes a close look at these questions, and concludes that body-worn cameras, when appropriately integrated into existing police practices and supported by a detailed regulatory architecture, can be a key tool for reinvigorating community policing and reducing costs stemming from complaints, litigation, and settlements." However, the report also cautions policymakers of the limitations of body-worn camera technology. Such devices do not address the need for deeper reforms within police departments, such as additional training of police officers, greater monitoring of the effects of implicit racial bias, and shifts in agency incentive structures away from arrests and toward greater public safety. Details: Cambridge, MA: Harvard Black Law Students Association, 2015. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 15, 2015 at: http://www.charleshamiltonhouston.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Independent-Lens-Cvr-Guts.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.charleshamiltonhouston.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Independent-Lens-Cvr-Guts.pdf Shelf Number: 136073 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasPolice LegitimacyPolice MisconductPolice Policies and PracticesPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community Relations |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice Title: Department of Justice Report Regarding the Criminal Investigation into the Shooting Death of Michael Brown by Ferguson, Missouri Police Officer Darren Wilson Summary: At approximately noon on Saturday, August 9, 2014, Officer Darren Wilson of the Ferguson Police Department (FPD) shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old. The Criminal Section of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (collectively, The Department) subsequently opened a criminal investigation into whether the shooting violated federal law. The Department has determined that the evidence does not support charging a violation of federal law. This memorandum details the Department's investigation, findings, and conclusions. Part I provides an introduction and overview. Part II summarizes the federal investigation and the evidence uncovered during the course of the investigation, and discusses the applicable federal criminal civil rights law and standards of federal prosecution. Part III provides a more in-depth summary of the evidence. Finally, Part IV provides a detailed legal analysis of the evidence and explains why the evidence does not support an indictment of Darren Wilson. The Department conducted an extensive investigation into the shooting of Michael Brown. Federal authorities reviewed physical, ballistic, forensic, and crime scene evidence; medical reports and autopsy reports, including an independent autopsy performed by the United States Department of Defense Armed Forces Medical Examiner Service (AFMES); Wilson's personnel records; audio and video recordings; and internet postings. FBI agents, St. Louis County Police Department (SLCPD) detectives, and federal prosecutors and prosecutors from the St. Louis County Prosecutor's Office (county prosecutors) worked cooperatively to both independently and jointly interview more than 100 purported eyewitnesses and other individuals claiming to have relevant information. SLCPD detectives conducted an initial canvass of the area on the day of the shooting. FBI agents then independently canvassed more than 300 residences to locate and interview additional witnesses. Federal and local authorities collected cellular phone data, searched social media sites, and tracked down dozens of leads from community members and dedicated law enforcement email addresses and tip lines in an effort to investigate every possible source of information. The principles of federal prosecution, set forth in the United States Attorneys' Manual (USAM), require federal prosecutors to meet two standards in order to seek an indictment. First, we must be convinced that the potential defendant committed a federal crime. See USAM 9-27.220 (a federal prosecution should be commenced only when an attorney for the government believes that the person's conduct constitutes a federal offense). Second, we must also conclude that we would be likely to prevail at trial, where we must prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. See USAM 9-27.220 (a federal prosecution should be commenced only when the admissible evidence will probably be sufficient to sustain a conviction); Fed R. Crim P. 29(a)(prosecution must present evidence sufficient to sustain a conviction). Taken together, these standards require the Department to be convinced both that a federal crime occurred and that it can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. In order to make the proper assessment under these standards, federal prosecutors evaluated physical, forensic, and potential testimonial evidence in the form of witness accounts. As detailed below, the physical and forensic evidence provided federal prosecutors with a benchmark against which to measure the credibility of each witness account, including that of Darren Wilson. We compared individual witness accounts to the physical and forensic evidence, to other credible witness accounts, and to each witness's own prior statements made throughout the investigations, including the proceedings before the St. Louis County grand jury (county grand jury). We worked with federal and local law enforcement officers to interview witnesses, to include re-interviewing certain witnesses in an effort to evaluate inconsistencies in their accounts and to obtain more detailed information. In so doing, we assessed the witnesses' demeanor, tone, bias, and ability to accurately perceive or recall the events of August 9, 2014. We credited and determined that a jury would appropriately credit those witnesses whose accounts were consistent with the physical evidence and consistent with other credible witness accounts. In the case of witnesses who made multiple statements, we compared those statements to determine whether they were materially consistent with each other and considered the timing and circumstances under which the witnesses gave the statements. We did not credit and determined that a jury appropriately would not credit those witness accounts that were contrary to the physical and forensic evidence, significantly inconsistent with other credible witness accounts, or significantly inconsistent with that witness's own prior statements. Based on this investigation, the Department has concluded that Darren Wilson's actions do not constitute prosecutable violations under the applicable federal criminal civil rights statute, 18 U.S.C. 242, which prohibits uses of deadly force that are 'objectively unreasonable,' as defined by the United States Supreme Court. The evidence, when viewed as a whole, does not support the conclusion that Wilson's uses of deadly force were 'objectively unreasonable' under the Supreme Court's definition. Accordingly, under the governing federal law and relevant standards set forth in the USAM, it is not appropriate to present this matter to a federal grand jury for indictment, and it should therefore be closed without prosecution. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 2015. 86p. Source: Internet Resource: Memorandum: Accessed August 17, 2015 at: http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/doj_report_on_shooting_of_michael_brown_1.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/doj_report_on_shooting_of_michael_brown_1.pdf Shelf Number: 136435 Keywords: Criminal InvestigationDeadly ForcePolice BehaviorPolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: Re-Engineering Training On Police Use of Force Summary: Over the past year, the policing profession has been shaken by controversies over the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, Antonio Zambrano-Montes, and many others. I don't know anyone who would dispute that the reputation of American policing has suffered from these incidents. At times, it has seemed like every time you turn on the TV, you see another story about the police that hits you like a punch to the stomach. PERF's Board of Directors was quick to realize that the rioting last summer in Ferguson was not a story that would fade away quickly, and we decided to hold a national conference in Chicago about the implications of Ferguson for policing. That meeting, held on September 16-17, just five weeks after the Ferguson incident, was written up in "Defining Moments for Police Chiefs," our last Critical Issues in Policing report. One of the key issues we discussed that day in Chicago was the need to rethink the training that police officers receive on de-escalation strategies and tactics. As we look back at the most controversial police shooting incidents, we sometimes find that while the shooting may be legally justified, there were missed opportunities to ratchet down the encounter, to slow things down, to call in additional resources, in the minutes before the shooting occurred. It became clear that this issue of de-escalation was one of many ways in which the training of police officers can be improved. Our goal is to give police officers better tools for avoiding unnecessary uses of force, particularly deadly force. So we began planning for another national research project and conference, titled "Re-Engineering Use of Force." This report is the result of this project. You will see that this report, like others in the Critical Issues series, consists largely of the discussions by participants at our May 7, 2015 conference. Nearly 300 police chiefs and other law enforcement executives, federal government officials, academics, and representatives from policing agencies in the UK came together in Washington to share their views on what should be included in new approaches to training on use of force. We also fielded a survey of police agencies on their use-of-force training, reviewed research, and sent PERF staff to Scotland to observe their training firsthand. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2015. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Critical Issues in Policing Series: Accessed August 20, 2015 at: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/reengineeringtraining.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/reengineeringtraining.pdf Shelf Number: 136502 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice DiscretionPolice TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: An Integrated Approach to De-Escalation and minimizing Use of Force Summary: Persons with mental illnesses, drug or alcohol addictions, or disorders such as autism can present police officers with difficult challenges. In some cases, a person may brandish a weapon or otherwise appear to pose a threat to the public, to the police, or to himself or herself. The threat may be a real one, or the situation may be less dangerous that it appears, and often it is difficult to assess the level of danger. These situations often are complicated when, because of their conditions, persons cannot communicate effectively with police officers. In some cases, they may appear to be threatening or uncooperative, when in fact they are unable to understand an officer's questions or orders. Many police agencies have recognized the special challenges they face in dealing with these populations of persons with various conditions, and have undertaken specialized training programs designed to teach officers to understand these situations when they happen, and to make special efforts to de-escalate the situations when that is possible. As one recent news report expressed it, "With that mind-set, the officer can use alternative tactics: words instead of guns, questions instead of orders, patience instead of immediate action. The method may not only defuse a tense situation, authorities say, but [also may] result in treatment at a screening center for the suspect rather than weeks in jail." When police fail to understand that they are dealing with a person with a special condition, the result is sometimes a use of force that may be legally and morally justifiable, especially if the person appeared to be threatening the safety of others, but which produces a very unfortunate outcome-a situation that some observers call "lawful, but awful." For police departments, the challenge is to adopt policies and training programs that are designed to improve the handling of these difficult encounters and reduce the chances of force being used unnecessarily. This report summarizes the findings of PERF research on this topic and presentations made at a PERF Summit in Washington, D.C. in February 2012 on "An Integrated Approach to De-Escalation and Minimizing Use of Force." At this one-day meeting, police chiefs and other experts described their experiences on issues such as the following: - How "slowing the situation down" and getting a supervisor to the scene can reduce the chances of violence; - How Crisis Intervention Teams (CITs) and other partnerships with mental health officials can result in more effective handling of encounters with members of special populations; - Identifying "chronic consumers" of police resources and helping them to avoid crisis situations; - Special considerations in dealing with veterans in crisis; - Avoiding overreliance on weapons, such as Electronic Control Weapons, as opposed to hands-on tactics and verbal skills; - Recognizing the real threats to officers that can be posed by persons with mental illnesses or other conditions, and the anxiety that officers feel about such situations; - Training officers in "tactical disengagement"; - The importance of training for officers in these encounters, and practicing strategies to de-escalate volatile situations; - Use-of-force continuums and other tools for discussing use-of-force options; - The defunding of mental health care, and the "cycling" of mentally ill persons through lockups, jails, and prisons; and - The negative impact on a police agency's "legitimacy" that can occur from a "lawful, but awful" event. As in other reports in the Critical Issues Series, we present the discussions from our meeting in the police chiefs' and other experts' own words, in order to convey their insight and experience. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2012. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: Critical Issues in Policing Series: Accessed August 31, 2015 at: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Critical_Issues_Series/an%20integrated%20approach%20to%20de-escalation%20and%20minimizing%20use%20of%20force%202012.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/docs/Critical_Issues_Series/an%20integrated%20approach%20to%20de-escalation%20and%20minimizing%20use%20of%20force%202012.pdf Shelf Number: 136622 Keywords: Crisis InterventionMentally Ill PersonsPolice DiscretionPolice LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen Interactions |
Author: Wortley, Scot Title: Police Use of Force in Ontario: An Examination of Data from the Special Investigations Unit Summary: Police use of force against racial minorities has emerged as one of the most controversial issues facing the law enforcement community in North America. In the United States, high profile incidents involving police use of force - including the Rodney King, Abner Louima and Amadou Diallo cases - often serve to increase tensions between racial minority communities and the police and solidify the public perception that the police are racially biased (Walker 2005; Walker et al. 2004; Joseph et al. 2003). The negative impact of police violence on community cohesion can be profound. For example, over the past twenty years, specific incidents of police violence against racial minorities have sparked major urban riots in several cities including Miami, Cinncinati and Los Angeles. Police use of force against racial minorities has also emerged as an important issue in Canada. As in the United States, well publicized police shootings in Ontario and Quebec - including the cases of Dudley George, Jeffrey Roedica, Lester Donaldson, Allen Gosset, Sophia Cook, Buddy Evans, Wade Lawson and Marlon Neal - have led to community allegations of police discrimination. Unfortunately, unlike the United States, very little empirical research has actually addressed the question of whether the police are more likely to use physical force against racial minorities than Whites (see discussion in Forcese 1999: 181-184). The following report attempts to address the gap in Canadian research by: 1) Providing a detailed literature review on police use of force against minorities in Canada and the United States; 2) Describing the results of a focus group with leaders from Toronto's Black community on the issue of police use of force; and 3) providing the results of a new study on police use of force in Ontario using data from the province's Special Investigations Unit. The report concludes with a discussion of different explanatory models that might help explain the overrepresentation of African Canadians and Aboriginals in police use of force statistics. Recommendations for reducing the illegitimate use of force by the police are provided. Particular emphasis is placed on reducing police use of force against racial minority communities. Details: Toronto: Centre of Criminology, University of Toronto, 2012. 126p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 31, 2015 at: https://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/inquiries/ipperwash/policy_part/projects/pdf/AfricanCanadianClinicIpperwashProject_SIUStudybyScotWortley.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Canada URL: https://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/inquiries/ipperwash/policy_part/projects/pdf/AfricanCanadianClinicIpperwashProject_SIUStudybyScotWortley.pdf Shelf Number: 136631 Keywords: Deadly ForceMinority GroupsPolice Use of ForceRacial DisparitiesRacial Minorities |
Author: Marin, Andre Title: Oversight Unseen: Investigation into the Special Investigations Unit's operational effectiveness and credibility Summary: Canada received considerable unfavourable international attention last fall when millions witnessed the graphic video images of the last terrifying moments in the life of Robert Dziekanski. After a long and delayed international flight from his native Poland, Mr. Dziekanski arrived at Vancouver Airport, only to spend hours wandering hopelessly, unable to communicate or to obtain the assistance he needed to exit and meet up with his mother. As Mr. Dziekanski became increasingly confused and agitated, RCMP officers arrived and, within minutes, stunned him with a Taser. He was then restrained, and died shortly thereafter. In the aftermath of this tragedy, public accusations were made of cover-up and police using excessive force. People demanded assurance that the truth surrounding his ill-fated encounter with police would be revealed, and many voiced distrust of any investigation that would involve police investigating police. To Ontario's great credit, incidents in this province involving serious injury and death of civilians resulting from police contact are not investigated by police officials, but by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), a civilian criminal investigative agency. Created in 1990, the SIU's existence is a testament to the strength of democratic principles in this province, and the value our government has placed on reinforcing public confidence in policing. Unfortunately, over the past two years, several serious concerns have been raised by individuals, families, lawyers and community advocates who complained to my Office about the credibility and effectiveness of the SIU. As previous independent reviews have documented, the SIU's early history was marked by successive governments failing to provide it with adequate resources, and by police officials aggressively resisting its oversight. While its resources have increased over time, and regulatory requirements now more clearly define police obligations, my investigation found that the Special Investigations Unit continues to struggle to assert its authority, maintain its balance against powerful police interests, and carry out its mandate effectively. The SIU is still very much a fledgling organization. It does not have its own constituting legislation, its mandate lacks clarity, it is administratively and technically challenged and it is dependent on the Ministry of the Attorney General. In turn, the Ministry of the Attorney General has relied on the SIU to soothe police and community sensibilities and to ward off controversy. But in doing so, it performance is subjectively evaluated and rewarded, compromising the SIU's structural integrity and independence. Its credibility as an independent investigative agency is further undermined by the predominant presence and continuing police links of former police officials within the SIU. It is so steeped in police culture that it has, at times, even tolerated the blatant display of police insignia and police affiliation. In addition to lacking the necessary statutory authority to act decisively when police officials fail to comply with regulatory requirements, the SIU often ignores the tools it does have, such as public censure, and adopts an impotent stance in the face of police challenge. Delays in police providing notice of incidents, in disclosing notes, and in submitting to interviews are endemic. Rather than vigorously inquiring into and documenting delays and other evidence of police resistance, the SIU deals with issues of police non-co-operation as isolated incidents. It ignores systemic implications and attempts to solve individual problems through a conciliatory approach. The SIU has not only become complacent about ensuring that police officials follow the rules, it has bought into the fallacious argument that SIU investigations aren't like other criminal cases, and that it is acceptable to treat police witnesses differently from civilians. Police interviews are rarely held within the regulatory time frames, and are all too often postponed - for weeks, sometimes even months. The SIU will not inconvenience officers or police forces by interviewing officers off duty. When it encounters overt resistance from police officials, the SIU pursues a low-key diplomatic approach that flies under the public radar. If disagreement cannot be resolved, the SIU more often than not simply accepts defeat. The SIU also fails to respond to incidents with rigour and urgency - at times inexplicably overlooking the closest investigators, and following routines that result in precious investigative minutes, sometimes hours, being lost. It has become mired in its own internal events, and introspective focus. The SIU's system of oversight is out of balance. It must not only ensure accountability of police conduct, but be perceived by the public as doing so. At present, the public is expected to trust that the SIU conducts thorough and objective investigations and accept that its decisions are well founded when it decides, for example, not to charge officers. But much remains hidden from public view, including Director's reports and significant policy issues. In order to properly serve the function it was created to fulfill, greater transparency is required with respect to the SIU's investigative outcomes, as well as those of the police disciplinary system triggered by SIU investigations. In theory, the SIU is a fundamental pillar of accountability in Ontario. However, the reality is that the SIU is capable of much more than it is achieving at present. It is incumbent on government to provide the agencies it creates with the means to fully accomplish their mandates. The citizens of Ontario are entitled to a Special Investigations Unit with the necessary resources and tools to be the best that it can be. With that in mind, I have made 46 recommendations in this report, addressed at improving the system. The first 25 recommendations focus on the SIU itself. I believe that there is much that the SIU can do on its own to enhance and inject more rigour into its investigative practices, and its response to challenges to its authority. I have also made recommendations to address the issues created by a lingering police culture within the SIU, and to achieve greater transparency. Details: Ottawa: Ombudsman Ontario, 2008. 124p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 5, 2015 at: http://www.siu.on.ca/pdfs/marin_report_2008.pdf Year: 2008 Country: Canada URL: http://www.siu.on.ca/pdfs/marin_report_2008.pdf Shelf Number: 136686 Keywords: Complaints Against the PoliceInvestigationsOmbudsmanPolice AccountabilityPolice BehaviorPolice MisconductPolice OversightPolice Use of Force |
Author: Ferguson Commission Title: Forward through Ferguson: A path toward racial equity Summary: The Ferguson Commission is an independent group appointed by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon on November 18, 2014, to conduct a "thorough, wide-ranging and unflinching study of the social and economic conditions that impede progress, equality and safety in the St. Louis region." The need to address these conditions was underscored by the unrest in the wake of the death of Michael Brown, Jr. in Ferguson on August 9, 2014. The Commission's Charge The Commission, composed of 16 diverse volunteer leaders, was charged with the following: To examine the underlying causes of these conditions, including poverty, education, governance, and law enforcement; To engage with local citizens, area organizations, national thought leaders, institutions, and experts to develop a thorough and comprehensive understanding of the concerns related to these conditions; and To issue an unflinching report containing specific, practical policy recommendations for making the region a stronger, fairer place for everyone to live. This is that report. Details: Ferguson, MO: The Commission, 2015. 198p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 18, 2015 at: https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2413166/fergusoncommissionreport-091415.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2413166/fergusoncommissionreport-091415.pdf Shelf Number: 136831 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePublic SafetyRacial EqualitySocioeconomic Conditions and Crime |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "As Though We Are Not Human Beings": Police Brutality against Migrants and Asylum Seekers in Macedonia Summary: Men, women, and children - many from Syria, Somalia, and Afghanistan - have experienced police violence and inhumane, degrading treatment and arbitrary detention in Macedonia, a key transit country along the Western Balkans migration route into the European Union. Many migrants and asylum seekers have already made an arduous journey, boarding overcrowded vessels to cross the Aegean Sea or making the land border crossings from Turkey to Greece planning to travel onwards to northern EU countries. They typically reached Macedonia after walking for several days, often without enough food, water, or proper clothing. Many apprehended by the police in Macedonia were beaten with police batons, punched, kicked, and verbally insulted. They were either summarily returned to Greece amid more abuse or taken straight to detention where they were held in appalling conditions. As Though We Are Not Human Beings, based on interviews with migrants and asylum seekers, experts, and government officials, documents physical and verbal abuse at the hands of Macedonian officials at the border with Greece and ill-treatment by police guards in the Gazi Baba detention center, including physical and verbal abuse as well as gender-based violence. In addition to ill-treatment in Gazi Baba, the report finds that migrants and asylum seekers have been arbitrarily detained in Macedonia in inhumane and degrading conditions, including overcrowding; insufficient access to food and drinking water; and unhygienic and unsanitary conditions. The report calls on Macedonian authorities to stop police abuse, promptly investigate allegations of ill-treatment, and cease arbitrarily detaining migrants and asylum seekers in degrading conditions. It also calls on the European Union to press Macedonia to improve its treatment of migrants and asylum seekers and to assist with Macedonian authorities to respect the human rights of migrants and asylum seekers present in the country. Details: New York: HRW, 2015. 67p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 25, 2015 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/macedonia0915_4up.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Macedonia URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/macedonia0915_4up.pdf Shelf Number: 136881 Keywords: Asylum SeekersImmigrant DetentionImmigrantsPolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Neuscheler, Jena Title: Report on Electronic Control Weapons (ECWs) Submitted to the City of Berkeley Summary: The SCJC report aims to help the City Council evaluate the potential benefits and consequences of equipping city police with ECWs. The Council's primary concern was the impact of ECW adoption on the safety of police officers and the citizens they protect. The Council also sought information on the acute health effects of ECWs, the legal framework that governs ECW use, and how adoption might impact the city's budget. To answer those questions, we have read and analyzed approximately 150 studies on the public safety impacts of ECW adoption, the physical effects of ECWs on the human body, and the legal ramifications of ECW adoption. We have attempted to rigorously assess each of these studies, critiquing their methodologies and assumptions, as well as considering possible critiques of those critiques. Our goal has been to help identify what is and what is not known about ECW as a law enforcement tool, and to separate well founded claims from those with a weak foundation. The City Council and the SCJC originally planned to survey several nearby jurisdictions in order to examine outcomes following ECW adoption. The goal was to extrapolate from the results of nearby cities, whose demographics and characteristics might be similar to those of Berkeley. As the Center's research continued, however, it became clear that a survey of nearby jurisdictions would not provide meaningful or accurate answers to the most important questions. Many of those questions had been addressed by a vast body of empirical research conducted by teams of medical and social scientists, often with the support of grants from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ). The best studies take years to gather, code, and analyze data, which are subject to statistical controls to help account for the characteristics that make each jurisdiction or subject unique. On the question of whether ECWs help reduce injuries to suspect and police officers, for instance, just one of the two leading datasets includes 24,000 use-of-force records from 12 cities, which were chosen from a nationally representative survey of 1,000 municipal, county, and state law enforcement agencies. In short, attempting to reproduce those inquiries by simply surveying nearby cities would risk capturing information irrelevant to the demographics and dynamics of Berkeley. At the same time, the very familiarity of those nearby cities would make it even easier to draw misleading conclusions. Moreover, for some of the most important questions, even the most sophisticated research had yielded conflicting results. Ultimately, we determined that the best way to help the Berkeley City Council answer these questions was to effectively synthesize this vast literature into an overview of what is known, while setting aside specious or poorly supported claims. Throughout the course of this research, we have learned that some of the most important questions do not have an answer-in some cases, because research is still ongoing; in other cases, because the answers depend on underlying values and beliefs. We believe that identifying and explaining those questions that do not have clear answers is one of the more useful functions of this report. Details: Stanford, CA: Stanford Criminal Justice Center, Stanford law School, 2015. 73p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 26, 2015 at: https://2pe0o743k0s82lo5l6trs9j1-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ECW-Final-Draft-2.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://2pe0o743k0s82lo5l6trs9j1-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ECW-Final-Draft-2.pdf Shelf Number: 137058 Keywords: Electronic Control WeaponsNon-Lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "We Live in Constant Fear": Lack of Accountability for Police Abuse in Sri Lanka Summary: Back Blurb: Police in Sri Lanka regularly use torture and other ill-treatment, including severe beatings, electric shock, and painful stress positions, in violation of domestic and international law. This misuse of force has been applied not only in counter-insurgency cases, but to criminal suspects in custody and to peaceful protesters demonstrating on city streets. Police abuses during routine law enforcement point to an endemic culture of abuse - one not solely linked to the country's civil war that ended in 2009. "We Live in Constant Fear" - Lack of Accountability for Police Abuse in Sri Lanka documents efforts over many years by families to obtain justice for their loved ones who died in police custody as well as very recent cases. The report demonstrates how a pervasive lack of accountability has allowed torture to go unchecked. Procedural safeguards to protect detainees against mistreatment are simply ignored or bypassed. Even when victims later report their cases, the legal system is slow to respond, and tends to show deference to the police. A new government elected in January 2015 has promised major reforms, and there is now an opportunity to rein in police abuse. The government needs to send the message that deviation from legal safeguards will not be tolerated. Human Rights Watch calls on Sri Lankas government to create an independent oversight authority over the police and adopt other concrete steps to reduce rights violations. The government should also amend police rules and manuals to be consistent with international law. Details: New York: HRW, 2015. 67p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 26, 2015 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/srilanka1015_4up_0.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Sri Lanka URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/srilanka1015_4up_0.pdf Shelf Number: 137143 Keywords: Police AbusePolice AccountabilityPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "Like We Are Not Nepali": Protest and Police Crackdown in the Terai Region of Nepal Summary: Starting in late August 2015, protests over Nepal's new constitution in the southern Terai region turned violent, with protesters in some instances attacking defenseless police, and police in many instances using excessive force. Some 45 people were killed. The protesters, from long-marginalized Tharu and Madhesi communities, objected to the proposed new constitution, notably its delineation of federal provinces that many believed would further entrench their marginalization. "Like We Are Not Nepali" documents 25 of the killings, including of 9 police officers and 16 members of the public, in five Terai districts between August 24 and September 11, 2015. Human Rights Watch found no evidence that any of the victims was posing a threat to another at the time he was killed, indicating that the authorities violated international standards on the use of force in policing. Human Rights Watch calls on Nepali officials to ensure that security forces immediately cease the use of disproportionate force against protesters and establish an independent mechanism for investigating the killings. It urges protesters and protest leaders to take all feasible steps to ensure that all protests are peaceful, and fully cooperate with the authorities in ensuring those responsible for serious crimes are brought to justice. All sides to the underlying political dispute, including protesters and the government, should avoid any action which could incite communal tensions. Details: New York: HRW, 2015. 52p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 26, 2015 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/nepal1015_forupload.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Nepal URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/nepal1015_forupload.pdf Shelf Number: 137144 Keywords: Police MisconductPolice Use of ForceProtest Movements |
Author: Thompson II, Richard M. Title: Police Use of Force: Rules, Remedies, and Reforms Summary: Several high-profile police shootings and other law enforcement-related deaths in the United States have sparked intense protests throughout the country and a fierce debate in Congress concerning the appropriate level of force police officers should wield in a society that equally values public safety and the lives of each of its citizens under law. These incidents have been the subject of several congressional hearings, have prompted the introduction of various legislative measures, and have catalyzed a new civil rights movement in the United States aimed at reforming the criminal justice system. Reformers claim that police work too closely with local prosecutors resulting in insufficient oversight and have called for greater involvement by the federal government. The law enforcement community and its supporters have countered that these recent deaths are anomalous in otherwise exemplary police conduct, and that placing the federal government in direct regulation of state and local police would present an unwarranted intrusion into state and local affairs. To provide legal context for this debate, this report will address three overarching questions: (1) what are the constitutional rules governing an officer's use of force; (2) what role has Congress played in providing a remedy for a violation of these rules; and (3) what are the potential reforms to these rules and remedies? Rules. In a line of cases beginning in the mid-1980s, the Supreme Court ruled that all claims of excessive force occurring during an arrest or investigatory stop-deadly or otherwise-are governed by the Fourth Amendment's prohibition against unreasonable seizures. Under prevailing judicial precedent, all uses of force must be "objectively reasonable" based on the totality of the circumstances viewed through the lens of the officer in the field. This requires a fact-intensive inquiry that is not easily reduced to categorical rules, but some general trends can be discerned from the case law. For instance, the courts have been deferential to officers in the field who are required to make split-second decisions in dangerous situations. Also, officers need not use the least intrusive means to effectuate a seizure so long as their actions are reasonable. Remedies. In an effort to provide teeth to federal constitutional restraints, Congress has enacted three federal statutes that accord various remedies for police use of excessive force. First is the federal criminal statute, 18 U.S.C. 242, which prohibits officers from willfully depriving another of a constitutional right while acting under color of law. Enacted shortly after the Civil War, many have argued that Section 242's specific intent mens rea requirement is too high a threshold to provide an adequate deterrence to excessive force. Moreover, the federal circuit courts are split on how to apply this test, with some requiring a strict form of intent and others permitting a reckless disregard jury instruction. Second is the federal civil rights statute, 42 U.S.C. 1983, which provides a civil cause of action for deprivations of one's constitutional rights. While generally viewed as successful in providing monetary damages to those injured by officers in the field, the doctrine of qualified immunity has frequently shielded officers from liability when the law was not "clearly established" at the time. Third is the more recently enacted "pattern or practice" statute, 42 U.S.C. 14141, which authorizes the Attorney General to sue local municipalities whose police forces have engaged in a pattern of excessive force under the Fourth Amendment. Reforms. Various reform bills have been introduced in the 114th Congress to provide additional restraints on police use of force, including the Excessive Use of Force Prevention Act of 2015 (H.R. 2052), which would criminalize the use of chokeholds, and the Police Accountability Act of 2015 (H.R. 1102), which would create a new federal crime for certain homicides committed by law enforcement officers. Additionally, several bills would place requirements on states to report use of force statistics to the federal government. Details: Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 2015. 29p. Source: Internet Resource: R44256: Accessed November 6, 2015 at: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44256.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44256.pdf Shelf Number: 137208 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice Decision MakingPolice DiscretionPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Hyland, Shelley Title: Police Use of Nonfatal Force, 2002-11 Summary: This report presents data on the threat or use of nonfatal force by police against white, black, and Hispanic residents during police contact. This report describes the characteristics of the contact, the type of force threatened or used, and the perceptions that force was excessive or the police behaved properly during the contact. It also examines trends in the threat or use of force and the relationship between officer and driver race and Hispanic origin in traffic stops involving the threat or use of force. Data are from the 2002, 2005, 2008, and 2011 Police-Public Contact Surveys, which were administered as supplements to the National Crime Victimization Survey. Highlights: Across the four PPCS data collections from 2002-11, blacks (3.5%) were more likely to experience nonfatal force during their most recent contact with police than whites (1.4%) and Hispanics (2.1%). A greater percentage of persons who experienced the use of force (44.1%) had two or more contacts with police than those who did not experience force (27.5%). Blacks (13.7%) were at least slightly more likely to experience nonfatal force than whites (6.9%) and Hispanics (5.9%) during street stops. Of those who experienced force during their most recent contact, approximately three-quarters described the verbal (71.4%) or physical (75.0%) force as excessive. Of those who experienced force during their most recent contact, 86.7% did not believe the police behaved properly. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2015. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 16, 2015 at: http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/punf0211.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/punf0211.pdf Shelf Number: 137296 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice DiscretionPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen Contact |
Author: Lum, Cynthia Title: Existing and Ongoing Body Worn Camera Research: Knowledge Gaps and Opportunities Summary: Recent use-of-force events have led law enforcement agencies, citizens, civil rights groups, city councils, and even the President to push for the rapid adoption of body-worn camera (BWC) technology. In a period of less than a year, BWCs transformed from a technology that received little attention by many police leaders and scholars to one that has become rapidly prioritized, funded, and diffused into local policing. At the same time, this rapid adoption of BWCs is occurring within a low information environment; researchers are only beginning to develop knowledge about the effects, both intentional and unintentional, of this technology. Much more research is needed to understand the intended and unintended impacts and consequences of cameras. Details: Fairfax, VA: Center for Evidence-Based Crime policy, George Mason University, 2015. 31p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 1, 2015 at: http://cebcp.org/wp-content/technology/BodyWornCameraResearch.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://cebcp.org/wp-content/technology/BodyWornCameraResearch.pdf Shelf Number: 137414 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Camera Technology CamerasLaw Enforcement Technology Police Accountability Police SurveillancePolice Use of Force |
Author: Front Line Title: Front Line Brazil : murders, death threats and other forms of intimidation of human rights defenders, 1997-2001. Summary: The defence of human rights in Brazil is a dangerous undertaking. In virtually every context in which human rights defenders operate-whether rural conflicts, the fight against urban police brutality and the violence of organised criminal elements, the defence of the environment and of indigenous peoples, or on parliamentary human rights commissions-they face harrassment, intimidation by unwarranted lawsuits, death threats, physical attacks and even murder. This report analyzes fifty-six separate incidents of violence and harrassment of human rights defenders-nineteen instances of homicide, causing twenty-three deaths, and thirty-seven other incidents including attempted murder, death threats and other forms of harassment-over the past five years. These were not the only such cases during this period, but rather represent a frightening national tendency. Still, the numbers are impressive: twenty-three deaths, thirty-two death threats, four instances of attempted murder, four unjustified prosecutions, four beatings, one kidnapping, one disappearance and one unjustified detention. This report sheds light on a series of aspects of the defence of human rights in Brazil that merit attention. First, human rights defenders are a varied lot in Brazil. While most pertain to some form of organised civil society group, such as nongovernmental organisations or unions, many are public authorities, prosecutors, and elected officials. What they have in common is their labour in defence of one or more of the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Second, while public authorities, prosecutors and elected officials may enjoy an additional level of protection not afforded to non-state members of civil society groups, even these public authorities are not immune from attacks. This report considers the dangers of human rights defence in Brazil by analyzing instances of abuse and intimidation affecting human rights defenders since 1997, as well as the response of relevant authorities to these incidents. Global Justice chose to limit this report to cases from the past five years due to the existence of literally hundreds of instances over the past decade. Beginning with this universe of cases, we tried to focus on 1) the most serious abuses; 2) instances of abuse that were most representative of the kinds of difficulties faced by defenders; 3) cases that represented the diversity of contexts in which defenders face risks in Brazil; 4) cases that demonstrated the regional diversity of abuses; 5) cases that were well documented and 6) cases known to authorities. Unfortunately, we were forced to eliminate a number of instances that should be in this report due to the lack of corroborating information. As such, while the report includes nineteen cases involving twenty-three homicides, and dozens of incidents of death threats and other forms of intimidation, those figures are not exhaustive, but rather a sampling of the many instances of abuses of the rights of defenders in Brazil. Details: Blackrock : Front Line : Global Justice Center, 2002. 229p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 11, 2016 at: https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/files/en/1564_FrontLineBrazil_0.pdf Year: 2002 Country: Brazil URL: https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/files/en/1564_FrontLineBrazil_0.pdf Shelf Number: 137463 Keywords: Civil RightsDeadly ForceHomicidesHuman RightsHuman Rights AbusesPolice Use of ForceViolence |
Author: New York (City). Department of Investigation Title: Police Use of Force in New York City: Findings and Recommendations on NYPD's Policies and Practices Summary: Use of force is a defining issue in modern policing. Police officers, by the very nature of their duties, are entrusted, empowered, and at times obligated by local governments to use force against citizens when appropriate. In exchange for this grant of power, communities and their police departments require that the use of force be governed by a set of standards. These standards stem from the premise that the force used must be reasonable, an idea rooted in the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. Reasonable use of force and constitutional policing require equal treatment of all individuals, proper application of force, and accountability for the conduct of police officers. Following the death of Eric Garner in Staten Island in 2014 and others across the nation, there has been a public call for greater accountability when police officers use force that appears neither reasonable nor proportional. Police departments and police accountability agencies across the country have taken up the issue of use of force in an effort to improve policing and ensure that all officers are worthy of the tremendous power and trust afforded them by their communities. In January 2015, the New York City Department of Investigation's Office of the Inspector General for the New York City Police Department (OIG-NYPD) released its first report, Observations on Accountability and Transparency in Ten NYPD Chokehold Cases (Chokehold Report). In that report, OIG-NYPD found that the New York City Police Department (NYPD) disciplinary system was complex, multi-tiered, and often delivered inconsistent results in cases involving chokeholds. OIG-NYPD promised to further investigate NYPD's use of force by reviewing a larger sample of force investigations. This Report, which is a larger and more sophisticated inquiry into use of force, fulfills that promise. Many of the issues addressed in the Chokehold Report surface again in this larger data set. This Report examines five aspects of use of force within NYPD: (1) trends; (2) reporting; (3) de-escalation; (4) training; and (5) discipline. The Report begins by highlighting data and trends from excessive or unnecessary force cases substantiated by the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB). CCRB substantiated 207 allegations of force in 179 cases between 2010 and 2014, a notably modest number, given the size of NYPD, and a positive indication of the NYPD's restraint. OIG-NYPD's review involved only non-deadly force cases investigated by CCRB, as no lethal force was used in the 179 substantiated cases. As discussed below, this investigation demonstrates several issues of real concern. Because accountability begins with access to reliable data, this Report describes how NYPD does and does not track use-of-force data, and how the usefulness of that information can be improved by adopting a more precise use-of-force policy coupled with standardized force reporting. This Report next presents the findings of an independent analysis of force cases where some officers not only missed the opportunity to de-escalate the incident, but took measures which affirmatively escalated the encounter. Given these findings, the Report examines policies of other law enforcement agencies regarding de-escalation tactics and reviews what NYPD is currently doing to address excessive force and de-escalation through training. The Report then suggests ways in which training and policy can be improved with respect to de-escalation tactics and other related skills. Lastly, this Report analyzes and evaluates NYPD's disciplinary system, including a close review of cases where OIG-NYPD, through independent review, determined that the use of force was not reasonable by any standard and not justified by any exigent circumstances or the need to protect an officer's or the public's safety. Historically, NYPD has frequently failed to discipline officers who use force without justification. This Report thus offers recommendations to improve the disciplinary process so that officers who use excessive force are properly held accountable. Details: New York: NYC Department of Investigation, 2015. 89p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 28, 2016 at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oignypd/assets/downloads/pdf/oig_nypd_use_of_force_report_-_oct_1_2015.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oignypd/assets/downloads/pdf/oig_nypd_use_of_force_report_-_oct_1_2015.pdf Shelf Number: 137708 Keywords: Complaints Against PolicePolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice DiscretionPolice LegitimacyPolice MisconductPolice Policies and ProceduresPolice TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: New York City Department of Investigation Title: Observations on Accountability and Transparency in Ten NYPD Chokehold Cases Summary: Section 203-11 of the Patrol Guide, which governs "Use of Force," explicitly and unequivocally prohibits members of the New York City Police Department ("NYPD") from using "chokeholds" in their interactions with the public: Members of the New York City Police Department will NOT use chokeholds. A chokehold shall include, but is not limited to, any pressure to the throat or windpipe, which may prevent or hinder breathing or reduce intake of air. Patrol Guide 203-11 (emphasis in original). The death of a Staten Island man, Eric Garner, on July 17, 2014, after he was brought to the ground by an officer's arm around his neck in the course of an arrest, cast a spotlight on the use of chokeholds by NYPD officers and the enforcement of the chokehold prohibition under Section 203-11. Mr. Garner's death generated widespread public outcry, elevated chokeholds as a major concern within the rubric of the use of force, and prompted a flurry of videos purportedly showing NYPD officers using chokeholds in a variety of encounters with members of the public. The decision by a grand jury, on December 3, 2014, not to issue an indictment in the Garner case only increases the need for independent administrative review of these issues. In response to Mr. Garner's death, the Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD ("OIG-NYPD") conducted a focused review of the ten most recent cases where the Civilian Complaint Review Board ("CCRB") determined that NYPD officers used "chokeholds." What OIG-NYPD found raises questions not only about the way in which NYPD has enforced the chokehold ban in recent years, but also, far more importantly, about the disciplinary process in general and interactions between NYPD and CCRB. While no definitive conclusions regarding the use of chokeholds can or should be drawn from the finite universe of cases reviewed here, OIG-NYPD's study sheds light on areas where further careful analysis and study are warranted: how discipline is determined and imposed in use-of-force cases, gaps in inter- and intra-agency communication during the investigation of use-of-force cases, and officer training regarding communication skills, de-escalation strategies, and the use of force. This focused review, in effect, presents a road map of key policing issues with regard to the use of force that OIG-NYPD intends to explore and probe more deeply in the coming months. Details: New York NYC Department of Investigation, Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD, 2015. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 26, 2016 at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oignypd/assets/downloads/pdf/chokehold_report_1-2015.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oignypd/assets/downloads/pdf/chokehold_report_1-2015.pdf Shelf Number: 137709 Keywords: Complaints Against Police Police Accountability Police Brutality Police Discretion Police Legitimacy Police Misconduct Police Policies and Procedures Police TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Sekhon, Nirej Title: Blue on Black: An Empirical Assessment of Police Shootings Summary: Michael Brown's 2014 death in Ferguson, Missouri thrust police-officer-involved homicides into the popular consciousness. A series of subsequent officer-involved homicides has kept the issue politically and legally salient. Despite this, official data sources are thin and unreliable. This article presents original analysis of 259 police shooting incidents that occurred in Chicago between 2006 and 2014. The study, based upon publicly available information, suggests a more complex relationship between race, policing, and violence than one might expect from high-profile, officer-involved shootings. As in other large cities, shooting victims are overwhelmingly minorities, with Black persons constituting over 80% of victims. Contrary to intuition, many of the officer shooters are minorities as well. The analysis here suggests that neither racist malevolence nor unconscious bias afford complete explanations for why officer-involved shootings occur. Both of these explanatory frameworks focus too intensively upon individual officers' decision-making at the expense of institutional and situational dynamics. Scholars and policy makers should focus far more intensively on regulating bad practices, rather than just on disciplining bad officers following egregious incidents. Shifting focus in this way will help identify connections between everyday policing tactics in minority neighborhoods - such as plainclothes policing and aggressive stop and frisk - and officer-involved shootings. The article also concludes that evidentiary challenges mar post hoc review of officer-involved shootings, whether it is in the form of judicial or civilian review. This also underscores the importance of preventive regulation. Details: Atlanta: Georgia State University College of Law, 2016. 43p. Source: Internet Resource: Georgia State University College of Law, Legal Studies Research Paper : Accessed February 10, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2700724 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2700724 Shelf Number: 137827 Keywords: Deadly ForceOfficer-Involved ShootingsPolice DiscretionPolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: Use of Force: Taking Policing to a Higher Standards. 30 Guiding Principles Summary: The policies, training, tactics, and recommendations for equipment detailed in this document amount to significant, fundamental changes in a police department's operations and culture. It is important that these changes be undertaken in a comprehensive manner, and not in a piecemeal or haphazard way. The policy changes must be backed up with thorough, integrated retraining of all officers. These changes have implications for officer safety. This approach can increase officer safety, as well as the safety of community members, by teaching officers how to "slow down" some incidents and avoid escalating situations to the point where officers or members of the public are endangered. But to better protect officers, agencies must provide comprehensive new training, new tactical skills, and new equipment to support the new policies. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2016. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Critical Issues in Policing Series: Accessed February 17, 2016 at : http://www.policeforum.org/assets/30%20guiding%20principles.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/30%20guiding%20principles.pdf Shelf Number: 137871 Keywords: Police DiscretionPolice Policies and PracticesPolice TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Rappaport, John Title: How Private Insurers Regulate Public Police Summary: A string of deadly police-citizen encounters, made public on an unprecedented scale, has thrust American policing into the crucible of political conflict. New social movements have taken to the streets, while legislators have introduced a wide array of reform proposals. Optimism is elusive, though, as the police are notoriously difficult to change. One powerful policy lever, however, has been overlooked: police liability insurance. Based on primary sources new to legal literature and interviews with nearly thirty insurance industry representatives, civil rights litigators, municipal attorneys, and consultants, this Article shows how liability insurers are capable of effecting meaningful change within the agencies they insure - a majority of police agencies nationwide. The Article is the first to describe and assess the contemporary market for liability insurance in the policing context; in particular, the effects of insurance on police behavior. While not ignoring the familiar (and potentially serious) problem of moral hazard, the Article focuses on the ways in which insurers perform a traditionally governmental "regulatory" role as they work to manage risk. Insurers get police agencies to adopt or amend written departmental policies on subjects like the use of force and strip searches, to change the way they train their officers, and even to fire problem officers, from the beat up to the chief. One implication of these findings is that the state might regulate the police by regulating insurers. In this spirit, the Article considers several unconventional legal reforms that could reduce police misconduct, including a mandate that all municipalities purchase insurance coverage, a ban on "first-dollar" (no-deductible) policies that may reduce municipal care, and a requirement that small municipalities pool their risks and resources before buying insurance on the commercial market. At bottom, the Article establishes that liability insurance has profound significance to any comprehensive program of police reform. The Article also makes three important theoretical contributions to legal scholarship. First, it inverts the ordinary model of governance as public regulation of private action, observing that here, private insurers regulate public police. Second, it illustrates how insurers not only enforce the Constitution, but also construct its meaning. Among other things, in the hands of insurers, liability for constitutional violations and other police misconduct becomes "loss" to the police agency, which must be "controlled." Perhaps surprisingly, by denaturing the law in this way and stripping it of its moral valence, insurers may actually advance the law's aims. Finally, the Article helps to pry open the black box of deterrence. In fact, given widespread indemnification of both individual and entity liability for constitutional torts committed by police, an understanding of how insurers manage police risk is essential to any persuasive theory of civil deterrence of police misconduct. Details: Chicago: University of Chicago Law School, 2016. 77p. Source: Internet Resource: U of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 562; University of Chicago Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper No. 746: Accessed March 5, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2733783 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2733783 Shelf Number: 138105 Keywords: Police LiabilityPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen Encounters |
Author: Freelon, Deen Title: Beyond the Hashtags: #Ferguson, #Blacklivesmatter, and the online struggle for offline justice Summary: IN 2014, A DEDICATED ACTIVIST MOVEMENT "Black Lives Matter (BLM)" ignited an urgent national conversation about police killings of unarmed Black citizens. Online tools have been anecdotally credited as critical in this effort, but researchers are only beginning to evaluate this claim. This research report examines the movement's uses of online media in 2014 and 2015. To do so, we analyze three types of data: 40.8 million tweets, over 100,000 web links, and 40 interviews of BLM activists and allies. Most of the report is devoted to detailing our findings, which include: - Although the #Blacklivesmatter hashtag was created in July 2013, it was rarely used through the summer of 2014 and did not come to signify a movement until the months after the Ferguson protests. -Social media posts by activists were essential in initially spreading Michael Brown's story nationally. - Protesters and their supporters were generally able to circulate their own narratives without relying on mainstream news outlets. - There are six major communities that consistently discussed police brutality on Twitter in 2014 and 2015: Black Lives Matter, Anonymous/Bipartisan Report, Black Entertainers, Conservatives, Mainstream News, and Young Black Twitter. - The vast majority of the communities we observed supported justice for the victims and decisively denounced police brutality. - Black youth discussed police brutality frequently, but in ways that differed substantially from how activists discussed it. - Evidence that activists succeeded in educating casual observers came in two main forms: expressions of awe and disbelief at the violent police reactions to the Ferguson protests, and conservative admissions of police brutality in the Eric Garner and Walter Scott cases. - The primary goals of social media use among our interviewees were education, amplification of marginalized voices, and structural police reform. In our concluding section, we reflect on the practical importance and implications of our findings. We hope this report contributes to the specific conversation about how Black Lives Matter and related movements have used online tools as well as to broader conversations about the general capacity of such tools to facilitate social and political change. Details: Washington, DC: Center for Media and Social Impact, American University, 2016. 92p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 5, 2016 at: http://www.cmsimpact.org/sites/default/files/beyond_the_hashtags_2016.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.cmsimpact.org/sites/default/files/beyond_the_hashtags_2016.pdf Shelf Number: 138109 Keywords: Deadly ForceMedia CampaignsPolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice ReformPolice Use of ForceSocial Media |
Author: Mitchell, Nicholas E. Title: 2015 Annual Report Summary: The OIM is charged with monitoring the disciplinary systems in the Denver Police and Denver Sheriff Departments ("DPD" and "DSD," respectively), making policy recommendations to those departments, and conducting outreach to communities throughout Denver. The OIM is led by Independent Monitor Nicholas E. Mitchell, and advised by a seven member Citizen Oversight Board. The 2015 Annual Report includes information about complaints received, closed and monitored by the OIM in 2015. It also includes the OIM's assessment of several recent changes to DPD's policies, practices or training, including its policies on body worn cameras, shooting into moving vehicles, early intervention, and racial profiling. "The DPD made significant strides in 2015 by revising important policies to bring them in line with national best practices," said Independent Monitor Mitchell. The 2015 Annual Report also presents two subjects about which the OIM believes there are opportunities for improvement. Electronic databases, including the National Crime Information Center and the Colorado Crime Information Center ("NCIC/CCIC"), are important tools that DPD officers use every day solve crimes, apprehend fugitives, recover stolen property, and otherwise keep Denver's residents safe. By-and-large, DPD officers faithfully adhere to the requirement that the NCIC/CCIC databases must only be used for law enforcement purposes. Yet, when officers do misuse NCIC/CCIC for non law enforcement purposes, they are generally issued reprimands rather than stronger discipline. "These databases contain vast amounts of personal information about the American public, including community members in Denver," said Mr. Mitchell. "When they are misused, reprimands are not commensurate with the seriousness of that violation, and may not be strong enough to deter future abuse." The Annual Report recommends that the penalties for misuse of NCIC/CCIC should be strengthened within the disciplinary matrix that is maintained by the Executive Director of Safety. The Report also highlights the current gap in DPD policy and training on what kinds of force are permissible or effective to remove potential contraband from the mouth of an arrestee who is attempting to swallow it. The Report recommends that the DPD clarify its use of force policy, and specifically prohibit the use of strikes to remove potential contraband from the mouth of a person being placed under arrest. Details: Denver: Office of the Independent Monitor, 2016. 144p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 18, 2016 at: https://www.denvergov.org/content/dam/denvergov/Portals/374/documents/2015%20Annual%20Report%20Final.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://www.denvergov.org/content/dam/denvergov/Portals/374/documents/2015%20Annual%20Report%20Final.pdf Shelf Number: 138333 Keywords: Complaints Against PolicePolice AccountabilityPolice DisciplinePolice Policies and PracticesPolice TechnologyPolice Use of ForceSheriffs |
Author: Physicians for Human Rights Title: Lethal in Disguise: The Health Consequences of Crowd-Control Weapons Summary: In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of popular protests in which people have taken to the streets to express grievances and claim their rights. In many cases, police and security forces have responded in ways that profoundly undermine the fundamental rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, often leading to escalations in violence through unwarranted, inappropriate, or disproportionate uses of force. Law enforcement throughout the world is increasingly responding to popular protests with crowd-control weapons (CCWs). The proliferation of CCWs without adequate regulation, training, monitoring, and/or accountability, has led to the widespread and routine use or misuse of these weapons, resulting in injury, disability, and death. There is a significant gap in knowledge about the health effects of CCWs and an absence of meaningful international standards or guidelines around their use. As a result, the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO) and Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) partnered to document the health consequences of CCWs and examine their roles and limitations in protest contexts and make recommendations about their safe use. This report aims to raise awareness about the misuse and abuse of CCWs, the detrimental health effects that these weapons can have, and the impact of their use on the meaningful enjoyment of freedom of assembly and expression. We also seek to foster a global debate to develop international standards and guidelines. Ultimately, our goal is to prevent injury, disability, and death by providing information about CCWs and insisting on their safe use. The misuse of CCWs and the human rights concerns that arise from this misuse are the result of a number of factors, the most significant of which are: gaps in international standards and regulations; insufficient testing, training, and regulations; a rapidly-growing industry; and a lack of accountability. There are many flagrant examples of the misuse of CCWs, some of which are documented in case studies included in this report. In Kenya, five children and one police officer were injured in a stampede resulting from tear gas being fired directly at schoolchildren protesting the seizure of a playground. In the United States, police intervention in the Black Lives Matter protests included the indiscriminate use of tear gas, disorientation devices, acoustice devices, beanbag rounds, and rubber bullets. In Egypt, a police officer was caught on video deliberately firing pellets at protesters' upper bodies in order to maximise injury. These troubling case studies, and others, are included throughout this report to put the medical evidence into context. The report examines six kinds of CCWs used internationally: kinetic impact projectiles (KIPs), chemical irritants, water cannons, disorientation devices, acoustic weapons, and directed energy devices. The health effects of kinetic impact projectiles and chemical irritants are described in significant detail; these are the two weapon types about which there is a critical mass of data to analyse. The following systematic reviews evaluated published and grey literature released between January 1, 1990 and March 31, 2015. Details: New York: Physicians for Human Rights and INCLO, 2016. 104p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed march 21, 2016 at: https://ccla.org/cclanewsite/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/WEAPONREPORT_FINAL_WEB_PAGES.pdf Year: 2016 Country: International URL: https://ccla.org/cclanewsite/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/WEAPONREPORT_FINAL_WEB_PAGES.pdf Shelf Number: 138346 Keywords: Crowd ControlCrowd ManagementDisorderly ConductPolice Use of ForcePublic DisordersPublic Order ManagementRiots |
Author: Independent Police Complaints Commission (U.K.) Title: Deaths during or following police contact: Statistics for England and Wales 2014/15 Summary: This report presents figures on deaths during or following police contact that happened between 1 April 2014 and 31 March 2015. It provides a definitive set of figures for England and Wales and an overview of the nature and circumstances in which these deaths occurred. This publication is the eleventh in a series of statistical reports on this subject published annually by the IPCC. To produce the IPCC annual statistics on deaths, the circumstances of all deaths referred to the IPCC are examined to decide whether they meet the criteria for inclusion in the report under one of the following five categories: - road traffic fatalities - fatal shootings - deaths in or following police custody - apparent suicides following police custody - other deaths following police contact that were subject Details: London: The Commission, 2015. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 21, 2016 at: https://www.ipcc.gov.uk/sites/default/files/Documents/research_stats/Deaths_Report_1415.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.ipcc.gov.uk/sites/default/files/Documents/research_stats/Deaths_Report_1415.pdf Shelf Number: 138350 Keywords: Complaints Against PoliceDeadly ForcePolice CustodyPolice Use of ForceSuicides |
Author: Stinson, Philip M. Title: Violence-related Police Crime Arrests in the United States, 2005-2011 Summary: - Police violence is behavior by any police officer-acting pursuant to their authority and/or power as a sworn law enforcement officer- that includes any use of physical force, whether justified or not (Sherman, 1980). - Situational risk faced by officers influence an officer's decision to use coercive force, non-deadly force, and/or to employ deadly force (e.g., Alpert & Smith, 1999; Fyfe, 1981; Terrill, 2003). - Officer-involved domestic violence (OIDV) remains a problem (Stinson & Liederbach, 2013). Details: Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University, 2015. 19p. Source: Internet Resource: Presented at the Annual Conference of Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, Orlando, Florida March 5, 2015 Accessed March 30, 2016 at: http://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1052&context=crim_just_pub Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1052&context=crim_just_pub Shelf Number: 138502 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolice Violence |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Unchecked Power: Police and Military Raids in Low-Income and Immigrant Communities in Venezuela Summary: Since July 2015, Venezuelan security forces have conducted more than 135 operations, including sweeps through low-income communities, as part of the "Operation to Liberate and Protect the People" (OLP), with the alleged purpose of combatting criminal gangs that contribute to the extremely high levels of violence in Venezuela. Participating security forces have included the Bolivarian National Guard, the Bolivarian National Police, the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service, the Scientific, Penal and Criminal Investigative Police, and state police forces. Unchecked Power: Police and Military Raids in Low-Income and Immigrant Communities in Venezuela describes considerable evidence that security forces conducting OLP raids have committed serious abuses. In interviews with the Venezuelan Human Rights Education-Action Program (PROVEA) and Human Rights Watch, victims, witnesses, and other interlocutors described violations including extrajudicial killings and other violent abuses, arbitrary detentions, forced evictions, the destruction of hundreds of homes, and the arbitrary deportation of Colombian nationals including refugees and asylum seekers, often accused without evidence of having links to "paramilitaries." A common denominator shared by these cases, and by government abuses we have documented in other contexts during the past decade, is the extent to which the victims-or their families-have been unable to challenge alleged abuses of state power, feeling they have nowhere to turn for protection of their fundamental rights. The government of Venezuela should ensure that all OLP operations are carried out in accordance with its international human rights obligations, including the requirement to refrain from using unlawful force during public security operations. Ultimately, a strong, independent judiciary is essential to ensure accountability and redress for the kinds of abuses alleged in this report-and to prevent such abuses in the future. PROVEA and Human Rights Watch call on President Nicolas Maduro, the National Assembly, and the Supreme Court to take urgent steps to restore the judiciary's role as an independent guarantor of fundamental rights, and on the international community to press Venezuela's government to stop undermining the impartiality and independence of the judicial branch. Details: New York: HRW, 2016. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 7, 2016 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/venezuela0416web.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Venezuela URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/venezuela0416web.pdf Shelf Number: 138591 Keywords: GangsHuman Rights AbusesParamilitary GroupsPolice BrutalityPolice Use of ForceViolence |
Author: Munoz, Ernesto Title: A report of officer involved shootings in Colorado, 2010-2015 : pursuant to Senate Bill 15-217 Summary: In 2015, the Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 15-217, which mandated that state and local law enforcement agencies report specific information to the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) in the Department of Public Safety in the event that the agency "employs a peace officer who is involved in an officer-involved shooting that results in a person suspected of criminal activity being shot at by the officer." S.B.15-217 mandated DCJ to analyze and report the data on an annual basis. This first report, as specified in S.B. 15-217, documents findings based on data received by DCJ regarding officer involved shootings that occurred during a 5-1/2 year period between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2015. During the time period under study, 47 law enforcement agencies reported 192 shooting incidents involving 313 officers and 219 citizens. Most of the citizens and officers were white (57% and 83%, respectively), reflecting the overall Colorado population, but the citizen group included 28% Hispanics and 14% Blacks. As a group, the citizens were younger, on average, than the officers. Among the citizens, Blacks were youngest (average age 28), compared to an average age of 31 for Hispanics and 38 for Whites. Over half (56%) of the incidents were originated by a call for service. Agencies reported that in two-thirds (65%) of shooting incidents, officers perceived an imminent threat to officers or citizens, and in another 20% of incidents, a shot(s) was fired at the officer. The officer perceived some level of threat in 10% of incidents, and three incidents (2%) involved preventing an escape. In 74% of the cases, a verbal warning was issued before the incident. For about one-third of citizens (34%), there was some indication of intoxication with alcohol, drugs or a combination of those. Agencies reported that a weapon was involved in at least 84% of incidents, and most often that weapon was a handgun (46%) followed by a motor vehicle that was perceived by the officer to be used as a weapon (12%), and a knife/cutting instrument (7%). Firearms (including handguns, rifles, and shotguns) were present in 57% of incidents. Black citizens were significantly more likely to have a firearm (83%) compared to Whites (52%) and Hispanics (53%). Ninety-one (91%) of officers were neither injured or killed compared to 19% of citizens. Nearly half (43%) of citizens were killed and another 38% were wounded. Citizens who were killed or wounded were likely to be perceived by the officer as an imminent threat. Fifty-two percent of Hispanics were killed, as were 40% of Whites and 37% of Blacks. Almost half (47%) of Blacks were wounded as were 32% of Hispanics and 40% of Whites. Among citizens who survived these encounters, 86% were arrested or cited for a crime (there was no difference across race/ethnicity). The most common charge was attempted first degree murder followed by first degree assault. Other common charges included felony menacing, criminal mischief, and assault on a peace officer. Note that the data reported here represent information provided by 48 law enforcement agencies, 47 of which reported officer-involved shootings between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2015. It is not possible to know if every incident was reported to the Division of Criminal Justice. Two agencies submitted data (on one incident each) well after the statutory deadline2 and these two incidents were not included in the findings presented here. Details: Denver: Colorado Department of Public Safety, Division of Criminal Justice, 2016. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 5, 2016 at: http://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ors/docs/reports/2016-Officer_%20Involved_Shooting-Rpt.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ors/docs/reports/2016-Officer_%20Involved_Shooting-Rpt.pdf Shelf Number: 138947 Keywords: Deadly ForceOfficer Involved ShootingsPolice Use of Force |
Author: McGinty, Timothy J. Title: Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Report on the November 22, 2014 Shooting Death of Tamir Rice Summary: Four years ago, I retired as a judge to run for County Prosecutor to make our Criminal Justice System more transparent, professional and accountable. I believed that greater openness would reduce the errors that had cost lives. One promise I made was to fundamentally change how cases are handled when a police officer kills a civilian - to end the traditional system where the prosecutor privately reviewed police reports, then decided if an officer should be charged. That secrecy - which appeared arbitrary without a public investigative report - undermined community confidence. It was clear we needed a more rigorous, independent investigation of police use of deadly force cases. Although not required by Ohio law, I now have all evidence reviewed not just by the prosecutor or this office, but by the citizens of the Grand Jury sitting as an investigative panel. They hear all the evidence and make the final call. Our office also shares with the public completed independent investigative reports so that there will be no mystery or rumors about what occurred in a citizen's death. This transparency gives our community an opportunity to correct errors in policy, training, tactics, hiring or equipment far more quickly - instead of waiting, sometimes for years, until the opportunity and enthusiasm for reform are lost. We want lessons learned and applied. That is what we have done and will do in all 20 use of deadly force cases that have come to this office in the past three years. Today, a Cuyahoga County Grand Jury completed its thorough investigation into the fatal shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice on November 22, 2014 at the Cudell Recreation Center. Based on the evidence they heard and on the law as it applies to police use of deadly force, the Grand Jury declined to bring criminal charges against Cleveland Police Officers Timothy Loehmann and Frank Garmback. That was also my recommendation and that of our office after reviewing the investigation and the law. Details: Cleveland, OH: Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, 2015. 74p, Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 18, 2016 at: http://prosecutor.cuyahogacounty.us/pdf_prosecutor/en-US/Rice%20Case%20Report%20FINAL%20FINAL%2012-28a.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://prosecutor.cuyahogacounty.us/pdf_prosecutor/en-US/Rice%20Case%20Report%20FINAL%20FINAL%2012-28a.pdf Shelf Number: 139096 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice Use of Force |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: Guiding Principles On Use of Force Summary: American policing is at a critical juncture. Across the country, community members have been distressed by images of police officers using deadly force in questionable circumstances. These incidents are an infinitesimal fraction of the millions of interactions that take place between the police and the public every week. Most police officers never fire their guns (except during training) throughout their entire careers, yet they face enormous challenges and risks to their own safety on a regular basis and they perform their jobs admirably. But police chiefs tell us that even one bad encounter can damage trust with the community that took years to build. Others tell us that there is an upheaval within the policing profession itself. Officers who in the past exuded great pride in wearing the badge now feel underappreciated by some members of the public, who seem to question their every move and motive. PERF members also tell us that there is a crisis of public safety and officer safety. Violent crime shot up in many U.S. cities last year-the result, some have said, of the so-called "You Tube effect," with some officers hesitant to police proactively for fear of becoming the subject of the next viral video, and residents who have grown reluctant to partner with the police in community policing efforts. At the same time, violence against police officers, including attacks on officers just for being police officers, seems to have become more brutal and senseless. As a research organization of law enforcement executives, PERF hears from police chiefs and other officials every day. And what we are hearing is that the policing profession must take the initiative and address the serious challenges confronting it today. That means rethinking some of the fundamentals of policies, training, tactics, and equipment regarding use of force. We need to challenge the conventional thinking on how the police approach some potential use-of-force situations, in particular those that involve people with mental illness who do not have a firearm. Many of the strategies recommended in this report, such as Crisis Intervention Team training and de-escalation, are already in place in many police agencies, and have been for years. Other strategies, such as the Critical Decision-Making Model, are just beginning to be adopted by leading police agencies. This report reflects the latest thinking on police use-of-force issues from the perspective of many of the nation's leading police executives. These leaders are quoted in this report and in four previous PERF reports on these issues, three of which were released within the last year. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2016. 136p. Source: Internet Resource: Critical Issues in Policing Series: Accessed May 23, 2016 at: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/30%20guiding%20principles.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/30%20guiding%20principles.pdf Shelf Number: 139122 Keywords: Assaults Against PoliceCrisis InterventionDeadly ForcePolice LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen InteractionsPolicing Training |
Author: Magaloni, Beatriz Title: Killing in the Slums: An Impact Evaluation of Police Reform in Rio de Janeiro Summary: This paper evaluates the causal impact of Rio de Janeiro's Pacifying Police Units (UPPs), probably the largest-scale police reform initiative taking place in the developing world. The main goals of the UPPs were: 1) to regain control of territories previously dominated by armed criminal groups; and 2) to improve security for these communities through reduction of lethal violence. In the course of six years, more than 9,000 police officers were permanently assigned to the UPPs, servicing close to half million residents in the city slums (favelas). We are interested in understanding the process through which governments supply a basic public service - the police - in poor urban neighborhoods that have long been abandoned to the arbitrary rule of non-state armed actors. Moreover, our paper documents Rio de Janeiro's painful trajectory of police violence, illuminating some of it major institutional facilitators. Painstakingly geo-coding homicides and police killings from 2005 to 2013, we provide answers to some of the most critical questions about police use of lethal force, including the determinants of variations in who is targeted by police repression and how different strategies for policing the slums have impacted police killings. To evaluate the UPP impact on lethal violence, we use a variety of causal identification strategies that leverage spatial and temporal variation in the introduction of the UPP as well as geo-referenced data of more than 22,000 incidents of lethal violence. Our empirical models reveal that the UPP had mixed results. The introduction of the UPPs did not play a significant role in reducing murders in the favelas that were pacified. The UPP's failure to reduce homicides imply that the poor in the slums continue to be subject to two or three times higher murder rates than the white middle class. Nonetheless, the UPP is breaking long-held practices of extreme use of police lethal violence. Our empirical results convincingly demonstrate that police killings would have been 60 percent larger without the UPP intervention. Details: Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL), 2015. 55p. Source: Internet Resource: CDDRL Working Paper: Accessed June 8, 2016 at: http://cddrl.fsi.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/cddrl_working_paper_dec15_rio.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Brazil URL: http://cddrl.fsi.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/cddrl_working_paper_dec15_rio.pdf Shelf Number: 139326 Keywords: Deadly ForceDrug TraffickingFavelasGang ViolenceHomicidesPacifying Police UnitsPolice ReformPolice Use of ForceSlums |
Author: Adil, Kamran Title: How is Police Violence Legitimized in Pakistan? Summary: People come into contact with the criminal justice system in Pakistan largely through the police, and therefore, much of the outcome of the system is dependent on the interaction among the different components of the system. The police functions that are assigned by the law can broadly be divided into riot control and investigation of criminal cases categories. Whereas the use of force for riot control is sanctioned by the law - with some limitations, it is totally prohibited for the purposes of investigation. Nevertheless, police violence is regularly applied in the second category and it is prevalent in three forms: (a) the use of force to extract evidence for prosecution, (b) the use of force as a police strategy by undertaking extrajudicial killings to control crime, and (c) the use of force to ensure compliance with the orders of courts, especially in the suo motu jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Through interviews with judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys and police officers, the research shows that with all three forms of violence, interactions between the various parties involved in the criminal justice system of Pakistan legitimize the use of force. Details: Bielefeld, Germany: Universitat Bielefeld, 2015. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Violence Research and Development Project - Papers - No. 9: Accessed June 11, 2016 at: http://www.uni-bielefeld.de/icvr/docs/adil.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Pakistan URL: http://www.uni-bielefeld.de/icvr/docs/adil.pdf Shelf Number: 139375 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice EthicsPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: American Civil Liberties Union Title: Island of Impunity: Puerto Rico's Outlaw Police Force Summary: A report released by the ACLU in June 2012 concludes that the Puerto Rico Police Department is plagued by a culture of unrestrained abuse and impunity. The PRPD - which, with over 17,000 officers, is the second-largest police department in the U.S - is charged with policing the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. In July 2013, the U.S. Justice Department entered into a legally binding consent decree with the Puerto Rican government that requires sweeping reforms to end the widespread police brutality on the island. Learn more about the historic agreement here. After a comprehensive six-month investigation of policing practices in Puerto Rico, building on eight years of work by the ACLU of Puerto Rico documenting cases of police brutality, the ACLU concluded that the PRPD commits serious and rampant abuses in violation Puerto Ricans' constitutional and human rights, including: - Use of excessive and lethal force against civilians, especially in poor and Black neighborhoods and Dominican communities, often resulting in serious injury and death. Read More. - Violent suppression of peaceful protestors using batons, rubber bullets, and a toxic form of tear gas that was phased out by mainland U.S. police departments in the 1960's. Read More. - Failure to protect victims of domestic violence and to investigate reported crimes of domestic violence, rape, and other gender-based crimes. The ACLU's research shows that these abuses do not represent isolated incidents or aberrant behavior by a few rogue officers, but that such police brutality is pervasive and systemic, island-wide and ongoing. In fact, our research has found that the PRPD's disciplinary, investigatory, and reporting systems prevent accountability. Read more. The report offers numerous detailed recommendations, including: - The Justice Department should enter into a court-enforceable and court-monitored agreement with the PRPD. - The PRPD should develop and implement policies on the use of force, improved training, the investigation of civilian complaints of police abuse, and the discipline of officers. - Puerto Rico's legislature should create an independent and effective oversight body to monitor the PRPD. The ACLU's report comes nine months after the release of a scathing U.S. Justice Department report on the PRPD, which found a pattern and practice of constitutional violations by the department, including widespread use of excessive force. The Justice Department investigation, the findings of which were long-delayed, focused on 2004 to 2008. The ACLU's report focuses on incidents from 2007 through May 2012. Details: New York: ACLU, 2012. 182p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 13, 2016 at: https://www.aclu.org/files/assets/islandofimpunity_20120619.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: https://www.aclu.org/files/assets/islandofimpunity_20120619.pdf Shelf Number: 139433 Keywords: Police BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Fryer, Roland G., Jr. Title: An Empirical Analysis of Racial Differences in Police Use of Force Summary: This paper explores racial differences in police use of force. On non-lethal uses of force, blacks and Hispanics are more than fifty percent more likely to experience some form of force in interactions with police. Adding controls that account for important context and civilian behavior reduces, but cannot fully explain, these disparities. On the most extreme use of force - officer-involved shootings - we find no racial differences in either the raw data or when contextual factors are taken into account. We argue that the patterns in the data are consistent with a model in which police officers are utility maximizers, a fraction of which have a preference for discrimination, who incur relatively high expected costs of officer-involved shootings. Details: Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2016. 63p. Source: Internet Resource: NBER Working Paper Series, no. 22399: Accessed July 11, 2016 at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w22399.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w22399.pdf Shelf Number: 139612 Keywords: Non-Lethal WeaponsOfficer-Involved ShootingsPolice Deadly ForcePolice Use of ForceRacial DisparitiesStun Guns |
Author: Feeney, Matthew Title: Watching the Watchmen: Best Practices for Police Body Cameras Summary: Coverage of recent police killings has prompted a much-needed debate on law enforcement reform, and proposals for police body cameras have featured heavily in these discussions. Body cameras undoubtedly gather valuable evidence of police misconduct, and although research on the effects of body cameras is comparatively limited there are good reasons to believe that they can improve police behavior. However, without the right policies in place the use of police body cameras could result in citizens' privacy being needlessly violated. In addition, poorly considered police body camera policies governing the storage and release of footage might be too costly to implement. This paper examines the research on the costs and benefits of police body cameras, arguing that the devices can, if properly deployed and regulated, provide a valuable disincentive to police abuses as well as valuable evidence for punishing abuses when they occur. No one-size-fits-all set of body camera policies should be imposed on the thousands of police departments across the United States, which vary significantly in size as well as the crime rates they face. Nonetheless, the policies that municipal, state, and federal actors adopt will need to address transparency, accountability, and privacy in order to realize the potential benefits of wearable cameras. Toward that end, this paper outlines a number of best practices designed to help law enforcement agencies at all levels address the privacy and fiscal issues associated with body cameras. By themselves, body cameras are not a police misconduct panacea. Police misconduct can only be adequately addressed by implementing significant reforms to police practices and training. Still, body cameras can serve as an important component of police reform. Details: Washington, DC: Cato Institute, 2015. 24p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Analysis no.782: Accessed July 21, 2016 at: http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/pa782.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/pa782.pdf Shelf Number: 139757 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasPolice AccountabilityPolice LegitimacyPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Pang, Min-Seok Title: Armed with Technology: The Effects on Fatal Shootings of Civilians by the Police Summary: The police in the United States shot and killed 986 civilians in 2015. Deaths of civilians by the police in recent years have led to protests and disruptions in several large cities, such as New York, Chicago, and Baltimore. In this study, we investigate how the use of technology by the police affects use of lethal force on civilians. Drawing upon signal detection theory, we propose a simple, stylized model on a police officer's decision to shoot. This model posits how the use of technology for intelligence access (e.g., statistical analyses of crime data) and evidence gathering (e.g., wearable body cameras) affects use of deadly force on civilians by the police. Empirical investigations with a large-scale dataset on fatal shootings revealed both encouraging and surprising findings. We found that both the use of smartphones and the statistical analyses of crime data are associated with a decrease in deadly shootings. In contrast, the use of wearable body cameras is related to an increase in the deaths of civilians by the police, contrary to an intuitive expectation that the adoption of body cameras would prevent deadly shootings. Interestingly, we also found that the observed effect of technology use is more pronounced for African Americans or Hispanics than Whites or Asians and for armed suspects than unarmed ones. We contribute to the literature by demonstrating the far-reaching role of technology use in novel contexts, specifically in highly risky, violent environments Details: Philadelphia: Fox School of Business, Temple University, 2016. 48p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 22, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2808662 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2808662 Shelf Number: 139793 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasDeadly ForceFatal ShootingsPolice AccountabilityPolice Use of Force |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "What Are You Doing Here?" Police Abuses Against Afghans in Pakistan Summary: Pakistan has hosted several million Afghan refugees since the late 1970s, but hostility toward its Afghan population increased dramatically after the so-called Pakistani Taliban attacked a school in Peshawar in December 2014, killing more than 100 children. At a time when thousands of Afghans are fleeing insecurity in their country to seek refuge in Europe, pressure and abuse by Pakistani police has driven many Afghans living in Pakistan to return to Afghanistan. "What Are You Doing Here?" describes how Pakistani police have carried out raids on Afghan settlements, arbitrarily detained, harassed, and beaten Afghan men, extorted bribes, and threatened Afghans with deportation. Those abuses have since January 2015 driven large numbers of Afghans living in Pakistan to return to Afghanistan, where they face worsening instability and a widening civil conflict. Every Afghan interviewed by Human Rights Watch who had returned to Afghanistan said that fear of the Pakistani police was the reason they had done so. This report is based on interviews with 96 Afghans either living in Pakistan or recently returned to Afghanistan. It urges the Pakistani government to extend residency cards for registered Afghans, which are due to expire on December 31, 2015, until at least the end of2017. It also calls on Pakistan to stop security force intimidation and violence against Afghans living in Pakistan. Details: New York: HRW, 2015. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 25, 2016 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/pakistan1115_4up.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Pakistan URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/pakistan1115_4up.pdf Shelf Number: 139844 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Ross, Cody T. Title: A Multi-Level Bayesian Analysis of Racial Bias in Police Shootings at the County-Level in the United States, 2011-2014 Summary: A geographically-resolved, multi-level Bayesian model is used to analyze the data presented in the U.S. Police-Shooting Database (USPSD) in order to investigate the extent of racial bias in the shooting of American civilians by police officers in recent years. In contrast to previous work that relied on the FBI's Supplemental Homicide Reports that were constructed from self-reported cases of police-involved homicide, this data set is less likely to be biased by police reporting practices. County-specific relative risk outcomes of being shot by police are estimated as a function of the interaction of: 1) whether suspects/civilians were armed or unarmed, and 2) the race/ethnicity of the suspects/civilians. The results provide evidence of a significant bias in the killing of unarmed black Americans relative to unarmed white Americans, in that the probability of being {black, unarmed, and shot by police} is about 3.49 times the probability of being {white, unarmed, and shot by police} on average. Furthermore, the results of multi-level modeling show that there exists significant heterogeneity across counties in the extent of racial bias in police shootings, with some counties showing relative risk ratios of 20 to 1 or more. Finally, analysis of police shooting data as a function of county-level predictors suggests that racial bias in police shootings is most likely to emerge in police departments in larger metropolitan counties with low median incomes and a sizable portion of black residents, especially when there is high financial inequality in that county. There is no relationship between county-level racial bias in police shootings and crime rates (even race-specific crime rates), meaning that the racial bias observed in police shootings in this data set is not explainable as a response to local-level crime rates Details: PLOS One, 2015. 34p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 30, 2016 at: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/asset?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0141854.PDF Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/asset?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0141854.PDF Shelf Number: 139900 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice ShootingsPolice Use of ForceRacial BiasRacial DiscriminationRacial Profiling in Law Enforcement |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Summary: Military police officers Roberta Moreira and Wallace Justo walk through one of the trails at Mangueira favela on January 14, 2016. Members of the local Pacifying Police Unit (UPP), they carry out social projects with children to try to gain the community's trust. Police in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro have killed more than 8,000 people in the past decade, including at least 645 in 2015. Three quarters of those killed were black. Given that Rio police face real threats of violence from heavily-armed gangs, many of these killings were likely the result of the legitimate use of force. But many others were extrajudicial executions. Drawing on interviews with more than 30 police officers - two of whom admitted to participating in executions - and in-depth documentation of 64 cases where there is credible evidence that police sought to cover up unlawful killings. Government data examined by Human Rights Watch supports the view of local justice officials that this practice is widespread. Unlawful police killings take a heavy toll - not only on the victims and their families - but also on the police force itself. The killings fuel cycles of violence that endanger the lives of all officers serving in high-crime areas, poison their relationship with local communities, and contribute to high levels of stress that undermine their ability to do their jobs well. The officers responsible for unlawful killings and cover ups are rarely brought to justice. While investigations by civil police have been woefully inadequate, responsibility for this failure ultimately lies with Rio's Attorney General's Office. Unless authorities take urgent steps to ensure accountability for unlawful police killings, it will be very hard for Rio to make real progress in reducing violence and improving public security. Details: New York: HRW, 2016. 117p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 1, 2016 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/brazil0716web.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Brazil URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/brazil0716web.pdf Shelf Number: 139922 Keywords: Dead ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: U.S. Department of Justice. Civil Rights Division Title: Investigation of the Baltimore City Police Department Summary: This report present the outcome of the Department of Justice's investigation of the Baltimore City Police Department (BP D). After engaging in a thorough investigation, initiated at the request of the City of Baltimore and BPD, the Department of Justice concludes that there is reasonable cause to believe that BPD engages in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the Constitution or federal law. BPD engages in a pattern or practice of: (1) making unconstitutional stops, searches, and arrests; (2) using enforcement strategies that produce severe and unjustified disparities in the rates of stops, searches and arrests of African Americans; (3) using excessive force; and (4) retaliating against people engaging in constitutionally -protected expression. This pattern or practice is driven by systemic deficiencies in BPD's policies, training, supervision, and ac countability structures that fail to equip officers with the tools they need to police effectively and within the bounds of the federal law. We recognize the challenges faced by police officers in Baltimore and other communities around the country. Every day, police officers risk their lives to uphold the law and keep our communities safe. Investigatory stops, arrests, and force - including, at times, deadly force - are all necessary tools used by BPD officers to do their jobs and protect the safety of thems elves and others. Providing policing services in many parts of Baltimore is particularly challenging, where officers regularly confront complex social problems rooted in poverty, racial segregation and deficient educational, employment and housing opportunities. Still, most BPD officers work hard to provide vital services to the community. The pattern or practice occurs as a result of systemic deficiencies at BPD. The agency fails to provide officers with sufficient policy guidance and training; fails to collect and analyze data regarding officers' activities; and fails to hold officers accountable for misconduct. BPD also fails to equip officers with the necessary equipment and resources they need to police safely, constitutionally, and effectively. Each of these systemic deficiencies contributes to the constitutional and statutory violations we observed. Details: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 2016. 164p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 25, 2016 at: http://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/20160810_DOJ%20BPD%20Report-FINAL.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://civilrights.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/20160810_DOJ%20BPD%20Report-FINAL.pdf Shelf Number: 140031 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice DiscretionPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights Title: Police Body Worn Cameras: A Policy Scorecard Summary: In the wake of high-profile incidents in Ferguson, Staten Island, North Charleston, Baltimore, and elsewhere, law enforcement agencies across the country are rapidly adopting body-worn cameras for their officers. One of the main selling points for these cameras is their potential to provide transparency into some police interactions, and to help protect civil rights, especially in heavily policed communities of color. But accountability is not automatic. Whether these cameras make police more accountable - or simply intensify police surveillance of communities - depends on how the cameras and footage are used. That's why The Leadership Conference, together with a broad coalition of civil rights, privacy, and media rights groups, developed shared Civil Rights Principles on Body Worn Cameras. Our principles emphasize that "[w]ithout carefully crafted policy safeguards in place, there is a real risk that these new devices could become instruments of injustice, rather than tools for accountability." This scorecard evaluates the body-worn camera policies currently in place in major police departments across the country. Our goal is to highlight promising approaches that some departments are taking, and to identify opportunities where departments could improve their policies. Details: Washington, DC: Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, 2016. 208p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 25, 2016 at: https://www.bwcscorecard.org/static/pdfs/LCCHR_Upturn-BWC_Scorecard-v2.03.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://www.bwcscorecard.org/static/pdfs/LCCHR_Upturn-BWC_Scorecard-v2.03.pdf Shelf Number: 140036 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCamera TechnologyCamerasLaw Enforcement TechnologyPolice AccountabilityPolice SurveillancePolice Use of Force |
Author: B'Tselem Title: The Occupation's Fig Leaf: Israel's Military Law Enforcement System as a Whitewash Mechanism Summary: The military law enforcement system is supposed to handle complaints filed against soldiers for harm caused to Palestinians in the West Bank, including cases of violence and gunfire that resulted in injury or death. Such harm is endemic to the occupation, which has been in place for nearly fifty years. The role of the military law enforcement system has been narrowly defined to begin with: it investigates only specific incidents in which soldiers are suspected to have acted in breach of the orders or directives they were given. The system does not investigate the orders themselves nor the responsibility of those who issue them or determine the policy. As such, the system is oriented toward low ranking soldiers only, while senior military and government officials, including the Military Advocate General (MAG), are absolved in advance of any responsibility. In this state of affairs, even if the system had fulfilled its tasks, its contribution to law enforcement would still remain limited. However, an examination of the operation of the military law enforcement system indicates that it makes no attempt to fulfill even this limited mandate. Ever since B'Tselem was established more than 25 years ago, it has applied to the MAG Corps regarding hundreds of incidents in which Palestinians were harmed by soldiers, demanding the incidents be investigated. Some of B'Tselem's applications led to the launching of criminal investigations. In many cases, B'Tselem assisted investigators in making arrangements for them to collect statements from Palestinian victims and eyewitnesses, and by obtaining medical records and other relevant documents. Once the investigations were concluded, B'Tselem followed up with the MAG Corps to get information as to the case outcome. In some cases, B'Tselem appealed the MAG Corps' decision to close a case, and in a few instances, even petitioned Israel's High Court of Justice (HCJ) against a decision to close a case, or regarding unreasonable delays in the MAG Corps' processing of a case. Since the second intifada began in late 2000, B'Tselem has demanded an investigation in 739 cases in which soldiers killed, injured, or beat Palestinians,used them as human shields, or damaged Palestinian property. An analysis of the responses B'Tselem received as to how the military law enforcement system handled these 739 cases shows that in a quarter (182) no investigation was ever launched, in nearly half (343), the investigation was closed with no further action, and only in very rare instances (25), were charges brought against the implicated soldiers. Another thirteen cases were referred for disciplinary action. A total of 132 cases are still at various processing stages, and the MAG Corps was unable to locate 44 others Details: Jerusalem: B'Tselem - The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, 2016. 85p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 26, 2016 at: http://www.btselem.org/download/201605_occupations_fig_leaf_eng.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Israel URL: http://www.btselem.org/download/201605_occupations_fig_leaf_eng.pdf Shelf Number: 140041 Keywords: Human Rights AbuseLaw EnforcementMilitary PolicePolice Use of Force |
Author: Shjarback, John Title: Cops, Culture, and Context: The Integration of Structural and Cultural Elements for Explanations of Police Use of Force Summary: This dissertation integrates concepts from three bodies of literature: police use of force, neighborhood/ecological influence on police, and police culture. Prior research has generally found that neighborhood context affects police use of force. While scholars have applied social disorganization theory to understand why neighborhood context might influence use of force, much of this theorizing and subsequent empirical research has focused exclusively on structural characteristics of an area, such as economic disadvantage, crime rates, and population demographics. This exclusive focus has occurred despite the fact that culture was once an important component of social disorganization theory in addition to structural factors. Moreover, the majority of the theorizing and subsequent research on police culture has neglected the potential influence that neighborhood context might have on officers' occupational outlooks. The purpose of this dissertation is to merge the structural and cultural elements of social disorganization theory in order to shed light on the development and maintenance of police officer culture as well as to further specify the relationship between neighborhood context and police use of force. Using data from the Project on Policing Neighborhoods (POPN), I address three interrelated research questions: 1) does variation of structural characteristics at the patrol beat level, such as concentrated disadvantage, homicide rates, and the percentage of minority citizens, predict how an officer views his/her occupational outlook (i.e., culture)?; 2) do officers who work in the same patrol beats share a similar occupational outlook (i.e., culture) or is there variation?; and 3) does the inclusion of police culture at the officer level moderate the relationship between patrol beat context and police use of force? Findings suggest that a patrol beat's degree of concentrated disadvantage and homicide rate slightly influence officer culture at the individual level. Results show mixed evidence of a patrol beat culture. There is little support for the idea that characteristics of the patrol beat and individual officer culture interact to influence police use of force. I conclude with a detailed discussion of the methodological, theoretical, and policy implications as well as limitations and directions for future research. Details: Tempe, AZ: Arizona State University, 2016. 280p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed August 26, 2016 at: https://repository.asu.edu/items/39457 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://repository.asu.edu/items/39457 Shelf Number: 140045 Keywords: Neighborhoods and CrimePolice AccountabilityPolice CulturePolice DiscretionPolice Use of Force |
Author: Morrow, Weston Title: Examining the Potential for Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Use of Force During NYPD Stop and Frisk Activities Summary: Since the 1990s, stop and frisk activities have been a cornerstone of the New York Police Department (NYPD). The manner in which the NYPD has carried out stop, question, and frisks (SQFs), however, has been a focal point of discussion, resulting in public outrage and two major lawsuits. Recently, the Federal District Court Judge ruled that the NYPD was engaging in unconstitutional stop-and-frisk practices that targeted predominately Black and Latino New Yorkers. Questions surrounding the NYPD's SQF practices have almost exclusively focused on racial and ethnic disproportionality in the rate of stops without necessarily considering what transpired during the stop. This study will fill that void by examining the prevalence and nature of use of force during those stops, along with testing the minority threat hypothesis. By combining micro-level measures from the NYPD's 2012 "Stop, Question, and Frisk" database with macro-level variables collected from the United States Census Bureau, the current study examines police use of force in the context of SQF activities. The results should help judges, policy makers, police officers, and scholars understand the nature of police use of force in the context of SQFs. Details: Tempe, AZ: Arizona State University, 2015. 203p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed August 26, 2016 at: https://repository.asu.edu/attachments/157948/content/Morrow_asu_0010E_15162.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://repository.asu.edu/attachments/157948/content/Morrow_asu_0010E_15162.pdf Shelf Number: 140046 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice DiscretionPolice Use of ForceRacial DiscriminationRacial Profiling in Law Enforcement Stop and FriskStop and Search |
Author: Todd, Hilary Ellen Marta Title: The effects of citizen monitoring on the police: an examination of citizen monitoring and police use of justified force Summary: Citizen monitoring of police officers is an area of increasing importance in law enforcement research. The most powerful weapon against police misconduct is rapidly becoming the cellular phone and other hand held photography and videography devices. The practice of recording the police conducting their work either properly or improperly and subsequently uploading the footage onto the Internet has had marked effects on members of the force. Monitoring and surveillance are known to have a significant impact on individuals and their resulting actions (Campbell and Carlson, 2002). This study offers an examination of surveillance on the police population. Through the use of a qualitative approach, the present study explores the impact citizen monitoring has on police officers. The study addresses officers' perceptions of citizen monitoring, and the impact the interviewees felt it had on their use of justified force. Guided by the question: "What impact does citizen monitoring have on police use of force, and would body worn cameras (BWC) serve as a means to mitigate this impact?", this exploratory study found that indeed, the officers interviewed may be impacted by citizen monitoring, and further, that a great deal of uneasiness exists within the force around the potential adoption of BWC technology. Details: Burnaby, BC: Simon Fraser University, 2015. 132p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed August 26, 2016 at: http://summit.sfu.ca/item/15420 Year: 2015 Country: Canada URL: http://summit.sfu.ca/item/15420 Shelf Number: 134047 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCitizen MonitoringPolice AccountabilityPolice Decision MakingPolice DiscretionPolice Use of ForceSocial Media |
Author: Harris, David A. Title: Picture This: Body Worn Video Devices ('Head Cams') as Tools for Ensuring Fourth Amendment Compliance by Police Summary: A new technology has emerged with the potential to increase police compliance with the law and to increase officers' accountability for their conduct. Called "body worn video" (BWV) or "head cams," these devices are smaller, lighter versions of the video and audio recording systems mounted on the dash boards of police cars. These systems are small enough that they consist of something the size and shape of a cellular telephone earpiece, and are worn by police officers the same way. Recordings are downloaded directly from the device into a central computer system for storage and indexing, which protects them from tampering and assures a defensible chain of custody. This article explores the good that BWV can do for both the police and members of the public, particularly how these recordings might play a role in assuring that officers comply with Fourth Amendment search and seizure rules. Field tests of BWV in Britain have shown that police used the devices to keep records and record evidence, and that the devices were a uniquely effective bulwark against false complaints. Coupled with a requirement that every citizen encounter involving a search or seizure be recorded, and a presumption that without a recording the factfinder must draw inferences in favor of the defendant, BWV can help resolve disputes over search and seizure activities, and give the public a heretofore unattainable degree of assurance that police officers enforcing the law obey it as they do so. While BWV is certainly no panacea, and presents significant issues of tampering and reliability, it can help bring accountability and rule following to an aspect of police behavior that has largely proven resistant to it. Details: Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 2010. 19p. Source: Internet Resource: U. of Pittsburgh Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2010-13 : Accessed August 26, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1596901 Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1596901 Shelf Number: 140049 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCamera TechnologyCamerasLaw Enforcement TechnologyPolice AccountabilityPolice SurveillancePolice Use of Force |
Author: Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Title: Law Enforcement and Violence: The Divide Between Black and White Americans Summary: The difficult relationship between the police and blacks in the United States is evident from the results of a recent Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey. The poll highlights a number of racial divisions in Americans' attitudes toward law enforcement and the criminal justice system. However, the survey finds agreement across racial groups on many of the causes of police violence. It also reveals a broad consensus among the public that a number of policy changes could reduce tensions between minorities and police and limit violence against civilians. The nationwide poll was collected July 17 to 19 using the AmeriSpeak Omnibus, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 1,223 adults, including 311 blacks who were sampled at a higher rate than their proportion of the population for reasons of analysis. Three Things You Should Know From The AP-NORC Center's Poll on Law Enforcement and Violence Black Americans are nearly four times as likely as whites to describe violence against civilians by police officers as an extremely or very serious problem. More than 80 percent of blacks say police are too quick to use deadly force and they are more likely to use it against a black person. Two-thirds of whites label police use of deadly force as necessary and nearly 6 in 10 say race is not a factor in decisions to use force. There is support among both blacks and whites for many changes in policies and procedures that could be effective in reducing tensions between law enforcement and minorities and limiting police violence against civilians. For example, 71 percent say body cameras on police would be an effective deterrent to police aggression and 52 percent think community policing programs would help reduce the friction in minority communities. Details: Chicago: The Associated Press and NORC, 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Issue Brief: Accessed August 29, 2016 at: http://www.apnorc.org/PDFs/Police%20Violence/Issue%20Brief_PoliceFinal.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.apnorc.org/PDFs/Police%20Violence/Issue%20Brief_PoliceFinal.pdf Shelf Number: 140064 Keywords: Police Use of ForcePolice-Minority RelationsPublic AttitudesPublic Opinion |
Author: Guerin, Paul Title: City of Albuquerque Police Department On Body Camera System Research Summary: This research study has several goals. First, to document the use of the OBCS, second, to provide information useful for informing the development of a policy regarding the use of the OBCS and third, to provide information that will inform a method to audit the developed policy and the use of the system by APD personnel. Currently it is not known how officers actually use the OBCS in the Albuquerque Police Department (APD). According to an APD special order authorized May 4, 2012, officers were required to use their OBCS during every citizen contact that is the result of a dispatched call for service, arrest warrant, search warrant, or traffic stop. On May 6, 2012 General Order 1-39 Use of Tape/Digital Recorders was made effective replacing an earlier version. This order includes the language in the Special Order and provides a list of incidents that must also be recorded. Another version of General Order 1-39 was made effective January 22, 2013 with some additional language including noting when officers should activate their cameras. It appears to also differentiate between dispatched and non-dispatched events and situations. Via our focus groups it appears many officers have interpreted the policy to include any citizen contact. The January 2013 general order appears to be modified by an October 2014 special order dealing with video evidence tagging procedures, which directed all officers to video if logged on a call where an arrest, criminal summons or non-traffic citation was issued. These four managing documents are found in the appendices of this report. Official information sources for this study included the OBCS information system, City of Albuquerque Human Resource information, Automated Reporting System (ARS) data, APD computer aided dispatch information (CAD), and focus groups with sworn APD staff. City of Albuquerque and APD staff collaborated in providing access to the necessary official information and provided technical information in matching and merging information from the data sources. Eleven focus groups with APD patrol officers, sergeants, and lieutenants were conducted, as well as three focus groups with Investigative Bureau detectives and one focus group with a mix of Investigative Bureau sergeants and several SWAT officers. APD staff was helpful in arranging these focus groups. APD has implemented an OBCS and similar camera programs are being implemented in law enforcement agencies around the country. This is a fairly new technology for law enforcement and best practices have not been established regarding the use of cameras, video storage and download protocols, privacy concerns, use of evidence, and officer training. Literature addressing these and other issues suggests police departments have much to consider before investing in and implementing an OBCS. This study involved two primary tasks. First, a review and analysis of APD video camera data, APD CAD data, and human resource data for APD officers was completed and second, focus groups of patrol officers, detectives, sergeants, and lieutenants from the APD Field Service Bureau (FSB), the Investigative Bureau (IB), and Special Services Bureau (SSB) were conducted. This report includes this introduction, a literature review of current practices in the field of on body camera systems, a study design and methodology section, the analysis and discussion of the data listed above, and a recommendations and conclusions section. Details: Albuquerque: University of New Mexico, Institute for Social Research, 2016. 92p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 29, 2016 at: https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents/obcs-report-draft-all-bureaus-master-final_v102022016.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents/obcs-report-draft-all-bureaus-master-final_v102022016.pdf Shelf Number: 140073 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCamera Technology Law Enforcement Technology Police AccountabilityPolice SurveillancePolice Technology Police Use of Force |
Author: Morrison, Caren Myers Title: Body Camera Obscura: The Semiotics of Police Video Summary: Our understanding of violent encounters between the police and civilians is now primarily mediated by video images. With surprising rapidity, recording these encounters has become an integral part of modern policing, sparking the current body camera bonanza. When these recordings are used as evidence in police use-of-force cases, the factfinders must decide whether the police officer's actions were "reasonable" under the Fourth Amendment. But there is an unrecognized fault line between "police video" (video recorded by the police in the course of their official duties) and "eyewitness video" (recorded by bystander-witnesses). Police video tends to recirculate dominant narratives of violence and masculinity as heroic ideals that coexist easily with the legal standard of the reasonable officer. In contrast, eyewitness videos typically offer the counter-narrative of an abusive state. These images have evidentiary value, but also cultural currency. They reflect back to us our feelings about violence, race, masculinity, and the law. This article proposes a descriptive critique of the use of video evidence in assessing the lawfulness of police violence. Using insights from semiotics, film criticism, cultural theory, and cognitive psychology, it attempts to sketch out a more nuanced way of approaching video evidence in the context of these cases. Details: Atlanta: Georgia State University - College of Law, 2016. 44p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 30, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2826747 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2826747 Shelf Number: 140085 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasFourth AmendmentPolice AccountabilityPolice ShootingsPolice Use of ForceVideo Technology |
Author: Goff, Phillip Atiba Title: The Science of Justice: Race, Arrests, and Police Use of Force Summary: Despite the importance of understanding how race intersects with police use of force, little research has used police administrative data to investigate whether or not disparities exist. Because the dominant narrative around race and law enforcement is that crime rates drive police behavior, we used data from the National Justice Database - the Center for Policing Equity's project to provide national-level data and analyses on police behavior - to investigate racial disparities in use of force benchmarking against demographics of local arrest rates. Even though this is a conservative estimate of bias, the analyses of 12 law enforcement departments from geographically and demographically diverse locations revealed that racial disparities in police use of force persist even when controlling for racial distribution of local arrest rates. Additionally, multiple participating departments still demonstrated racial disparities when force incidents were bench-marked exclusively against Part I violent arrests, such that Black residents were still more likely than Whites to be targeted for force. This method is very likely prone to underestimate racial disparities because African Americans are over-represented in violent crime arrests but Part I violent crimes constitute only 1/24th of all arrests nationally (BJS, 2012), and previous research has found arrests for violent crimes to involve police use of force only 1.3 times as often as arrests for all other crimes (Worden, 1995). These disparities were robust across multiple categories of force (hand weapon, OC spray, and Tasers). In addition to these findings and consistent with previous literature, Taser usage represented a large percentage of departments' use of force. Specifically, residents who were targeted for force were far more likely to be targeted by Tasers than by deadly weapons. While previous research has demonstrated the stark rise of Taser usage (Taylor et al., 2011) and its potential to reduce injuries (Alpert et al., 2011), the relatively high incidence of Taser usage relative to all other categories (it was the second most common category across all departments trailing only hand/body weapons) deserves significantly more public and scholarly attention given that Tasers are also the category closest to use of deadly force in most use of force continuums. It is important to be cautious about overgeneralizing these results because of the relatively small number of departments and because we do not know very much about what residents did during the interactions that turned forceful. However, the narrative that crime is the primary driver of racial disparities is not supported within the context of these departments. This suggests that scholars and practitioners should look at racial disparities in other situational factors (e.g., resistance, drug and alcohol use, and officer perceptions of dangerousness) to determine whether or not they explain racial disparities in force. Details: Los Angeles: Center for Policing Equity, 2016. 29p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 20, 2016 at: http://policingequity.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/CPE_SoJ_Race-Arrests-UoF_2016-07-08-1130.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://policingequity.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/CPE_SoJ_Race-Arrests-UoF_2016-07-08-1130.pdf Shelf Number: 140377 Keywords: Police BehaviorPolice Use of ForceRacial DisparitiesStun GunsTasersUse of Non-Lethal Force |
Author: Morin, Rich Title: The Racial Confidence Gap in Police Performance: Blacks, whites also have dramatically different views on causes of fatal encounters between blacks and police Summary: The deep racial tensions seen in many areas of American life underlie how blacks and whites view police in their communities, as well as their reactions to the deadly encounters in recent years between blacks and law enforcement officers, according to a new survey by Pew Research Center. Only about a third of blacks but roughly three-quarters of whites say police in their communities do an excellent or good job in using the appropriate force on suspects, treating all racial and ethnic minorities equally and holding officers accountable when misconduct occurs. Roughly half of all blacks say local police do an excellent or good job combatting crime - a view held by about eight-inten whites. Blacks and whites also differ over the root causes of the fatal incidents between police and blacks in recent years. Even before the recent lethal encounters between police and black men in Tulsa and Charlotte, the survey found that blacks are 25 percentage points more likely than whites to say the deaths of blacks during encounters with police in recent years are signs of a broader societal problem and not merely isolated incidents. At the same time, whites and blacks both see the complexity of the situation. Majorities of each race say that both anti-police bias and a genuine desire to hold officers accountable for their actions play a part in fueling the protests that have often followed these fatal incidents, though whites are more skeptical than blacks about the demonstrators' motives. There is less agreement on which is the more important motivator: For whites, it is anti-police bias (85% vs. 63% who see a sincere desire to promote accountability); for blacks it's reversed (79% of blacks cite accountability, 56% opposition to the police). The survey, conducted Aug. 16-Sept. 12 online and by mail among 4,538 U.S. adults, also found that about eight-in-ten blacks and a larger share of whites favor the use of body cameras by police to record encounters with citizens. Majorities of both races also believe that the use of so-called body cams would prompt officers to act more appropriately when dealing with the public. The survey was completed before a recent deadly encounter in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that left a black man dead and the white officer who shot him charged with manslaughter, as well as a fatal shooting of a black man in Charlotte, North Carolina, that sparked two nights of unrest in that city. Details: Washington, DC: Pew Research Center, 2016. 13p. Source: Internet Resource: http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2016/09/29/the-racial-confidence-gap-in-police-performance/ Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2016/09/29/the-racial-confidence-gap-in-police-performance/ Shelf Number: 140528 Keywords: Police EffectivenessPolice LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community Relations |
Author: Carbado, Devon W. Title: From Stopping Black People to Killing Black People: The Fourth Amendment Pathways to Police Violence Summary: 2014 to 2016 likely will go down as a significant if not watershed moment in the history of U.S. race relations. Police killing of African Americans has engendered further conversations about race and policing. Yet, in most of the discussions about these tragic deaths, little attention has been paid to a significant dimension of the police violence problem: the legalization of racial profiling in Fourth Amendment law. This legalization of racial profiling is not a sideline or peripheral feature of Fourth Amendment law. It is embedded in the analytical structure of the doctrine in ways that enable police officers to force engagements with African Americans with little or no basis. The frequency of these engagements exposes African Americans not only to the violence of ongoing police surveillance, contact, and social control but also to the violence of serious bodily injury and death. Which is to say, Fourth Amendment law facilitates the space between stopping black people and killing black people. This Article demonstrates precisely how by employing a series of hypotheticals to reveal the ways in which the extraordinary violence police officers often use against Africans Americans can grow out of the ordinary police interactions Fourth Amendment law empowers police officers to stage. Details: Los Angeles: UCLA School of Law, 2016. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: UCLA School of Law, Public Law Research Paper No. 16-41 : Accessed October 6, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2844312 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2844312 Shelf Number: 147823 Keywords: African AmericansDeadly ForceFourth AmendmentPolice Use of ForceRacial Profiling |
Author: Buchanan, Kim S. Title: Electronic Defense Weapon Analysis and Findings, 2015 Summary: In an effort to increase transparency and better understand taser 1 use, the Connecticut General Assembly passed Public Act 14-149, An Act Concerning the Use of Electronic Defense Weapons by Police Officers, in 2014. PA 14-149 directed the Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POSTC) to draft and distribute a model policy for regulating the use of tasers. This law requires that every police department adopt and maintain a taser policy that meets or exceeds the standards set by the POSTC model policy. The new law also requires police officers to document each incident in which a taser was used and for law enforcement agencies authorizing such use to report all incidents to the Office of Policy and Management (OPM), Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division, by January 15 of the following year. The Institute of Municipal and Regional Policy (IMRP), at Central Connecticut State University, was tasked by the Office of Policy and Managements Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division with compiling and analyzing the reported taser data for 2015. The findings and recommendations in this report are based on analysis of the data submitted by 79 police departments in 2015, including a review of policies governing the use of tasers. This was the first year in which data on taser use has been collected in Connecticut. Based on numerous factors, IMRP researchers believe the data collected is not indicative of the entirety of required incident reporting based on PA 14-149. Therefore, while the descriptive statistics presented in this report raise many questions as to how, when, why, and on whom reported taser usage occurs within law enforcement agencies, they cannot be taken to conclusively establish what is happening with respect to all law enforcement taser use in Connecticut. As such, this first year of taser findings should be interpreted with caution. Details: New Britain, CT: Central Connecticut State University, Institute for Municipal & Regional Policy, 2016. 78p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 7, 2016 at: http://www.ccsu.edu/imrp/projects/files/EDW.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://www.ccsu.edu/imrp/projects/files/EDW.pdf Shelf Number: 145110 Keywords: Electronic Control Weapons Non-Lethal Weapons Police Use of Force Police Weapons Stun Guns Tasers |
Author: Shultz, Ashley Title: Early Warning Systems: What's New? What's Working? Summary: CNA-a not-for-profit organization that focuses on operations and applied research to solve tough issues facing communities and governments at all levels-has worked with more than 50 police agencies over the past 10 years on issues relating to use of force, deadly use of force, community policing, citizen complaints against police, ambushes of police officers, violence reduction, innovative policing practices, police-community engagement, and rigorous evaluation of police initiatives. For several years-predating the publicized police shootings of civilians (or deaths in custody) in 2014 in Ferguson, MO; New York, NY; and Cleveland, OH-CNA, through its work with the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Smart Policing Initiative and the Violence Reduction Network, and with the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Collaborative Reform Initiative, heard from police officers at all ranks about their desire for better approaches to avoiding such catastrophic incidents. Many departments across the country utilize an early warning system (EWS)-a data-based police management tool that identifies "at risk officers" who are frequently the subject of complaints or demonstrate patterns of inappropriate behavior that could lead to more serious problems. The system is designed to alert police departments of such behavior and afford them the opportunity to provide some form of intervention, such as counseling or training, before an officer is in a situation that warrants formal disciplinary action, or worse. Early warning systems capture factors such as how often officers are involved in shootings, get complaints, use sick days, or get into car accidents, and then notify departmental supervisors once a specific threshold is reached. According to the 1999 National Survey of Early Warning Systems, the most recent survey on early warning systems to date, 39 percent of all municipal and county law enforcement agencies that serve populations greater than 50,000 either had an early warning system in place or were planning to implement one. Currently, there is concern about the effectiveness of early warning systems-whether these systems are capturing the right data and alerting supervisors to potential problematic behavior. For example, some officers are concerned they could be flagged down merely because they work in a high-crime area, where they are more likely to use their weapon or physical force.4 While the EWS forewarns, it is up to the departmental supervisors as to how they act on the information received. This apparent dilemma-whether these systems work, and whether they serve their intended purpose-prompted CNA to convene an Executive Session on September 24, 2015 in Arlington, VA: "Early Warning Systems: What's New? What's Working?" The Executive Session included panels of speakers representing different perspectives on these pertinent questions. CNA asked a diverse group of practitioners, researchers, and analysts to step forward and discuss these important questions. They responded, and they did so with heartfelt sincerity- in many cases, reaching back to their own experiences with law enforcement, and conveying the lessons learned to the Executive Session's audience with emotion and insight. We hope you read this report with interest, curiosity, and an open mind. In this manner, we also hope that you respect the forthrightness of our presenters and audience participants. Lamentably, rare are the sincere, civil, data-informed, and productive discussions on matters such as these facing our nation, though such conversations are happening with increasing frequency, as our federal partners who participated in this Executive Session explain below. Please also note that this CNA Executive Session was the third in a series that we will continue to convene, so long as the nation has diverse and informed practitioners, community members, and decision makers willing to engage in these important dialogues. The participants in this Executive Session offered numerous suggestions for future session topics, which we will consider Details: Arlington, VA: CNA, 2015. 22p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 11, 2016 at: https://www.cna.org/cna_files/pdf/CRM-2015-U-012182.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://www.cna.org/cna_files/pdf/CRM-2015-U-012182.pdf Shelf Number: 140658 Keywords: Early Warning SystemsPolice AccountabilityPolice BehaviorPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "This Crooked System": Police Abuse and Reform in Pakistan Summary: Pakistan's police are among the most widely feared, disparaged, and least trusted government institutions in the country. The poor, and other vulnerable or marginalized groups, invariably face the greatest obstacles to obtaining justice in a system that is rigged against them. "This Crooked System": Police Abuse and Reform in Pakistan documents custodial torture, extrajudicial executions, and other serious human rights violations by the Pakistani police. The report also details the difficulties that victims of crime and police abuse face in obtaining justice, including police demands for bribes, biased investigations, and refusals to register complaints. Colonial-era police laws facilitate routine interference by local politicians and wealthy landowners in police operations. The report also examines human resource, financial, and other constraints that police say impact their ability to function properly, and looks at examples of good police practices that may serve as models for the future. Human Rights Watch urges the Pakistani government to investigate and appropriately discipline or prosecute police officials responsible for human rights violations and undertake necessary legal and policy reforms to transform the police into an accountable, efficient, and rights-respecting institution. Details: New York: HRW, 2016. 113p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 13, 2016 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/pakistan0916_web.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Pakistan URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/pakistan0916_web.pdf Shelf Number: 145444 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: U.S. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services Title: An Assessment of the San Francisco Police Department. Collaborative Reform Initiative Summary: In response to requests from city officials who asked the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct an in-depth review of the policies and practices of the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD), the COPS Office launched the Collaborative Reform Initiative for Technical Assistance (CRI-TA) with the SFPD. The COPS Office supports law enforcement agencies by implementing and sustaining reforms that increase public trust through improvements in community policing practices, transparency, professionalism, and accountability while taking into account national standards, promising practices, current and emerging research, and community expectations. Although the COPS Office found a department that is committed to making changes and working with the community, it also found a department with outdated use of force policies that fail the officers and the community and inadequate data collection that prevents leadership from understanding officer activities and ensure organizational accountability. The department lacked accountability measures to ensure that the department is being open and transparent while holding officers accountable. Disparities were found in traffic stops, post-stop searches, and use of deadly force against minorities. Altogether, the COPS Office identified 94 findings and developed 272 associated recommendations. This report is a road map to reform policing in San Francisco to conform to community expectations and improve public safety. This report summarizes the full assessment including findings and recommendations that will help the department modernize its policing practices and enhance community trust Details: Washington, DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2016. 432p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 13, 2016 at: https://ric-zai-inc.com/Publications/cops-w0817-pub.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://ric-zai-inc.com/Publications/cops-w0817-pub.pdf Shelf Number: 145539 Keywords: Police AccountabilityPolice AdministrationPolice LegitimacyPolice PerformancePolice Policies and PracticesPolice ReformPolice Use of Force |
Author: Amnesty International Title: Nigeria: 'You Have Signed Your Death Warrant': Torture and other ill treatment in the special anti-robbery squad (SARS) Summary: A Nigerian police unit set up to combat violent crime has instead been systematically torturing detainees in its custody as a means of extracting confessions and lucrative bribes, Amnesty International said in a report published today. In Nigeria: You have signed your death warrant, former detainees told Amnesty International they had been subjected to horrific torture methods, including hanging, starvation, beatings, shootings and mock executions, at the hands of corrupt officers from the feared Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). "A police unit created to protect the people has instead become a danger to society, torturing its victims with complete impunity while fomenting a toxic climate of fear and corruption," said Damian Ugwu, Amnesty International's Nigeria researcher. "Our research has uncovered a pattern of ruthless human rights violations where victims are arrested and tortured until they either make a 'confession' or pay officers a bribe to be released." Amnesty International has received reports from lawyers, human rights defenders and journalists and collected testimonies stating that some police officers in SARS regularly demand bribes, steal and extort money from criminal suspects and their families. "SARS officers are getting rich through their brutality. In Nigeria, it seems that torture is a lucrative business," said Ugwu. SARS detainees are held in a variety of locations, including a grim detention center in Abuja known as the 'Abattoir,' where Amnesty International found 130 detainees living in overcrowded cells. Amnesty International’s research shows that, in addition to its stated remit of tackling violent crime, SARS investigates civil matters and in some cases tortures detainees involved in contractual, business and even non-criminal disputes. Details: London: AI, 2016. 28p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 10, 2016 at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/nigeria_sars_report.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Nigeria URL: http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/nigeria_sars_report.pdf Shelf Number: 146295 Keywords: Police CorruptionPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForceTortureViolent Crime |
Author: Merola, Linda Title: Body Worn Cameras and the Courts: A National Survey of State Prosecutors Summary: Recent use-of-force events involving police in Ferguson, New York City, South Carolina, and Baltimore have led law enforcement agencies, citizens, civil rights groups, city councils, and even President Obama to push for the rapid adoption of body-worn camera (BWC) technology by police. In a period of less than a year, BWCs transformed from a technology that received little attention by many police leaders and scholars to one that has become rapidly prioritized, funded, and diffused into local policing. The U.S. Department of Justice has dedicated $20 million to fund the purchase of and technical assistance for BWCs. In 2013, the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics survey estimated that about a third of local law enforcement agencies had already adopted BWCs, and this percentage has likely greatly increased since then. At the same time, this rapid adoption of BWCs is occurring within a low information environment; researchers are only beginning to develop knowledge about the effects, both intentional and unintentional, of this technology. A recent review of the literature on the topic of BWCs conducted by White (2014) found only a handful of empirical studies of the technology completed by September 2013. These studies have focused on a narrow set of research questions about the impact of the cameras on police behavior. Further, only a small subset of these studies rigorously examined BWCs using valid scientific methods. As Lum (2015) has emphasized, rapid adoption of technologies in the absence of high-quality information about the impact of those technologies can lead to unanticipated and unintended consequences that may work against both police and citizen interests. The need for more research in this area is paramount, as the adoption of BWCs will likely have important implications for police-citizen interactions, police management and budgets, safety and security, citizen privacy, citizen reporting and cooperation with police, and practices in the courts. But what research questions and types of research should be pursued and why? How can we build a translatable knowledge base that is responsive and rigorous? In our first report to the Laura and John Arnold Foundation (see Lum, Koper, Merola, Scherer & Reioux, 2015), we reviewed the existing and ongoing body worn camera research to identify what was known about BWCs and what questions needed further research. In this report, we build on the knowledge about body worn cameras by carrying out a national survey of state prosecutors’ offices to begin to understand the impacts of BWCs on the courts. A random sample of 1,005 prosecutors’ offices was drawn from the National Census of State Prosecutors produced by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS, 2007). Mail-based surveys with an electronic option across multiple waves of data collection yielded 321 returned surveys. Lead prosecutors were asked about their use of body worn camera footage so far, as well as their opinions about key issues related to the technology and any concerns they have about the adoption of cameras by law enforcement in their jurisdictions. Key findings from this survey revealed: Most state prosecutors’ offices (almost two-thirds) are already working with BWC evidence. Of these offices, a full 42.1% have used the evidence for longer than one year. Yet, a significant number (almost one-fifth of those using BWC evidence) are still very new to working with it (one month or less). Nearly all prosecutors’ offices in jurisdictions with BWCs (92.6%) have used BWC evidence to prosecute private citizens. In comparison, 8.3% of offices located in jurisdictions with BWCs indicated that they have used BWC evidence to prosecute a police officer. It should be noted, however, that many more total citizens than police are prosecuted each year, so these percentages are not directly comparable. Generally, lead prosecutors expressed strong support for the use of BWCs. Very high numbers of respondents (79.5%) indicated that prosecutors in their offices support BWC use. Additionally, large majorities believed that BWC evidence will help the prosecution more than it will assist the defense (62.7%) and that BWCs would improve prosecutors’ overall ability to prosecute cases (65.8%). Fewer than 10% of lead prosecutors disagreed with these statements. Taken together, these results suggest that lead prosecutors view BWC evidence as a powerful prosecutorial tool. Yet, most lead prosecutors recognized that BWCs would produce both positive and negative impacts on prosecutors’ workloads. A majority (64.2%) believed that BWC evidence would aid in witness preparation. However, most lead prosecutors also felt that BWC evidence would increase prosecutors’ case preparation time (54% agreement) and make the discovery process more burdensome or difficult for them (56.2% agreement). These findings regarding increased workload make sense, as prosecutors will be working with a new stream of evidence. Lead prosecutors also emphasized a continuing need to address logistical issues related to BWC evidence. A majority 59.5% of respondents expressed concern over the redaction of BWC videos. Indeed, most lead prosecutors who are working with BWCs indicated that their offices must perform their own redactions, a process which can be costly and time consuming. 54.1% were also concerned about their office’s ability to quickly obtain videos from law enforcement for use in cases. Despite these logistical issues, however, relatively few respondents (12.7%) expressed concern over negative impacts to the police-prosecutor working relationship stemming from BWCs. When asked about resources needed to utilize BWCs effectively, the most urgent requests focused more on infrastructure and technology than on personnel. A large majority (65.4%) reported a high or moderately high need for upgrades to existing technology to view or show videos. 51.9% indicated that their offices would have high/moderately high requirements for resources to alter evidence cataloging or storage systems to effectively handle BWC evidence. Likewise, 46.3% of lead prosecutors also highlighted the need for resources to hire technical support personnel or provide technical training. In contrast, fewer respondents prioritized the need to hire either additional support personnel (36.7%) or additional prosecutors (22.4%) in response to BWCs. When asked about the impacts of BWCs on courts, lead prosecutors cited primarily positive prosecutorial outcomes. A majority believed that BWC evidence would increase both rates of conviction (58.3% agreement) and the frequency/likelihood of plea bargains (62.3% agreement). In fact, fewer than 10% of lead prosecutors disagreed that BWCs would produce either of these results. Comparatively few lead prosecutors believed that BWC evidence would increase either the numbers of appeals or case dismissals. However, larger numbers of respondents (42.5%) indicated neutrality with respect to the question about case dismissals, signaling that views on this point may not yet be well developed. However, nearly 30% of lead prosecutors believed that BWCs would lead to delays in case processing or other court delays. While not a majority, this finding is consistent with other results suggesting that logistical issues of evidence transfer, storage, and sufficient technical training are yet to be fully resolved. Details: Fairfax, VA: George Mason University, Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy, 2016. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 10, 2016 at: http://cebcp.org/wp-content/technology/BWCProsecutors.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://cebcp.org/wp-content/technology/BWCProsecutors.pdf Shelf Number: 146965 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasEvidence GatheringPolice AccountabilityPolice SurveillancePolice Use of ForceProsecutors |
Author: British Columbia. Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner Title: Taser Technology Review: Final Report Summary: Since the production of our Interim Report, the focus of the investigative team has been to provide suggested Course Training Standards in the areas of Conducted Energy Devices (CED) (i.e.: TASER), Excited Delirium (ED) and Restraint Protocols (RP). These are not intended to be endpoints; rather they reflect best practices based on research available at this time. This Course Training Standards package will be made available upon its completion and is intended to support several of our recommendations in the Interim Report. Since the Interim Report was released in September, 2004, several new studies relevant to this area have been published. The Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology Study (PACE), although criticized because of the participation of TASER medical and technical personnel, appears to demonstrate that adequate margins of safety exist with respect to the issue of ventricular fibrillation (VF). The Human Effects Centre of Excellence (HECOE) Study, produced by the U.S. Military, also confirmed that VF was unlikely to be a risk, although it identified the potential for serious unintended consequences, "albeit with estimated low probabilities of occurrence." Research done by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) confirmed several of the hypotheses present in our Interim Report, as it demonstrated that very lengthy TASER exposures (three minutes of five second on - five second off cycling) had significant impacts on blood levels of carbon dioxide, lactate, pH, and other markers. We believe this study provides support for the proposition that police should, where possible, be minimizing multiple TASER applications. The effect that TASER application has on respiration remains an area of concern. Muscular tetany that impairs respiration may be an operative factor that has been previously unrecognized. This concern also relates to the issue of multiple usages. Life preservation and retrieval in situations where an individual is at high risk of death proximal to restraint requires changes not just to police protocols and procedures but also the methods used by ambulance personnel and emergency room physicians. These changes require extensive research to ensure they are based on the best available information. There are now two international research initiatives that may provide definitive answers to many of the ongoing TASER debates. In the U.K, the Defence Sciences Technology Laboratory (DSTL) has carried out experiments designed to study the effects of stimulant drugs and electrical current on cardiac tissue, potentially providing some insight as to why stimulant drug abusers make up the overwhelming majority of people who die in police restraint. In the U.S., the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is funding a three year study at the University of Wisconsin to map TASER current in the body and to monitor changes to blood chemistry and respiration. In Canada, the Canadian Police Research Centre (CPRC) is proposing a cross-Canada epidemiological study that will focus on ED and gathering data from emergency room admissions. We believe this Canadian initiative, chosen to coordinate with other international studies, will provide previously unavailable insight into this condition and its medical management. The Amnesty International (AI) report on the TASER makes a number of recommendations we have considered in our Final Report. Although we feel some of those recommendations have merit, we believe that blanket prohibitions do not always obtain the desired outcome. The reasonableness of any use of force will always be determined by the situational factors. Our responsibility as a police community is to give officers the information to make the best possible decision. Details: Victoria, BC: Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner, 2015. 43p. Source: Internet Resource: OPCC File No. 2474: Accessed November 17, 2016 at: http://www.llbc.leg.bc.ca/public/pubdocs/bcdocs/376654/taser_finalrpt.pdf Year: 2005 Country: Canada URL: http://www.llbc.leg.bc.ca/public/pubdocs/bcdocs/376654/taser_finalrpt.pdf Shelf Number: 140205 Keywords: Non-lethal WeaponsPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Renauer, Brian Title: Public Contact with and Perceptions Regarding Police in Portland, Oregon Summary: On September 12, 2012 the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint in the Federal District Court for Oregon asserting that the City of Portland has engaged in a pattern and practice of unnecessary or excessive force against persons experiencing a mental health crisis. This survey is the result of a settlement agreement between Portland's City Council and the DOJ which specified the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) develop a means of assessing public perceptions. The first report generated by the research team examined general attitudes of residents. This second report focuses on an area pertinent to the DOJ settlement - police contact experiences. The purpose of this second report is to: 1) examine whether persons who report voluntary (e.g. asking police for help) or involuntary (e.g. being stopped by the police) police contacts in the past year felt they were treated "fairly" or "unfairly", and 2) examine whether perceptions of treatment relate to attitudes about the Bureau. Data for the report were obtained from a postal survey sent in July of 2013 to a random sample of Portland addresses, including an oversampling of Census tracks with higher percentages of African American, Hispanic/Latino, and younger residents. Details: Portland, OR: Portland State University, Criminal Justice Policy Research Institute, 2013. 49p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 13, 2016 at: http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=cjpri_briefs Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=cjpri_briefs Shelf Number: 146047 Keywords: Police LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen InteractionsPolice-Community Relations |
Author: Renauer, Brian Title: Public Perceptions Regarding the Police Bureau and Crime in Portland, Oregon Summary: The "Portland Public Safety Survey" was implemented in the summer of 2013 to fulfill research needs and begin baseline data collection necessitated by the settlement agreement approved by Portland City Council with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on November 14, 2012. Here are some examples from the settlement agreement that specify the need for a general population survey and the focus of measures. Page 3 of the settlement agreement notes a need for measures that, "will assist the Parties and the community in determining whether, (2) community trust in PPB has increased; and (3) the improvements will be sustainable." Page 52 of the settlement agreement authorizes the City to conduct a representative survey of the Portland community, "regarding their experiences with and perceptions of PPB's prior community outreach efforts and accountability efforts and where those efforts could be improved, to inform the development and implementation of the CEO Plan." The bulk of the settlement agreement focuses on reforming use of force policy and training with a particular focus on mental health crisis management. Dr. Brian Renauer of Portland State University and his research team entered into a contract with the Portland Police Bureau (PPB), with the approval of City Council, to address the above needs stipulated in the settlement agreement. This is the first of three reports required in the contract. The methodology and content of the general population survey was informed by the language of the settlement agreement, meetings with PPB and City representatives, and resource constraints. The focus of the general population survey is on five content areas: Section 1. Legitimacy and Trust Section 2. Evaluation of PPB’s Performance Over the Past Year Section 3. Perceptions of Use of Force Section 4. Perceptions of Safety Section 5. Police Contact Experiences Sections 1 through 4 are reviewed in this report and section 5 will be the focus of a separate report. It is important to point out this report represents “baseline” data. In other words, it is the first year of data collection and there are as yet no appropriate comparison data that would allow us to assess changes over time. Nor are there nationally established policing standards that could be used in comparing Portland to other regions. For these reasons the report does not make value judgments regarding the findings. Instead, the report is designed to help the City understand existing public perceptions, identify potential factors that may be influencing perceptions, and to generate a list of strategies that could help to sustain and improve public opinion of local law enforcement. Details: Portland, OR: Portland State University, Criminal Justice Policy Research Institute, 2013. 51p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 13, 2016 at: http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=cjpri_briefs Year: 2013 Country: United States URL: http://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=cjpri_briefs Shelf Number: 146048 Keywords: Police AccountabilityPolice LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen InteractionsPolice-Community RelationsPublic Opinion |
Author: Shadung, Mothepa Title: Tools of torture? Use of electric shock equipment among African Police Summary: orture is not an act that happens in isolation. It occurs in many contexts, and there are several techniques and means by which pain and suffering are inflicted on suspects, convicted inmates and others deprived of their liberty. This policy brief highlights how African law-enforcement agencies or government security forces potentially misuse electric shock equipment in a way that contravenes international and continental anti-torture frameworks. It then discusses reported cases of such misuse in South Africa. Finally, recommendations are made on how the use of electric shock equipment on the continent could be curbed, along with ways to build on efforts to prohibit and prevent torture. Recommendations 1 All policies and training with respect to the treatment of persons in custody should be compatible with national, regional and international human-rights standards. 2 African states should ratify the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 3 All incidents of torture, assault and death in police custody should be reported and carefully monitored as a matter of public accountability and transparency, and perpetrators prosecuted. 4 Handheld direct contact electric shock devices and body-worn electric shock devices designed for law enforcement are prone to abuse and should be prohibited. Details: Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2016. 12p. Source: Internet Resource: Policy Brief 85: Accessed December 19, 2016 at: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief85.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Africa URL: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/PolicyBrief85.pdf Shelf Number: 140526 Keywords: Electric ShocksPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasersTorture |
Author: Police Executive Research Forum Title: ICAT: Integrating Communications, Assessment, and Tactics, A Training Guide for Defusing Critical Incidents Summary: Since 2014, the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) has been studying developments regarding police use of force, particularly with respect to officer safety and the safety of the people they encounter, and the impact of these issues on police-community relationships. While PERF's research and policy development on use-of-force issues go back decades, our recent efforts have followed a series of highly publicized police use-of-force incidents across the country, many of them captured on video and some resulting in large-scale protests and demonstrations. There is a growing realization among leaders of the policing profession and members of the public that, in many communities, police use of force has become a critical issue that is setting back community-police relations and may even be impacting public safety and officer safety. It was clear that additional research and new ways of thinking about police use of force were needed, and PERF members and PERF as an organization stepped forward to fill that need. PERF has convened several national conferences and working groups of police officials from the across the country on these issues. We also have conducted survey research and field visits in the United States and internationally, and have published a series of reports detailing our work. Our most recent publication, Guiding Principles on Use of Force, presents 30 recommended best practices in the key areas of use-of-force policy, training and tactics, equipment, and information needs. This ICAT Training Guide should be used in conjunction with the Guiding Principles report. Details: Washington, DC: PERF, 2016. 72p. Source: Internet Resource: Critical Issues in Policing Series: Accessed December 21, 2016 at: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/icattrainingguide.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.policeforum.org/assets/icattrainingguide.pdf Shelf Number: 147775 Keywords: Crisis ManagementPolice CommunicationsPolice Education and TrainingPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community Relations |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "Bound by Brotherhood": India's Failure to End Killings in Police Custody Summary: Indian police often torture criminal suspects to punish them, to gather information, or to coerce confessions. Despite changes in laws and guidelines and the promise of police reforms since 1997, official data shows at least 591 people died in police custody between 2010 and 2015. While police blame most of the deaths on suicide, illness, or natural causes, in many such cases family members allege that the deaths were the result of torture; allegations sometimes supported by independent investigations. Bound by Brotherhood examines the reasons for the continuing impunity for custodial deaths in India, and recommends steps that authorities should take to end it. It details the scope of the problem drawing on in-depth Human Rights Watch investigations into 17 custodial deaths that occurred between 2009 and 2015. In most of these cases, family members, with the assistance of lawyers and activists, were able to seek new inquiries, thus providing access to witness testimonies, autopsy reports, or police statements. In each of the 17 cases, the police did not follow proper arrest procedures—including documenting the arrest, notifying family members, or producing the suspect before a magistrate within 24 hours—which made the suspect more vulnerable to abuse and may have contributed to a belief by police that any mistreatment could be covered up. In most of the cases, investigating authorities, mainly the police, failed to take steps that could have helped ensure accountability for the deaths. Human Rights Watch calls on the Indian government to strictly enforce existing law and guidelines on arrest and detention and ensure that police officers implicated in torture and other ill-treatment, regardless of rank, are disciplined or prosecuted as appropriate. Details: New York: HRW, 2016. 128p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 27, 2017 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/india1216_web_0.pdf Year: 2016 Country: India URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/india1216_web_0.pdf Shelf Number: 144918 Keywords: Deadly ForceDeaths in CustodyHomicidesPolice BrutalityPolice CustodyPolice Use of ForceTorture |
Author: Kreuzer, Peter Title: If they resist, kill them all: Police vigilantism in the Philippines Summary: In May of 2016, Rodrigo Duterte was elected President of the Philippines and inaugurated into office on June 30. During the election campaign he was already focusing on ridding the country of drug-related crime and indicated his willingness to tolerate, if not support, the killing of suspects by the police. After entering office, he officially launched a comprehensive campaign against drug-related crime that has since cost the lives of several thousand suspects. While anonymous vigilantes are responsible for a significant share, if not the majority of these extralegal killings, in four months the police killed more than 1,000 suspects in so-called "legitimate encounters" that were justified as actions carried out in self-defense. This report then looks at a vastly under-researched phenomenon: extrajudicial police vigilantism involving killings by on-duty police officers that are masked as "legitimate encounters" with criminals. It argues that, while the Philippines have a strong tradition of death-squad killings, this has been complemented for a long time by a practice of "social cleansing" that did not make it necessary for agents of the state to deny complicity: official police vigilantism. On the contrary, such vigilante killings could be utilized as evidence of a strong state. However, in the past such police vigilantism was a local phenomenon. This changed under the new president, who nationalized the local practice and thereby changed its dynamics. This report provides an overview of the pattern of killings of suspects by members of the Philippine National Police while on duty currently taking place. The main section of the report analyzes past patterns of “legitimate encounters” in a number of selected regions and provinces of the Philippines. The integration of these two datasets allows for a comparison not only among regions and provinces but also over time. Consideration of this quantitative data is complemented by sketches of the dynamics driving current reactions to the new policy in a number of provinces and cities. Going beyond the Philippines, this study also provides a comparative dataset on similar forms of deadly police violence for a small set of countries, regions and cities that permits a comparison of past and present Philippines practice. The detailed analysis shows that: • in most, but not all of the various case studies, there has been a long tradition of police-vigilantism, • regions, provinces and cities that have exhibited higher levels of police vigilantism in the past tend to react more strongly to the presidential campaign that legitimized extralegal killings under the pretext of a "legitimate encounter," • those cases with the highest levels of police vigilantism both now and in the past tend to be the most "developed" ones, fulfilling a metropolitan function at either a national or regional level, • there is no link between threats to the police and their willingness to kill suspects in "legitimate encounters," • prior to the present wave of extrajudicial killings, the magnitude of violent "legitimate encounters" was moderate, although they were carried out by clearly vigilante police forces targeting suspects, • while the patterns of "legitimate encounters" have not changed in the current campaign, the number of extra-legal killings has risen dramatically since the election of President Duterte, • Philippines police officers did not have to learn a new practice; they did not have to unlearn firmly established convictions about due process. They transformed an established but sparingly used practice into a key instrument for reducing crime and for strengthening institutions, • local leaders' reactions to the presidential campaign depend to a significant extent on the local leaders' past perceptions of utilizing the police as a force for "social cleansing" and the leaders’ current power base in the face of rising pressure to conform to the central leadership’s expectations. Going beyond empirical analysis of the data on past and present police vigilantism in the Philippines, I maintain that the present administration uses police vigilantism on the national level to simulate a strong state and thereby achieve widespread public acclaim and acquiescence. By establishing the Philippine National Police as his power base, the new president has within a few months successfully hollowed out democratic checks and balances and installed himself as the foremost “boss” at the national level. While forceful personalities are a regular feature of Philippines politics, their power is normally limited by other bosses who contend for power and wealth. Like Ferdinand Marcos before him, Rodrigo Duterte is well on his way to neutralizing this division of powers – the only one that works well in the Philippines during "normal" times. Currently, it seems that the Philippines are on a direct path toward a regime that may be likened to an electoral dictatorship, where a president, through the shrewd manipulation of public discourse and the resulting outstanding public support, and with the help of the national police, is succeeding in subjugating the various political families that make up the Philippines political elite. Details: Frankfurt am Main: Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF) 2016. 43p. Source: Internet Resource: PRIF Report No. 142 : Accessed February 1, 2017 at: https://www.hsfk.de/fileadmin/HSFK/hsfk_publikationen/prif142.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Philippines URL: https://www.hsfk.de/fileadmin/HSFK/hsfk_publikationen/prif142.pdf Shelf Number: 145096 Keywords: Deadly ForceDrug OffendersExtrajudicial KillingsPolice BrutalityPolice Use of ForcePolice ViolenceVigilantism |
Author: Bromwich Group LLC Title: The Durability of Police Reform: The Metropolitan Police Department and Use of Force: 2008-2015 Summary: This report evaluates whether the District of Columbia's Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) remains in compliance with the June 2001 Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between MPD, the District of Columbia, and the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). The 2001 MOA required MPD to adopt a broad set of reforms relating to the use of force by police officers, and to incorporate those reforms into policies, procedures, and training. The goal was to create a culture of accountability and constitutional policing within MPD. Although MPD is currently under no legal obligation to maintain these reforms, they establish meaningful benchmarks for assessing MPD's current management of the use of force. We were asked to undertake this review by the Office of the District of Columbia Auditor (ODCA). This report reflects fieldwork conducted from May through late September 2015 and includes certain use of force data through the end of 2015. We have seen much that is positive in our review of MPD. MPD's command staff remains committed to limiting and managing use of force - and to fair and constitutional policing. MPD has reduced its use of the most serious types of force, including firearms, even during periods of increased crime in the District of Columbia. Importantly, we have seen no evidence that the excessive use of force has reemerged as a problem within MPD. But we have also identified some significant shortcomings that need to be addressed, including changes in the requirements for reporting and investigating use of force that impair MPD's ability to manage use of force, and declines in the quality of use of force investigations. In addition, we found systemic problems, involving both MPD and the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (USAO), that result in excessive delays in resolving officer-involved fatal shootings. All of this is described in detail in this report. Our review, although limited to MPD, comes at a time of intense national focus on the relationship between local law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve. Within the last two years alone, the use of force policies and practices of police departments across the country - in Ferguson, Baltimore, New York City, Cleveland, Albuquerque, Newark, and, most recently, Chicago - have been the focus of community unrest, DOJ civil rights investigations, and intense media scrutiny. In addition, in December 2014, President Obama created the Task Force on 21st Century Policing with a mandate to examine use of force issues. MPD was one of the first local law enforcement agencies to successfully navigate a reform process initially triggered by profound concerns about its use of force and its management of use of force. Beginning in 1999, MPD experienced a comprehensive, two-year DOJ civil rights investigation focusing on use of force, a binding agreement by MPD and the District of Columbia to implement substantial reforms, and a multi-year period of outside independent monitoring. As far as we know, this review marks the first retrospective examination of its kind - an analysis of the durability of such use of force reforms many years after independent monitoring ended - of any of the law enforcement agencies investigated by DOJ during the period 1994-2004, the first decade during which DOJ had statutory authority to investigate such matters. Because of limitations of time and resources, we did not review all aspects of MPD's continued adherence to the MOA. Instead, we selected issues that we considered among the most significant reforms embodied in the MOA and implemented within MPD. We focused on the adequacy of MPD's use of force policies; MPD's use of force investigations; the operations of MPD's Use of Force Review Board (UFRB); MPD's systems for dealing with at-risk officers; and the operations of MPD's Office of Risk Management, the Department's internal oversight entity. In addition, we reviewed three officer-involved fatal shooting cases, and examined issues related to the alleged "use and potential abuse" of charges for alleged assaults on police officers. The Review Team received excellent cooperation from MPD throughout this project, from our project liaison up to and including Chief Cathy L. Lanier. From the outset, Chief Lanier and her command staff showed strong interest in the results of our work and demonstrated a willingness to promptly address some of the deficiencies we identified. In early December, we circulated a draft of this report to MPD, inviting its comments and its responses to the report's 38 recommendations. We met with Chief Lanier and her staff for approximately four hours on December 16, and received a 42-page written response from MPD on December 22. We believe this process, and MPD's deep engagement with it, have resulted in a better report. Of our 38 recommendations, MPD has said it agrees with and will implement 15, agrees in part with 13, and disagrees with 10 - although of the 10 with which it disagrees, four relate to a new MPD program, and MPD therefore views the recommendations as premature. Details: Washington, DC: Office of the District of Columbia Auditor, 2016. 343p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 6, 2017 at: http://www.dcauditor.org/sites/default/files/Full%20Report_2.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.dcauditor.org/sites/default/files/Full%20Report_2.pdf Shelf Number: 146028 Keywords: Civil Rights ViolationsDeadly ForcePolicePolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice ReformPolice Use of Force |
Author: African American Policy Forum Title: Say Her Name: Resisting Police Brutality Against Black Women Summary: In 2015 alone, at least six Black women have been killed by or after encounters with police. For instance, just before Freddie Gray's case grabbed national attention, police killed unarmed Mya Hall "a Black transgender woman" on the outskirts of Baltimore. Alleged to be driving a stolen car, Hall took a wrong turn onto NSA property and was shot to death by officers after the car crashed into the security gate and a police cruiser. No action has been taken to date with respect to the officers responsible for her death. In April, police fatally shot Alexia Christian while she was being handcuffed in the back of a police cruiser. And in March in Ventura, California, police officers shot and killed Meagan Hockaday - a young mother of three - within 20 seconds of entering her home in response to a domestic disturbance. Say Her Name responds to increasing calls for attention to police violence against Black women by offering a resource to help ensure that Black women's stories are integrated into demands for justice, policy responses to police violence, and media representations of victims and survivors of police brutality. The brief concludes with recommendations for engaging communities in conversation and advocacy around Black women's experiences of police violence, considering race and gender in policy initiatives to combat state violence, and adopting policies to end sexual abuse and harassment by police officers. Details: New York: African American Policy Forum, 2015. 48p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 8, 2017 at: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53f20d90e4b0b80451158d8c/t/55a810d7e4b058f342f55873/1437077719984/AAPF_SMN_Brief_full_singles.compressed.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://static1.squarespace.com/static/53f20d90e4b0b80451158d8c/t/55a810d7e4b058f342f55873/1437077719984/AAPF_SMN_Brief_full_singles.compressed.pdf Shelf Number: 146005 Keywords: African AmericansDeadly ForceMinoritiesPolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForceViolence Against Women |
Author: Bruce, David Title: Commissioners and commanders: Police leadership and the Marikana massacre Summary: This monograph examines the functioning of the police system, with a focus on the leadership and command levels, in the build-up to the Marikana massacre on 16 August 2012, when police killed 34 miners who were striking at the Lonmin platinum mine at Marikana. It considers events up to about 15:30 on Thursday, 16 August, which is when police launched their tactical intervention during which the massacre took place. The monograph examines decision making and the exercise of authority and influence by senior leadership of the South African Police Service (the SAPS), particularly the senior national and provincial leaders (National Commissioner Phiyega and North West Provincial Commissioner Zukiswa Mbombo), and senior SAPS commanders (Major Generals Mpembe and Annandale). The key findings of the Marikana Commission are summarised, followed by an overview of the conflict at the mine in August 2012. This conflict involved the strikers, mine management and two unions, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU). The monograph outlines some of the aspects of this conflict, including questions about the political alignment of the parties involved and how the strike, launched on Thursday 9 August, rapidly escalated into violence. The monograph then focuses on two critical shifts in the SAPS approach to the Marikana situation. Both these shifts were linked to the involvement of SAPS senior leaders, Phiyega and Mbombo, and are likely to have been influenced by their interactions with Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa. The first shift was on Monday, 13 August, after two SAPS members were killed by strikers. The strike then became the focus of intense national political and media attention; national police commanders, planners and units were brought in and Public Order Police (POP) commanders were marginalised from the command system. The second shift was a decision made on Wednesday, 15 August, that police would take action against the strikers on the following day if the strikers refused to disarm. The section on operational matters focuses on some of the nuts and bolts of the operation. A discussion of the planning of the intervention is relevant to examining how the police understood the situation they were confronting. This is followed by an analysis of the negotiation process that focused on persuading the strikers to disarm. It examines the fact that the strikers refused to disarm unless Lonmin negotiated with them. The SAPS conveyed the strikers’ message to Lonmin but refrained from exerting any pressure on Lonmin to comply with the strikers' request. This section of the monograph examines how the decision taken by SAPS senior leadership on Wednesday, 15 August affected both the planning and negotiations processes. It also informs the analysis of the actions of the SAPS commanders that follows. The penultimate section of the monograph focuses on the role the two senior commanders, Mpembe and Annandale, played in the operation before the tactical intervention. It explores the role they played in implementing the decision that had been made by the SAPS senior leadership that Wednesday, and whether they exercised their authority appropriately in this respect. The conclusion draws together this discussion with a focus on questions raised in the monograph about the SAPS commanders at Marikana. It recognises that their actions were affected not only by the senior leadership decision made on Wednesday but also by shifts in the nature of the operation that took place on the Monday prior to this. These not only created ambiguity about what type of operation was being conducted but also resulted in a blurring of lines of authority. The monograph ends by highlighting key issues raised, including: • Police positioning in relation to social conflict and the potential impact of political pressure. • Ensuring that senior leaders of the SAPS, as well as other people in leadership roles, are appropriately qualified. • The nature of decision making in the SAPS. • How leadership and command are exercised in large-scale public order and crowd management operations as well as minimum standards for ensuring that such operations are carried out professionally and conform with crowd management principles. • The need for the SAPS to recognise the principle that, in actions by the police where the use of lethal force is anticipated police should seek to resolve situations effectively while minimising the potential for having to use lethal force. The principle applies to all police actions of this kind and not only to crowd management. Details: Pretoria: Institute for Security Studies, 2017. 66p. Source: Internet Resource: ISS Monograph No. 194: Accessed February 13, 2017 at: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/mono194-2.pdf Year: 2017 Country: South Africa URL: https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/mono194-2.pdf Shelf Number: 140903 Keywords: Crowd ControlPolice AdministrationPolice BehaviorPolice Decision-MakingPolice PerformancePolice Use of ForcePublic Disorder |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: "License to Kill" : Philippine Police Killings in Duterte's "War on Drugs" Summary: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's "war on drugs" has produced a campaign of unlawful killings by Philippine National Police personnel and unidentified "vigilantes" that has resulted in the deaths of more than 7,000 suspected drug users and dealers since July 1, 2016. Duterte's public endorsement of the campaign implicates him and other senior figures in possible incitement to violence, instigation of murder and in command responsibility for crimes against humanity. "License to Kill": Philippine Police Killings in Duterte’s “War on Drugs,” is based on several dozen interviews with family members of victims of police killings, witnesses, journalists and human rights activists. The report exposes the falsehood of official police reports that invariably assert self-defense to justify unlawful police killings. Instead, police routinely carry out extrajudicial killings of drug suspects and then cover-up those crimes. In several instances Human Rights Watch investigated, suspects in police custody were later found dead and classified by police as "found bodies," casting doubt on government assertions that most killings have been committed by vigilantes or rival drug gangs. The report also documents the lack of a cohesive approach by the Philippines’ allies, including the United States, Japan and the European Union, to pressure the government to stop these killings and to bring the perpetrators to justice. The report calls for Duterte to publicly denounce extrajudicial killings and press for the investigation and prosecution of police and other officials implicated in such abuses. In addition, the United Nations should launch an independent international investigation into the killings. Finally, the report urges foreign donors to immediately suspend any assistance or weapons sales to the police until the "drug war" killings end and meaningful investigations into those killings are underway. Details: New York: HRW, 2017. 134p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed march 2, 2017 at: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/philippines0317_web_1.pdf Year: 2017 Country: Philippines URL: https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/philippines0317_web_1.pdf Shelf Number: 141291 Keywords: Deadly ForceDrug EnforcementExtrajudicial ExecutionsPolice Use of ForceVigilantesWar on Drugs |
Author: Subramanian, Ram Title: To Protect and Serve: New Trends in State-Level Policing Reform, 2015-2016 Summary: In 2015 and 2016, 34 states and the District of Columbia passed at least 79 bills, executive orders, or resolutions to change some aspect of policing policy or practice. This is significant, since policing reform is largely the province of local jurisdictions or specific police departments. In contrast, in the three years prior to the study period-between 2012 and 2014-there were few pieces of state legislation that dealt with policing. In reviewing legislative activity over the last two years, the Vera Institute of Justice found that states focused reform efforts in the following three areas: > improving policing practices around use of force, racial profiling, and vulnerable populations; > documenting police operations through the increased use of body-worn cameras, enhanced protections for public recordings of police, and new requirements for maintaining and reporting data on police operations; and > improving accountability in instances of police use of force and misconduct cases, especially those incidents that result in death. By providing concise summaries of representative legislation in each area, this report aims to inform policymakers and members of the public who are looking to understand state-level changes in policing policy and practice. Details: New York: Vera Institute of Justice, 2017. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 8, 2017 at: https://www.vera.org/publications/protect-and-serve-policing-trends-2015-2016 Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: https://www.vera.org/publications/protect-and-serve-policing-trends-2015-2016 Shelf Number: 144751 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice AdministrationPolice EffectivenessPolice LegitimacyPolice ReformPolice Use of ForcePolicing |
Author: Bolger, P. Colin Title: Consistency or Discord: A Meta-Analysis of Police Officer Decisions to Search and Use Force Summary: A substantial amount of research has been conducted to identify the most influential predictors of various police behaviors. Attempts to summarize the works, however, have so far been primarily limited to narrative literature reviews. While these works are important contributions, there are inherent methodological weaknesses to this approach; such as the inability to eliminate subjectivity from the process. Following a recent summative manuscript by Kochel et al. (2011), this dissertation applies the meta-analytic method to the police decisions to search and use force against citizens. Through this method, three objectives are attempted: 1) identify the key correlates of police decisions to search and use force, 2) evaluate whether the same correlates extend across different police decisions, and 3) assess the empirical support for existing theories on police decision-making. The resulting analysis found that the primary correlates of police decisions were situational characteristics, but the specific variables within the situational characteristic category varied across decisions. Unfortunately, assessment of the empirical support for police decision-making theories was not possible because each theory included too few variables with a sufficient number of effect sizes to be adequately evaluated. Details: Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati, School of Criminal Justice, 2014. 250p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed May 3, 2017 at: http://cech.uc.edu/content/dam/cech/programs/criminaljustice/Docs/Dissertations/bolgerc.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://cech.uc.edu/content/dam/cech/programs/criminaljustice/Docs/Dissertations/bolgerc.pdf Shelf Number: 145249 Keywords: Police Behavior Police Discretion Police Use of ForceStop and Search |
Author: Henstock, Darren Title: Testing the Effects of Body Worn Video on Police Use of Force during Arrest: A Randomised Controlled Trial Summary: There is, at present, a worldwide uncontrolled social experiment taking place within policing. Body worn cameras have been rolled-out in many forces worldwide, aiming to improve the procedural compliance of officers and reduce the incidence of use of force. Yet rigorous evidence is virtually non-existent on this multi-billion dollar industry, on either its efficacy or cost-effectiveness. This study tested the effect of body worn cameras within a large UK force in a six month randomised-controlled-trial, whilst observing the effect within pre-specified force categories. Overall a 50% reduction in the odds of force being used was recorded when body worn cameras are present compared to control conditions, interpreted to be a result of the deterrence-effect body worn cameras have on officers, offenders, or both. However, the effect concentrates in open-hand tactics, with no discernible effect on categories of more aggressive force responses. Furthermore, 40% 'more force' was detected in treatment-conditions for handcuffing compliant suspects - contextualised as enhanced transparency and accountability, rather than a backfiring-effect. In logical conclusion to this recorded reduction in low level use of force, the study documents a 65% reduction in recorded injuries to persons arrested, but counter-intuitively a corresponding increase in reported injuries to officers. This seemingly unexpected finding is attributed to improved confidence in reporting by officers rather than the cameras creating more aggression towards them. Finally, the dissertation also considers issues surrounding the implementation of body worn camera experiments. Details: Cambridge, UK: Wolfson College, 2015. 107p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed May 4, 2017 at: http://www.crim.cam.ac.uk/alumni/theses/Darren%20Henstock.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.crim.cam.ac.uk/alumni/theses/Darren%20Henstock.pdf Shelf Number: 145315 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCamera TechnologyCamerasLaw Enforcement TechnologyPolice AccountabilityPolice SurveillancePolice Use of Force |
Author: Ryan, Emma Title: Below the belt: police use of conducted energy weapons in Australia Summary: This thesis represents the first critical examination of the proliferation of sub-lethal weapons in Australian policing. It traces the introduction of such weapons in Australian policing, with an emphasis on Conducted Energy Weapons (CEWs), in particular Tasers. Using a multi-method, phronetic approach it examines whether the rhetoric used to support the introduction of CEWs is reflected in the policies related to the use of such weapons and in evidence about their use in the field. Phronetic methodology aims to explain social phenomena via the piecing together of large and small details that form the context of events; in this case the introduction of CEWs in Australia, the resulting policies established to control the weapon's use (excluding Tasmania and South Australia where access to the policy documents was refused) and also evidence about its use in practice. This comparative analysis of CEW use in each Australian state and territory is directed at three specific sites: the rhetoric used in relation to the introduction and further justification of CEW use by police across Australia, the policies used to guide police in their use and the available evidence about how CEWs are used in practice. The analysis draws on a broad range of sources incorporating document, news media and interview material. The findings draw attention to the phenomenon of 'mission creep' occurring in Australia, where CEWs have come to be used well outside of their original intended purpose. The thesis shows that this pattern has already been observed in relation to Oleoresin Capsicum spray (OC Spray), which is the other type of sub-lethal weapon widely adopted by police in Western democracies. It is now being observed internationally in relation to CEWs. The thesis therefore adds an Australian perspective to a growing body of literature suggesting that sub-lethal weapons' use by police is likely to have a corrosive effect on police/ community relationships and, crucially, on the principle of minimum force. It further argues that the weapons may have a profound impact on the delicate balance of consensual versus coercive policing styles. The analysis is set against the broader history of CEWs, and especially events in North America, where electronic weaponry evolved. Experiences in Britain and New Zealand are also examined briefly. The findings also demonstrate that the reasons for CEW adoption by police across jurisdictions, nationally and internationally, are very similar. It is argued that this is the case because decisions (and policy making) have been based on a series of misconceptions about sublethal weapons' utility. The thesis argues that the problems arising in jurisdictions that use CEWs are so similar as to warrant a set of clear statements about the potential consequences of their inappropriate deployment in Australia. On this basis, this research concludes by making an argument for the importance of establishing strict national guidelines to control the use of CEWs and by offering a range of observations on what such guidelines could look like. Details: Clayton, Victoria, AUS: Monash University, 2012. 255p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed May 5, 2017 at: http://arrow.monash.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/monash:89033;jsessionid=E79AD5DD3381841D4B31D1125437E67C?exact=sm_subject%3A%22Accountablility%22 Year: 2012 Country: Australia URL: http://arrow.monash.edu.au/vital/access/manager/Repository/monash:89033;jsessionid=E79AD5DD3381841D4B31D1125437E67C?exact=sm_subject%3A%22Accountablility%22 Shelf Number: 145322 Keywords: Assault WeaponsNon-lethal WeaponsPolice AccountabilityPolice Use of ForceTasers |
Author: McCombs, Jonathan W. Title: Problem based learning in law enforcement in-service training: A study of use of force Summary: The use of force by the police has been a topic of interest among academics and among American society. Police training has long been a factor that has been considered when administrators, policymakers, or society at-large considers the acts of force utilized by the police. The amount of training has been studied with a negative correlation between the number of training hours and the number of use of force incidents. Problem-based learning (PBL) has been utilized in the health professions and to some degree in law enforcement pre-service academies. This study measured the use of force incidents and different types of in-service training provided. This test of constructivist learning theory posits that the type of training utilized can have an effect on the number of use of force incidents. The results showed that for every hour of PBL, the number of use of force incidents decreased by 17 incidents in the Columbus, OH Division of Police. The ordinary least squares regression model accounted for the unemployment rate and crime rate as community factors and the hours of problem-based learning training and the mean officer experience as organizational factors in the analysis. Details: Capella University, 2015. 69p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed June 14, 2017 at: http://search.proquest.com/docview/1695261727?pq-origsite=gscholar Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://search.proquest.com/docview/1695261727?pq-origsite=gscholar Shelf Number: 146174 Keywords: Community PolicingPolice Education and TrainingPolice Use of ForceProblem-Oriented policing |
Author: Phillips, Douglas Title: An Investigation of Police Brutality in News Media: Media Narratives and Narrative Icons as Argumentation and Communal Identity Summary: This dissertation explores the ways in which narratives about decisive events coalesce in news media discourse, and how they function rhetorically. Specifically, this study examines how journalists frame stories about police brutality, how those frames construct versions of public narratives, and how those narrative versions can be used in discourse about issues of civic concern such as support for new community policing policies or opposition to Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law. I show how journalists' choice of semantic frames (e.g., racism, police-community relations, or criminal justice) helps to shape readers' understanding of the events and contributes to the formation of a narrative icon, a word, name, or short phrase that, absent narrative detail, indexes particular versions of a broader cultural narrative. This research is motivated by questions about the reciprocity between prior knowledge, audience expectations, and public discourse, and how those combine to shape or reinforce cultural values and communal identities. To explore these questions, I draw on scholarship in narrative theory, frame semantics, inter-textual analysis, and argument. I analyze over 1,700 newspaper articles published in the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Sentinel, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and New Pittsburgh Courier between 1991 and 2013 concerning incidents of police brutality, including Rodney King and Jonny Gammage, a Black man who died following a traffic stop in Pittsburgh, PA. My findings suggest three primary functions of narratives in news media discourse: as background information, as examples used to establish or illustrate a rule, or as points of comparison. For each of these functions, I consider how journalists' micro-linguistic choices frame the events in line with the values, concerns, and fears of readers. In that way, journalists suggest the most important story elements and thus perpetuate specific ways of thinking about incidents of police brutality. Moreover, as consistent references to specific story elements, these frames contribute to the formation of a narrative icon, which becomes rhetorically available for use in public arguments. In other words, journalists can interpolate the narrative versions indexed by the icon into unrelated stories using discursive constructions such as "the Rodney King incident." When this happens, readers are expected to fill in the missing narrative details by drawing on their background knowledge. The findings of this project have important implications for the study of media discourse, but their broader value lies in what they can tell us about how background knowledge takes shape and is used as a resource in public argument. In particular, critical appraisal of narrative icons suggests that readers are expected to access a trove of cultural knowledge to fully understand news stories and the sociocultural implications of the events described. In doing so, journalists and readers jointly construct and reinforce communal identities and establish credibility. Details: Pittsburgh: Carnegie Mellon University, 2016. 273p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed June 17, 2017 at: http://repository.cmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1761&context=dissertations Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: http://repository.cmu.edu/dissertations/722/ Shelf Number: 146222 Keywords: JournalismMediaPolice BrutalityPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community Relations |
Author: Koen, Marthinus Christoffel Title: On-Set Body-Worn Cameras in a Police Organization: Structures, practices, and technological frames Summary: Existing research on body-worn cameras (BWCs) has primarily focused on outcomes (e.g., use-of-force incidents, complaints, and arrests) rather than the processes related to BWC implementation and use by officers. This dissertation provides insights into the effects that the implementation of BWCs has had on key organizational structures and practices, including reporting, discretion, training, police-citizen interactions, and supervision. It also focuses on the technological frames of individuals belonging to different organizational groups and examines to what extent these outlooks differed between groups and changed over time. Using in-depth interviews, ride-along observations, and patrol officer surveys at a single police agency, this research resulted in two major, interrelated findings. First, the largest effect of the implementation of BWCs was on accountability, which had increased in scope to cover a range of aspects of policing, including training, reporting, discretion, and police-citizen interactions. At the same time, the intensity with which officers' experienced accountability had not significantly increased as BWC footage was not systematically used to monitor, review, and/or evaluate police officer conduct and quality of performance. The second major finding, regarding the technological frames of two relevant social groups (Managers and Users), helps explain these findings. BWCs were implemented primarily for training purposes and to protect patrol officers against groundless complaints rather than as a mechanism for identifying officer misconduct, for failing to comply with departmental policies, and for poor street-level performance. Although Users initially feared that BWCs were going to be used to get them into trouble for minor instances of misconduct or rule violations, their frames changed over time as they realized that BWCs were not going to be used by Managers as a "gotcha" mechanism. As officers learned that BWCs were used primarily to protect and support them, they became much more positive and less apprehensive about their implementation in the department. This challenges the view suggested by the technological frames literature that "first impressions" last, as Users' initial apprehension toward BWCs gave way to a readiness to embrace them, particularly in light of the several benefits they subsequently learned BWCs delivered. This contribution to existing knowledge is beneficial in two ways: first, it fills a gap in existing police technology research in providing an in-depth examination of the effects of BWC implementation on a variety of structures and practices in addition to technological frames; second, it serves as a baseline for future, large-scale studies by identifying additional factors that were important and/or specific to the implementation of BWCs that have not been fully explored. Details: Fairfax, VA: George Mason University, 2016. 269p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed June 28, 2017 at: http://digilib.gmu.edu/jspui/bitstream/handle/1920/10419/Koen_gmu_0883E_11230.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://digilib.gmu.edu/jspui/bitstream/handle/1920/10419/Koen_gmu_0883E_11230.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Shelf Number: 146450 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Camera Technology Law Enforcement Technology Police AccountabilityPolice Technology Police Use of Force |
Author: Morrison, Gregory B. Title: Police Firearms Training Survey: Final Report Summary: The Police Firearms Training Survey was administered to departments around the US during the late summer and fall of 2008. The purpose was to collect data on handgun/deadly force training policies and practices. There have been previous surveys on firearm training, most recently two in Washington State during the late 1990s, and in the early 2000s one focused on larger municipal, urban county and state departments. The present survey, however, sought a national snapshot of programs. As expected, the largest group of participants was comprised of local (i.e. city and county) departments. This report therefore focuses on the policies and practices of several hundred (n=312) local departments regarding instructor staffing and development; training that includes tactics and judgment; requalifying; and the assessment of officer-involved shootings (OIS). As found through past surveys, the over-arching characteristic of in-service handgun/deadly force training was the wide latitude exercised by departments. This variability is unlikely to surprise experienced practitioners or researchers who study police training. The nature and extent of this latitude, however, raise concerns about how prepared many police officers are for encounters that reasonably could involve the use or threatened use of deadly force. Some findings are encouraging, but others appear likely to have serious implications for officer and public safety; influence the public's perception of police progress on accountability; and impact on costs as measured in lives, serious injuries, disabilities and civil litigation. Staffing and instructor development: Some departments rely solely on fulltime instructors whose principal responsibility is firearms and related training. Most departments, however, depend on instructors for whom this responsibility is a collateral duty (i.e. a secondary extra responsibility) and, thus, is a relatively infrequent undertaking. The source of certification for handgun/deadly force instructors varies, though state-run or -approved courses are the norm. Continuing education and training for these instructors is far from universal, however, and varies in both its frequency and duration. Little is known about its content or the quality of its delivery. Training and requalifying: Over the past two decades, a clearer distinction has grown between "training" to maintain existing skills and introducing new ones, and rote "requalifying" on basic marksmanship skills. Departments nevertheless vary widely in their allotment of resources to these two major activities. Some departments requalify to the near exclusion of training, while many roughly split their resources evenly between training and requalifying. Others, however, primarily spend their resources on training, such as scenario-based activities that have in recent years become relatively common. As a result, these particular departments minimize their use of resources for rote marksmanship testing so as to concentrate on what are believed to be far more beneficial experiences. Yet scenario-based training takes three forms: computer-based, projected images of unfolding encounters; role-playing between trainers and trainees using either firearms modified to fire marking cartridges, paint-ball "guns" or non-firing props; and live-fire scenarios at conventional firing ranges where targets are used present varying threat levels and placement, and officers must contend with obstacles and make suitable use of cover and/or concealment. Not only do these three formats provide substantially different experiences qualitatively, but departments also vary widely on how many scenarios officers participate in during the typical training year. Assessing performance: Conveying vital officer performance information from field shootings and other high-risk encounters to trainers who design and deliver programming is indispensable. Nevertheless, few departments appear to have implemented such feedback loops, ones not to be confused with administrative investigations to determine adherence to policy and/or consider criminal charges against officers. Furthermore, trainers often are not provided access to the results of administrative investigations that could provide some useful information for continuously improving programs. History suggests that much of this disconnectedness is attributable to the combination of a protectiveness born of civil litigation and the lethargic development of handgun/deadly force training until the 1990s. The PFTS, along with previous research on deadly force training, point to several shortcomings that need attention from practitioners and researchers. For one, there should be training-specific feedback loops at larger municipal and urban county departments. The nature and extent of this feedback needs to revolve around evaluating a full array of connections between (1) training program content, delivery and certifying assessments and (2) officer performances in high-risk field encounters. Because larger departments experience high-risk encounters and officer-involved shootings on a relatively regular basis, sufficient data to support meaningful research and program evaluation projects would be available for internal analysis as well as larger projects examining performance across departments. The longstanding practice of academy qualifying followed by in-service requalifying is overdue for a conceptual overhaul because it remains deeply rooted in narrow tests of marksmanship and gunhandling. This is inadequate given contemporary assortments of training activities that feature tactics and judgment that, one hopes, positively influences the outcomes of high-risk encounters. Finally, a promising avenue for addressing these and other important aspects to contemporary deadly force training will be practitioner-researcher collaborative studies. Even though maximizing officer performance potential would enhance both police and public safety, the role of science in improving training for high-risk encounters is far from being fully exploited. This report provides one contribution to a body of knowledge that needs to be more fully developed during the remainder of the first quarter of the 21st century. We have learned many things about training and the use of deadly force in recent years, but there is much we do not know. We therefore need to work diligently to fill the gaps, some of which this study describes and discusses. The focus of future efforts should be to identify approaches that have a compelling empirical record on maximizing the safe, appropriate and effective use or threatened use of deadly force in high-risk encounters. Model programs beneficial to a wide range of federal, state and local police clearly comprise a worthwhile longterm goal. Details: Muncie, IN: Ball State University, 2011. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 28, 2017 at: ibrarian.net/navon/paper/Police_Firearms_Training_Survey___Final_Report.pdf? Year: 2011 Country: United States URL: ibrarian.net/navon/paper/Police_Firearms_Training_Survey___Final_Report.pdf?. Shelf Number: 146911 Keywords: Deadly ForceOfficer-Involved ShootingsPolice Education and TrainingPolice Firearms TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: Mabry, Timothy Jerab Title: Point of View: The Officers' Perception of Body-worn Cameras Summary: With the increase of police use-of-force situations being depicted in the media, there has been a call for police departments to become accountable and transparent. A solution to this call for accountability and transparency is the addition of body-worn cameras on field officers. While body-worn camera research is in its infancy, the majority of existing research has been limited to large police departments. This study seeks to fill the void between small and large police department officers' perceptions of body-worn cameras. The data collected for this research was obtained between March and April 2016 from the Burleson (TX) Police Department. Details: Fort Worth, TX: Texas Christian University, 2017. 65p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed September 16, 2017 at: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1906726337/abstract/9FA7F3B460C5467CPQ/1?accountid=13626 Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1906726337/abstract/9FA7F3B460C5467CPQ/1?accountid=13626 Shelf Number: 147363 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Cameras Police Accountability Police Surveillance Police Technology Police Use of Force |
Author: Coleman, Terry Title: TEMPO: Police Interactions. A report towards improving interactions between police and people living with mental health problems Summary: In 2008 the MHCC conducted a review of the basic/recruit training, which occurs primarily at Canadian police colleges/academies, concerning interactions with people with mental illnesses. To complement that study, in 2010, the MHCC conducted a review that examined the nature and extent of such police training and education at the in-service or continuing education level within Canadian police organizations. Based on these reviews, an aspirational model of police education and training - TEMPO (Training and Education about Mental Illness for Police Organizations) - was developed, described, and disseminated. The purpose of the present report is to review progress since that time. Notwithstanding the nature and seriousness of individual interactions between police and people with mental illnesses, it is widely accepted that there are too many. While most will never garner attention on the front page of a newspaper, for the people involved all incidents are serious and potentially traumatic. How do we ensure that police personnel are well prepared to deal with these potentially difficult situations? This report will provide assistance in achieving that. This report is focused on police education and training, rather than on the broader systems and policies that affect interactions between police and people with mental illnesses; it addresses education and training in the broadest sense. The report places an emphasis on HOW we should teach as well as what we should teach, given the many developments in the field of adult education and curriculum design. Details: Ottawa: Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2014. 94p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 7, 2017 at: https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/TEMPO%252520Police%252520Interactions%252520082014_0.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Canada URL: https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/TEMPO%252520Police%252520Interactions%252520082014_0.pdf Shelf Number: 147612 Keywords: Mentally Ill OffendersMentally Ill PersonsPolice Education and TrainingPolice Policies and PracticesPolice Use of Force |
Author: Braga, Anthony A. Title: The Impact of Body-Worn Cameras on Complaints Against Officers and Officer Use of Force Incident Reports: Preliminary Evaluation Findings Summary: SUMMARY - The Boston Police Department collaborated with Northeastern University to develop a randomized controlled trial of its pilot implementation of 100 body worn cameras on patrol officers in 5 police districts and plainclothes officers in the Youth Violence Strike Force. - The Northeastern research team randomly allocated 281 officers into treatment (camera wearers) and control groups from these assignments. The selected officers worked the day and first half shifts and were actively providing police services to Boston residents. - The randomization procedure generated treatment (140 officers) and control (141 officers) groups that were equivalent in terms of officer sex, race, age, years on the job, shift, assignment, prior complaints, and prior use of force reports. All treatment officers were trained on the body worn camera policy and the use of the technology. - At the commencement of the pilot program, 100 of the 140 officers trained on the use of body worn cameras were assigned to wear the cameras. Over the course of the one-year intervention period, 21 officers stopped wearing the cameras due to promotions, assignment changes, medical incapacitation, resignation, and retirement. A total of 121 of the 140 treatment officers wore cameras during the pilot program. - The preliminary findings of the randomized controlled trial suggest that the placement of body worn cameras on Boston Police officers may generate small benefits to the civility of police-citizen civilian encounters. Relative to control officers, treatment officers received fewer citizen complaints and generated fewer use of force reports. - Statistical analysis revealed that the impact of body worn cameras on complaints was small but statistically-significant at a less restrictive statistical threshold. The results suggest a reduction of one complaint per month for 140 treatment officers relative to 141 control officers. The analysis indicated body worn cameras generated a small reduction in officer use of force reports that was not statistically-significant, suggesting no meaningful difference between the treatment and control groups. - These preliminary results are not final and should be interpreted with caution. The evaluation team will continue to collect data and pursue supplemental analyses to ensure that these findings are robust to different tests and model specifications. The final report will present completed analyses of the impact of body worn cameras on citizen complaints and officer use of force reports as well as analyses of impacts on police proactivity, lawfulness of police enforcement actions, and police-community relations. Details: Boston: Northeastern University, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 2018. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 31, 2018 at: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5086f19ce4b0ad16ff15598d/t/5a563546ec212d4f5bf29527/1515599174343/BPD+BWC+RCT+preliminary+impact+report.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5086f19ce4b0ad16ff15598d/t/5a563546ec212d4f5bf29527/1515599174343/BPD+BWC+RCT+preliminary+impact+report.pdf Shelf Number: 148946 Keywords: Body-Worn Cameras Camera Technology Cameras Law Enforcement Technology Police Accountability Police Surveillance Police Use of Force Police-Citizen InteractionsPolice-Community relations |
Author: Straub, Frank Title: Advancing Charlotte: A Police Foundation Assessment of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Response to the September 2016 Demonstrations Summary: The September 20, 2016, officer-involved shooting of Keith Lamont Scott, and the subsequent demonstrations in Charlotte, took place within a milieu of similar events in cities across America. Protests in New York, Ferguson, North Charleston, Baltimore, Minneapolis, Baton Rouge, and Dallas demonstrated the increasing anger and frustration within communities of color and growing tension in community-police relations. In the most extreme instances, protestors destroyed property and engaged in acts of violence. While the demonstrations that took place nationally were in response to an officer(s) use of lethal force, each demonstration and the subsequent law enforcement response provides lessons learned for the involved jurisdictions, and the nation. Many of the underlying issues that precipitated the demonstrations are similar: a police officer(s) used lethal force in incidents involving individuals of color; previous officer-involved shooting incidents which remained unresolved in the eyes of the community; historical racial challenges; socioeconomic immobility; perceived accountability and transparency issues; and, fragile relationships between the police and communities of color. The protests ignited by the officer-involved shooting of Keith Lamont Scott, and similar events across the nation, "focused the collective attention [in Charlotte] on the stark racial, ethnic and economic divides that exist in ... [the] community but are rarely openly discussed." The issues and tension also created an opportunity that activists from outside the city leveraged to further their national agenda and to cause chaos in Charlotte. The influence and reach of social media fueled the embers of distrust and ignited the emotions of the community and the nation. The particular elements leading to racial violence have changed over the years. While race riots occur in the context of a convoluted mix of social, economic, and cultural factors, policing consistently remains a crucial piece of the equation. It would be overreaching to designate police action as the sole factor in race riots; nevertheless, the importance of the police in preventing and effectively responding when disorder occurs can hardly be overstated. The City of Charlotte requested that the Police Foundation conduct an independent review of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's (CMPD) response to the demonstrations that occurred following the September 20, 2016 officer-involved shooting. While the Police Foundation assessment team heard from the community that the issues in Charlotte go far beyond those that are within the scope of this review, the city's request demonstrates their desire to learn from these events and to use this assessment, in part, to help the city heal and move forward in a constructive manner. To ensure a comprehensive review of the incident response, the Police Foundation assessment team conducted interviews with city government officials, CMPD command staff and officers, and community leaders and members. The team also conducted a review of incident documentation and other relevant materials, as well as policy analysis. Finally, the Police Foundation assessment team conducted research on national policing best practices, model policies and promising programs to include in the report. The City of Charlotte publicly released the draft report on September 19, 2017. Since the public release of the first draft, the Police Foundation assessment team met with Mayor Roberts and members of Charlotte City Council individually, met with the City Manager, attended and presented the report at a public City Council meeting, and made note of council members' comments and requests. The assessment team also held an in-person community listening session and three meetings--one in-person and two via conference calls--with the Community Stakeholder Group. This final document reflects the comments, requests, and feedback gathered during those meetings. The Police Foundation assessment team found that the CMPD acted appropriately overall and in accordance with their policies and procedures. However, the review identified areas where the CMPD could improve its policies, practices, and operations to strengthen the department's relationship with the community it serves, with the goal of preventing and improving its response to future instances of civil unrest, should they occur. The review also highlights the importance of collaboration and communication between the City of Charlotte administration, the City Manager, and the CMPD prior to critical incidents. The report is organized by "pillars" under which critical issues are discussed and recommendations provided: - Pillar 1: Policies, Protocols & Strategies; - Pillar 2: Training & De-Escalation; - Pillar 3: Equipment & Technology; - Pillar 4: Social Media & Communication; - Pillar 5: Transparency & Accountability; and - Pillar 6: Police-Community Relationships. Communities across the country, including Charlotte, are working to address the complex issues of race, intergenerational poverty, barriers to economic opportunity, disparities in the criminal justice system, and other long-standing challenges. The City of Charlotte's political and community leaders, City Manager and the CMPD are to be commended for their genuine interest in identifying collaborative and constructive steps to acknowledge the impact of the mix of social, economic, and cultural factors that contributed to the demonstrations as well as the CMPD's efforts to prevent and respond to civil unrest. The CMPD should also be commended for the work that they have done to bridge the gap with the Charlotte Community. Their Constructive Conversations Team program can serve as a national model for tangible programs that have the potential to improve police-community relationships, both in Charlotte and elsewhere. Details: Washington, DC: Police Foundation, 2018. 103p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 8, 2018 at: https://www.policefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Advancing-Charlotte-Final-Report.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://www.policefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Advancing-Charlotte-Final-Report.pdf Shelf Number: 149406 Keywords: Civil DisorderDemonstrationsOfficer-Involved ShootingPolice Use of ForcePolice-Community InteractionsPolice-Community RelationsPublic DisorderPublic Order ManagementRiots and Demonstrations |
Author: California. Office of the Attorney General Title: URSUS: Use of Force Incident Reporting Summary: URSUS, 2016 presents a summary overview of use of force and discharge of firearm incidents as defined in Government Code section 12525.2. Due to the narrow definition of this statute, the data contained in this report only represent incidents where use of force resulted in serious bodily injury or death or the discharge of a firearm. Caution should be used in making comparisons or generalizations with this data set as it does not contain the full spectrum of use of force incidents that occurred in California. - In 2016, there were 782 incidents that involved use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death of a civilian or officer; or the discharge of a firearm. - Of the 782 incidents, 328 reported a discharge of a firearm. - Of the 782 incidents, 49.0 percent (383) occurred during a call for service, 17.8 percent (139) resulted from a vehicle/bike/pedestrian stop, and 16.2 percent (127) occurred while either a crime was in progress or while officers were investing suspicious persons or circumstances. - Of the 782 incidents, 75.7 percent (592) resulted in an arrest. (Tables 2A and 2B) - In 2016, 832 civilians were involved in incidents that involved the discharge of a firearm or use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death. - Of the 832 civilians, 92.3 percent (768) were male, 6.0 percent (50) were female, and 1.7 percent (14) fled the scene and their gender was unknown. - Of the 832 civilians, 42.2 percent (351) were Hispanic, 30.0 percent (250) were white, and 19.6 percent (163) were black. - Of the 832 civilians, 30.9 percent (257) were hit by the discharge of a firearm, 16.7 (139) and 13.7 percent (114) received force by control hold/ takedown tactics and electronic control device deployment, respectively. - Of the 832 civilians, 63.8 percent (531) were injured, 15.6 percent (130) were not injured, and 18.9 percent (157) died. (Table 21) - Of the 832 civilians, 476 were perceived armed and 354 were confirmed armed. were involved in incidents that involved the discharge of a firearm or use of force resulting in serious bodily injury or death. - Of the 1,729 officers, 95.0 percent (1,642) were male and 5.0 percent (87) were female. - Of the 1,729 officers, 56.5 percent (977) were white, 31.7 percent (548) were Hispanic, 4.8 percent (83) were Asian/Pacific Islander, and 3.4 percent (59) were black. - Of the 1,729 officers, 43.7 percent (755) did not receive force, 24.2 percent (419) received force during physical contact with a civilian, and 9.8 percent (169) received force by the discharge of a firearm. - Of the 1,729 officers, 20.2 percent (349) were injured, 79.5 percent (1,374) were not injured, and 0.3 percent (6) died. - Of the 1,729 officers, 1,603 reported use of force to affect arrest/take into custody (1,209), to overcome resistance (381), or to prevent escape (13). Details: Sacramento: The Office, 2016. 68p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 12, 2018 at: http://www.jrsa.org/pubs/sac-digest/vol-27/ca-ursus-2016.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.jrsa.org/pubs/sac-digest/vol-27/ca-ursus-2016.pdf Shelf Number: 149440 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice BehaviorPolice StatisticsPolice Use of Force |
Author: Johnson, Odis, Jr. Title: Race, Gender, and the Contexts of Unarmed Fatal Interactions with Police Summary: In the post-Ferguson era, public opinion remains divided about the ways that race and gender intersect in relation to law enforcement's use of lethal force. Addressing this tension within research, we explored race-gender differences in the likelihood of being killed while unarmed. More specifically, we identified 1762 fatal interactions with police that occurred over a 20 month time period, and merged them with the nationally representative Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics survey, Uniform Crime Reports data, and census characteristics. Using hierarchical linear models, we find the odds that black Americans will be killed by police when unarmed are nearly 7 to 1-more than double the odds found in research to date-and due primarily to the unarmed status of black women. Details: St. Louis, MO: Washington University in St. Louis, 2018. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 20, 2018 at: https://cpb-us-west-2-juc1ugur1qwqqqo4.stackpathdns.com/sites.wustl.edu/dist/b/1205/files/2018/02/Race-Gender-and-Unarmed-1y6zo9a.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://cpb-us-west-2-juc1ugur1qwqqqo4.stackpathdns.com/sites.wustl.edu/dist/b/1205/files/2018/02/Race-Gender-and-Unarmed-1y6zo9a.pdf Shelf Number: 149534 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice BrutalityPolice Use of ForceRacial Disprities |
Author: Morin, Rich Title: Behind the Badge: Amid protests and calls for reform, how police view their jobs, key issues and recent fatal encounters between blacks and police Summary: Police work has always been hard. Today police say it is even harder. In a new Pew Research Center national survey conducted by the National Police Research Platform, majorities of police officers say that recent high-profile fatal encounters between black citizens and police officers have made their jobs riskier, aggravated tensions between police and blacks, and left many officers reluctant to fully carry out some of their duties. The wide-ranging survey, one of the largest ever conducted with a nationally representative sample of police, draws on the attitudes and experiences of nearly 8,000 policemen and women from departments with at least 100 officers. It comes at a crisis point in America's relationship with the men and women who enforce its laws, precipitated by a series of deaths of black Americans during encounters with the police that have energized a vigorous national debate over police conduct and methods. Within America's police and sheriff's departments, the survey finds that the ramifications of these deadly encounters have been less visible than the public protests, but no less profound. Three-quarters say the incidents have increased tensions between police and blacks in their communities. About as many (72%) say officers in their department are now less willing to stop and question suspicious persons. Overall, more than eight-in-ten (86%) say police work is harder today as a result of these high-profile incidents. At the same time that black Americans are dying in encounters with police, the number of fatal attacks on officers has grown in recent years. About nine-in-ten officers (93%) say their colleagues worry more about their personal safety - a level of concern recorded even before a total of eight officers died in separate ambush-style attacks in Dallas and Baton Rouge last July. The survey also finds that officers remain deeply skeptical of the protests that have followed deadly encounters between police and black citizens. Two-thirds of officers (68%) say the demonstrations are motivated to a great extent by anti-police bias; only 10% in a separate question say protesters are similarly motivated by a genuine desire to hold police accountable for their actions. Some two-thirds characterize the fatal encounters that prompted the demonstrations as isolated incidents and not signs of broader problems between police and the black community - a view that stands in sharp contrast with the assessment of the general public. In a separate Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults, 60% say these incidents are symptoms of a deeper problem. A look inside the nation's police departments reveals that most officers are satisfied with their department as a place to work and remain strongly committed to making their agency successful. Still, about half (53%) question whether their department's disciplinary procedures are fair, and seven-in-ten (72%) say that poorly performing officers are not held accountable. Details: Washington, DC: Pew Research Center, 2017. 97p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 26, 2018 at: https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2017/01/06171402/Police-Report_FINAL_web.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2017/01/06171402/Police-Report_FINAL_web.pdf Shelf Number: 149577 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice ReformPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen InteractionsPolice-Minority Relations |
Author: Eguienta, Ophelie Title: Twenty-First Century Police Brutality against African Americans: The Case of Ferguson, Missouri, and the "Black Lives Matter" Movement Summary: African American history is riddled with violence, as early as Africans' very arrival on the continent as slaves. Their fight for freedom became a fight for equality after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, as the southern states passed segregation laws and racial discrimination, although not institutionalized, remained pervasive in the North. Resulted a century of social, economic, and political inequalities for black people in the entire country, punctuated by lynching, and white supremacist attacks carried in impunity. As the Civil Rights Movement rose in the 1950s, marches and demonstrations for racial equality were met by a virulent opposition, leading to the murders of many civil rights activists and the assassinations of leaders Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. Yet, the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act were passed and effectively made segregation and any other form of racial discrimination illegal. Since then, a variety of policies has been implemented to decrease the opportunity gap between black and white Americans, and, with the election of Barack Obama in 2008, a substantial part of the population has come to believe that racism mostly is an issue of the past, and that equality for African Americans has finally been reached. However for some scholars, this colorblindness has led to another form of blindness about racism, which only has deepened racial inequalities as policies instituted to decrease them have been reduced or abandoned. Yet as the death of an unarmed black young man by a police officer spurred massive protests in the small Missouri city of Ferguson in 2014, the debate on racism in America started again through the notion of a systemic racist police brutality. Police brutality is a societal issue that has been the subject of many studies, by academics but also former officers, who have tried to understand its origins, its extent, its perpetuation, its repercussions on society, and how society reacts to it. Research on racially biased police brutality has also been prolific, especially during the second-half of the twentieth century, as some instances sparked demonstrations and even riots. However, secondary sources are still scarce on the events that followed Michael Brown's death - and thus on the Black Lives Matter movement - since they only happened a few years ago, and at the time, nothing indicated that the protest movement would be lasting and would reach such a scale. I chose to research this issue because even though I have never considered myself to be ignorant of racism and police brutality anywhere in the world, I was deeply shocked by the events that occurred in Ferguson, Mo, in 2014. I remember reading different online newspapers regularly, Le Monde and Le Nouvel Obs for the French ones, the BBC and The Guardian for the British ones, and The New York Times and The Washington Post for the American ones. Indeed, I heard about what had happened through social media at first, and was hoping to have had a distorted version of the facts, as it often happens; and then I was anxious to get different perspectives (namely from other countries), in order not to have too biased sources and try and balance the flow of information available. I closely followed the events for months, and watched the Black Lives Matter movement rise, with astonishment, wonder and fascination. I witnessed demonstrations and protests being organized, support coming from the entire country and the entire world, but also saw the opposition to this tsunami of indignation increase, with various movements such as All Lives Matter, White Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter. Thus, in order to fully understand the importance and the scale of racist police brutality and the protests that ensued, I decided to make them my research project this year. This thesis explores the factors that led Michael Brown's death to spark a string of nation-wide protests: the context of tensions between police officers and black people, the disproportionate rate at which black people are killed by officers, and the lack of repercussions when these deaths are questionable. It also focuses on the stakes and the impact of the Ferguson protests on society, studying the Black Lives Matter movement - its origins, the novelty in its goal and actions, etc. - as well as the other movements that emerged first on social media to oppose it. This research will help analyze how divided the American population is and how such divisions can be accounted for. In order to assess the relationship between African Americans and the police, it was essential to rely on the multiplicity of secondary sources on African American history, and on police brutality in the United States; the vast number of studies available allowed for a balanced overview. However secondary sources are lacking on the events at the core of the research, namely the anti-police brutality protests that started in 2014. Indeed, because these events are recent, it is complex for scholars to analyze the scope of the BLM movement and the shift in media representation of such events, while they are still occurring. On the other hand, primary sources are abundant: every black and mainstream news outlet covered the protests at length, as did individual people via social media - sharing accounts, pictures and videos of the events as well as their reactions to them, and various organizations issued reports on the situation (and a number of organizations were even created as a result). These sources were confronted and taken with a necessary step back to determine any possible bias. Following the increased news coverage of police killings of black people, many opinion polls have been conducted, which helps establish how divided the American population is on the question of police behavior, but also on the role of the government in this matter. To conduct this research, I relied on secondary sources when establishing the historical context of today's African Americans' place in society, and a mix of primary and secondary sources when studying the racial inequalities that persist, the debate over a postracial society, and the relationship between police officers and black people - i.e. the lack of black people in the police force and its consequences, racial bias, distrust, etc. On the other hand, primary sources were almost exclusively used when dealing with what happened at Ferguson in 2014, and with the BLM movement. Indeed, news articles from various outlets and a few social networks allowed to analyze the social and political repercussions of the protests. The relation between mainstream news and the opinion of most of the population - as they influence each other - was analyzed, especially since the influence that the protests had on the news is relatively unusual. Moreover, a detailed research of the significance of social media in the BLM movement was conducted: given the importance social media have in everyday life nowadays, it seemed relevant to analyze the presence of BLM on Twitter - which is at the origin of the movement - and Facebook - the most used social medium among Americans. Some of the few available secondary sources on the topic have been of great help for this part. The research on Twitter --a social media platform that played an important role in the protests - provided significant pieces of information on this social medium which requires payment to give access to some of its user data. As there were no statistics or data available on the matter, and since Facebook's search engine did not allow for a filtered search, I created a database categorizing the thousands of Facebook groups and pages which concerned Black/All/White/Blue Lives Matter, according to a few criteria (number of people, frequency of posts, etc.). This database enabled a comparative study of these movements on Facebook, and allowed me to articulate theories about their importance. However, this research has limitations, as some more detailed indications could have helped paint a more precise picture: very little information is obtainable about closed groups and there are hidden groups only visible to members; some pieces of information are extremely difficult to retrieve (especially for a single person with a limited amount of time), such as the date of creation of the group/page, the number of active members out of the total amount, and the periods when people joined a group or liked a page. Thus, in order to address the issue of police brutality against African Americans in the twenty-first century, this work will start with a brief presentation of the place occupied by the black community in society through a selection of key events in history and their impact on today's society; the second part will be an overview of police brutality, zooming in on brutality against black people; third, the circumstances of Michael Brown' death and the aftermath will be under scrutiny, from the protests, their representation in the news, and their consequences, to the change of this representation in the media; finally, the BLM ALM WLM and BlueLM movements will be analyzed, alongside the role that social media played in these movements. Details: Toulouse: University of Toulouse II Jean Jaures, 2017. 165p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed March 27, 2018 at: http://dante.univ-tlse2.fr/4122/1/Eguienta_Oph%C3%A9lieM22017.pdf Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: http://dante.univ-tlse2.fr/4122/1/Eguienta_Oph%C3%A9lieM22017.pdf Shelf Number: 149587 Keywords: African AmericansBlack Lives MatterDeadly ForcePolice BrutalityPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolice-Minority RelationsRacial DiscriminationSocial Media |
Author: Amnesty International Netherlands Title: A Failed Experiment: The Taser-Pilot of the Dutch Police Summary: It is required by recognized international human rights rules and standards as presented in the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials that police agencies have at their disposition a range of means to respond to difficult situations in a differentiated manner. Thus, Amnesty International is not outright opposed to the use of electro-shock weapons in law enforcement in all cases. However, the current use of electro-shock weapons as well as the governing regulations in The Netherlands raise serious concerns and therefore Amnesty International calls the Dutch police to: - suspend the use of electro-shock weapons by all police units currently using them until a suitable legal and operational framework for their use has been set up that is in line with the obligations of The Netherlands under international human rights law and standards and - until this is done - to withdraw all electro-shock weapons distributed; - refrain from widespread distribution of electro-shock weapons in day-to-day policing; - cease any police interventions in mental health institutions in all situations and circumstances that do not amount to immediate life threatening emergencies (e.g. hostage situations). Amnesty International furthermore urges the Dutch government to create a legislative framework governing the use of force that gives due consideration to the obligations of The Netherlands under international human rights law, in particular to regulate, in formal legislation, the use of force in line with the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms, including the use of firearms and the use of electro-shock weapons, as well the overall conditions and criteria for police interventions in mental health institutions. This briefing sets out the background to the current pilot project conducted by the Dutch police on the general deployment of electro-shock weapons in day-to-day policing (I.). It further provides a summary of the Amnesty International's main findings regarding the human rights concerns of the first pilot phase as well as the overall set up of the project and its interim evaluation (II.). These findings are then more in detail explained and elaborated in section III., followed by a conclusion and some recommendations (IV.). Details: Amsterdam: Amnesty International Netherlands, 2018. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 4, 2018 at: https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2018/02/A-Failed-Experiment_The-Taser-pilot-of-the-Dutch-Police.pdf?x32866 Year: 2018 Country: Netherlands URL: https://www.amnesty.nl/content/uploads/2018/02/A-Failed-Experiment_The-Taser-pilot-of-the-Dutch-Police.pdf?x32866 Shelf Number: 149679 Keywords: Human Rights AbusesPolice AccountabilityPolice Use of ForceStun GunsTasers |
Author: Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission Title: Audit of Victoria Police's oversight of serious incidents Summary: o determine how effectively Victoria Police oversights serious incidents involving its officers, IBAC audited more than 140 oversight files closed by Victoria Police during the 2015/16 financial year. The audit examined Victoria Police's oversight of serious incidents resulting in death and serious injury following police contact. The audit identified that there are aspects of Victoria Police's oversight process that are concerning and which could be improved. When a person dies or is seriously injured following an interaction with police, Victoria Police conducts an oversight of the incident and any subsequent investigation. Victoria Police's oversight process seeks to identify whether the serious incident was preventable or whether improvements could be made to police policies or practices to prevent similar incidents from occurring. Victoria Police also examines whether the investigation of the death or serious injury met the standards expected for handling serious incidents. Victoria Police conducts an oversight in response to the following serious incidents: a death or serious injury resulting from contact between police and the public a death or serious injury to a person in police custody an attempted suicide by a person in police custody an incident involving the discharge of a firearm by police an escape from custody any serious vehicle collision involving police. This report presents the findings of IBAC's audit of Victoria Police oversight files (known as C1-8 files). The audit assessed whether Victoria Police's oversights were thorough and impartial and met the standards required of such reviews. IBAC also examined relevant Victoria Police policies, conducted data analysis, and reviewed case studies. IBAC has made recommendations for Victoria Police to improve its oversight of serious incidents which Victoria Police has accepted. IBAC will monitor how Victoria Police implements these recommendations. The audit is part of an ongoing program of audits that IBAC conducts on how Victoria Police handles complaints. These audits help Victoria Police build capacity to prevent corrupt conduct and police misconduct by identifying areas of improvement around complaint handling. IBAC's audits also identify good practice that could be considered more broadly by Victoria Police. In doing so, audits help build public confidence in the integrity of Victoria Police's processes and in IBAC's independent police oversight role. Details: Melbourne: The Commission, 2018.62p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 6, 2018 at: http://www.ibac.vic.gov.au/docs/default-source/research-documents/audit-of-victoria-police-oversight-of-serious-incidents.pdf?sfvrsn=2 Year: 2018 Country: Australia URL: http://www.ibac.vic.gov.au/docs/default-source/research-documents/audit-of-victoria-police-oversight-of-serious-incidents.pdf?sfvrsn=2 Shelf Number: 149710 Keywords: Police AccountabilityPolice BehaviorPolice MisconductPolice PerformancePolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen Interactions |
Author: DuPey, Bridget Title: Access Denied: Colorado Law Enforcement Refuses Public Access to Records of Police Misconduct Summary: Despite the Colorado state law permitting discretionary release of law enforcement investigation files of alleged police misconduct under the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act (CCJRA), most jurisdictions routinely deny public records requests for such files. Although the Colorado Supreme Court has mandated that law enforcement records custodians perform a balancing test on a case-by-case basis to decide whether to release these files, custodians generally deny all requests for files irrespective of the nature of alleged misconduct or the outcome of the investigation. This report details the independent research study conducted as a student-faculty collaboration at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law to assess the willingness of law enforcement agencies to release internal affairs files. The study includes two "waves" of requests. The first wave of the study sought logs of internal affairs files during the 2015 and 2016 calendar years from various law enforcement agencies across Colorado. The second wave sought specific internal affairs files from those agencies that provided a sufficient list or log during the first wave of requests, as well as requests for a few additional targeted files of particular public interest. The researchers were ultimately unable to obtain a single complete internal affairs file from any jurisdiction included in the study. The vast majority of agencies denied outright the request or failed to respond. Furthermore, the two isolated jurisdictions that offered to process the request assessed cost-prohibitive fees for processing. Despite state open records laws explicitly intended to promote public transparency and accountability among government actors, this study illustrates that Coloradans remain largely in the dark with regard to allegations and investigations of police misconduct. Indeed, most law enforcement agencies are categorically unwilling to allow public access to internal affairs files. To achieve the intent behind state open records law, the Colorado General Assembly should amend the CCJRA to require public release upon request of completed internal affairs investigations, a policy in line with at least a dozen other states. Details: Denver, CO: University of Denver - Sturm College of Law, 2017. 14p. Source: Internet Resource: U Denver Legal Studies Research Paper No. 18-05: Accessed April 9, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3136011 Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3136011 Shelf Number: 149731 Keywords: Police AccountabilityPolice Internal AffairsPolice MisconductPolice RecordsPolice Use of Force |
Author: Coleman, Terry Title: Police Interactions with Persons with a Mental Illness: Police Learning in the Environment of Contemporary Policing Summary: n recent decades, the number of interactions between people with mental illnesses and police has increased significantly. While most of these interactions are minor in nature and are resolved uneventfully, there are unfortunately a few which result in significant negative outcomes. Whenever this is the case, one of the most frequent recommendations which has emerged from reviews is that police officers should be provided with education and training - learning - in order to give them the skills and knowledge necessary to interact adaptively with people with mental illnesses (PMI). This paper is Part II of a two-part review of that learning; Part I was a review of police education and training at the police academy basic training level. The purpose of the current investigation, Part II, was to review the state of police in-service education and training related to police/PMI interactions. A review of current practice in a variety of jurisdictions across Canada as well as in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, suggests that there is considerable variability in existing programs. While many police agencies provide little or no learning in this area, others provide more comprehensive education varying in length from a few hours to several days. The content of the training varies from an overview considered appropriate for a wide variety of police officers up to and including highly focused training intended for specialist officers. While some police services provide 'one-size-fits-all' training, others deliver a variety of levels and degrees of learning. Unfortunately, in spite of the widespread acceptance of programs such as the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) model, which originated in Memphis, Tennessee, there is little outcome research or data-based evidence to inform the exact nature of an effective program, and the research that does exist does not provide guidance as to which components of a learning program are most effective. Nevertheless, the existing research tends to support the contention that education and training is effective in improving outcomes overall. Even though, the primary purpose of the paper is to provide an overview of what is delivered and what should be delivered in terms of curricula related to mental illness, it would be inappropriate to discuss curriculum without considering the greater context. While education and training is of course essential to ensuring that interactions between police and PMI are constructive and adaptive, education in and of itself is not a panacea and will not create the kind of change that is desirable if it occurs in isolation. Thus, before identifying 'desired practices' in terms of curriculum, it is necessary to comment on the circumstance within which this learning should occur. First, every police officer operates within the context of his/her own organization. Therefore, it is essential that each police organization have in place policies and procedures that support the application of the skills and knowledge that police acquire through education and training. For example, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police has promulgated the Contemporary Policing Guidelines for Working with the Mental Health System. The Guidelines outline a series of processes and policies that should ideally be in place in any police agency in order to inform and support the work of not only individual police officers but of all police personnel who encounter PMI. In addition to these policies and procedures, each police organization must also be guided by knowledge about the police academy training that their officers bring to the workplace. As has been noted in a previous survey (Part I), police academies vary significantly in terms of the type and extent of learning at the basic-training level. In many cases, such academy level training has only been in place in recent years; thus, police officers who have been employed longer will not have had the benefit of that training. Second, while the specific content of a mental-illness related curriculum is of course crucial, it is not the only determinant of successful learning. It is necessary that police agencies attend to a variety of other factors that will have a direct impact on the learning outcome. These include: - selection of appropriate 'trainers,' including those who are both subject matter experts and who are operationally credible; - inclusion of local mental health professionals, for the purposes of providing reliable information as well as to assist in forming local connections with mental health agencies; - integration of PMI and their families into the training in order to provide direct first-hand experience with this population; - use of a variety of forms of learning media including participatory strategies; - focus on cognitive determinants of behaviour including attitudes, exercise of discretion and stigma; and adaptability of the curriculum to reflect the population receiving training (e.g. new officers versus specialized teams versus dispatch personnel) as well as local community needs. By extracting components from a variety of education and training regimes already in place in Canada and other countries, and then combining them with what can be gleaned from outcome research, a comprehensive education and training regime based on an identified learning spectrum emerges; one that can be adapted to a variety of police agencies and police personnel. The proposed learning model has been entitled TEMPO - an acronym for Training and Education about Mental Illness for Police Officers. Details: Ottawa: Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2010. 90p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed April 17, 2018 at: https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/Law_Police_Interactions_Mental_Illness_Report_ENG_0_1.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Canada URL: https://www.mentalhealthcommission.ca/sites/default/files/Law_Police_Interactions_Mental_Illness_Report_ENG_0_1.pdf Shelf Number: 149842 Keywords: Mentally Ill OffendersMentally Ill PersonsPolice Education and TrainingPolice Policies and PracticesPolice Use of Force |
Author: Perry, David Title: The Ruderman White Paper On Media Coverage of Law Enforcement Use of Force and Disability: A Media Study (2013-2015) and Overview Summary: Disabled individuals make up a third to half of all people killed by law enforcement officers. Disabled individuals make up the majority of those killed in use-of-force cases that attract widespread attention. This is true both for cases deemed illegal or against policy and for those in which officers are ultimately fully exonerated. The media is ignoring the disability component of these stories, or, worse, is telling them in ways that intensify stigma and ableism. When we leave disability out of the conversation or only consider it as an individual medical problem, we miss the ways in which disability intersects with other factors that often lead to police violence. Conversely, when we include disability at the intersection of parallel social issues, we come to understand the issues better, and new solutions emerge. Contents Disability intersects with other factors such as race, class, gender, and sexuality, to magnify degrees of marginalization and increase the risk of violence. When the media ignores or mishandles a major factor, as we contend they generally do with disability, it becomes harder to effect change. This white paper focuses on the three years of media coverage of police violence and disability since the death of a young man with Down syndrome, named Ethan Saylor, in January 2013. After reviewing media coverage of eight selected cases of police violence against individuals with disabilities, the paper reveals the following patterns in the overall data: - Disability goes unmentioned or is listed as an attribute without context. - An impairment is used to evoke pity or sympathy for the victim. - A medical condition or "mental illness" is used to blame victims for their deaths. - In rare instances, we have identified thoughtful examinations of disability from within its social context that reveal the intersecting forces that lead to dangerous use-of-force incidents. Such stories point the way to better models for policing in the future. We conclude by proposing best practices for reporting on disability and police violence. Details: Boston: Ruderman Family Foundation, 2016. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 19, 2018 at: http://rudermanfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MediaStudy-PoliceDisability_final-final.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://rudermanfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MediaStudy-PoliceDisability_final-final.pdf Shelf Number: 149860 Keywords: Disabled PersonsMass MediaMediaPolice BrutalityPolice Use of Force |
Author: Summerfield, Tansi Susan Lillian Title: Police Decision-Making: The Impact of Choice on the Use-of-Force Decisions Summary: Research on choice and decision-making has indicated that excessive choice can negatively influence decision-making performance. Choice overload research has mostly focused on consumer purchases, thereby limiting the generalizability to applied professional settings. This research examined 112 Canadian police cadets on decision-making in a use-of-force situation. Cadets interacted with a high threat virtual judgment scenario wherein they had to choose the most appropriate intervention option available to immobilize the subject and stop the threat. Cadets participated in one of two limited choice groups or one extensive choice group and were evaluated on performance, response time (RT), self-reported confidence, and physiological arousal. The goal of the research was to determine if choice overload occurs in applied police settings and whether increased arousal mediates the effect of choice on decisions. It was predicted that the participants with fewer choices would perform better, respond quicker, and be more confident than those with more choices and increased arousal would further decrease the extensive choice group's performance, RT, and confidence. Choice overload was observed, but not in the predicted way; results revealed that greater choice did not have detrimental effects on decision-making. Instead, the specific intervention option participants had available (OC-spray vs. pistol) influenced performance, speed, and confidence more than number of choices did. Results also indicated no consistent pattern of arousal. It is recommended that further research be conducted to determine what impact the different intervention options available have on decision-making in use-of-force situations. Details: Regina, SASK: University of Regina, 2017. 82p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed April 19, 2018 at: https://ourspace.uregina.ca/handle/10294/7705 Year: 2017 Country: Canada URL: https://ourspace.uregina.ca/handle/10294/7705 Shelf Number: 149862 Keywords: Police Decision-MakingPolice DiscretionPolice Use of Force |
Author: Perry, David Title: Critical Factors in Police Use-of-Force Decisions Summary: This study investigated law enforcement officers' perceptions of the legal, normative, and practical considerations that are implicit in their decisions when faced with using physical force. Law enforcement officers observe and protect fundamental human rights. A significant problem, however, is that physical force is sometimes misused, impacting public confidence in police services. The study was framed by Durkheim's conflict theory and Beirie's concepts of police corporate culture and social control. It used a grounded theory method and predeveloped case scenarios presented to 2 male focus groups of 7 and 6 participants respectively, and 2 female focus groups of 5 and 7 participants, who were police officers in Canada, to explore for gender differences in response strategies, decisions to use force, and arguments for their decisions, following the model set forth by Waddington (2009). Additionally, data were also collected through 12 individual semistructured interviews. Open, axial, and selective manual coding was used in the data analysis. The data collection and analysis for this study resulted in the development of, the paradigm of safety, a theory that reflects how female officers' useof-force decisions differ from the decisions of their male colleagues. These decision factors, when incorporated into their response strategies, reflect the timing and need for using force. This study promotes positive social change by providing information that will inform police policies and training practices. This information will enable police administrators and legislators to enhance workplace safety for their officers that are more consistent with democratic rights and freedoms for citizens by reducing use-of-force in conflict circumstances Details: Minneapolis, MN: Walden University, 2015. 249p. Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed April 20, 2018 at: https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=2269&context=dissertations Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=2269&context=dissertations Shelf Number: 149864 Keywords: Police Decision MakingPolice DiscretionPolice MisconductPolice Policies and PracticesPolice TrainingPolice Use of Force |
Author: West, Darrell M. Title: Benefits and Best Practices of Safe City Innovation Summary: Public safety is an important aspect of contemporary life. In a world that is chaotic, dangerous, and volatile, it is hard for there to be economic prosperity and social cohesion without some degree of safety. People need security in order to live day-to-day and undertake business and communications. This is especially the case in regard to cities. According to UNICEF, 70 percent of people around the world will live in cities by the Cities face a variety of implementation challenges, such as poor funding, infrastructure difficulties, public resistance, a lack of technical expertise, and privacy and security concerns. Implementation of public safety solutions represents a major challenge in many different places, and it is crucial for leaders to overcome these barriers in order to achieve the benefits of public safety innovation. Solutions such as CCTV cameras, police body cameras, integrated command centers using broadband trunking, social media safety alerts, and predictive data analysis show great promise as tools for law enforcement. Many factors affect technology innovation in the public sector. This includes the level of financial investment, crime rates, safety considerations, openness to technology solutions, and the strength of the digital infrastructure in particular countries. But government policy is especially important because officials make investments that enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of public sector operations. The way in which they handle modernization strategies matters a lot in terms of innovation and service delivery. There are many opportunities for cities to build their economies and promote social inclusion through public safety innovation. Cities can encourage greater innovation by increasing budget investments in digital infrastructure, building public support, using crowd-sourcing platforms to encourage citizen participation, breaking down organizational stovepipes through technology, overcoming organizational resistance, making data openly available, deploying data analytics, integrating solutions, figuring out how to balance privacy and security concerns, and identifying opportunities for improvement. Details: Washington, DC: Center for Technology Innovation (CTI) at Brookings, 2017. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 26, 2018 at: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/safe-city-innovation_final.pdf Year: 2017 Country: International URL: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/safe-city-innovation_final.pdf Shelf Number: 149914 Keywords: Body-Worn CamerasCCTVPolice AccountabilityPolice TechnologyPolice Use of ForcePolicingPublic SafetyPublic SecurityVideo Surveillance |
Author: Bryan, Tacicia Title: Black Lives Matter Toronto: A Qualitative Study of Twitter's Localized Social Discourse on Systemic Racism Summary: This Major Research Paper examines the Twitter discourse of Black Lives Matter Toronto (BLMTO), a chapter of the Black Lives Matter Movement which addresses issues of racism and police brutality. BLMTO protested in front of police headquarters between April 1st and April 15th, 2016 and used Twitter to document their protest during this time. This paper provides a content and sentiment analysis of 346 tweets collected during this time frame. The analysis of the Twitter content is based on concepts drawn from the scholarly literature on the public sphere, identity and social identity, and framing theory. My findings indicate the following: 1. Black Lives Matter Toronto uses media framing techniques, as well as logical and moral appeals, to build credibility as a strong subaltern counterpublic, an information resource for community building and an influencer online, through sharing relevant statistics, news stories and persuasive rhetoric. 2. BLMTO incorporates calls to action to create publicity and facilitate community mobilization. 3. Key themes in the tweets include the exercise of power in society, the need to build community and create a common sense of right and wrong, and maintaining solidarity Details: Toronto: Ryerson University, 2016. 69p. Source: Internet Resource: Thesis: Accessed April 26, 2018 at: http://digital.library.ryerson.ca/islandora/object/RULA%3A5401 Year: 2016 Country: Canada URL: http://digital.library.ryerson.ca/islandora/object/RULA%3A5401 Shelf Number: 149916 Keywords: Police BrutalityPolice Use of ForceRacial BiasRacial DisparitiesSocial MediaTwitter |
Author: Flanders, Chad Title: Police Use of Deadly Force: State Statutes 30 Years after Garner Summary: The recent rash of police shootings has raised troubling questions about when, if ever, police are justified in using deadly force against a suspect. Some police shootings may simply represent wanton violence. But others may present close cases. How do we decide when a police officer can not only use force, but shoot at a suspect - even shoot to kill? When is a police killing a justifiable homicide, and when is it just a homicide? One place to start in drawing the line between justified and unjustified uses of deadly force is the Supreme Court's 1985 opinion in Tennessee v. Garner. Reading the majority opinion in Garner is a bracing experience. Justice White's extended discussion of the common law standard of police use of force makes clear on many levels that he did not merely want to replace the common law rule: he wanted to bury it. That police could use any amount of force, including deadly force, to "seize" a fleeing felon - the common law rule which at issue in Garner - was not only constitutionally infirm, it made little sense as a policy matter. As powerful as the Garner decision was, it also was an importantly limited one. Garner was a case involving a suit under Section 1983, the federal civil rights statute. In deciding such a suit, the Court has to announce what the constitutional rule is - and so in Garner's lawsuit, the Court had to say what amount of force counted as "reasonable" under the Fourth Amendment. But deciding the constitutional standard for Garner's civil rights suit didn't disturb what the standard had to be for state criminal law prosecutions. States still have the authority to dictate under what circumstances police could justifiably use deadly force, and so avoid punishment under state law. Many states did change their laws after Garner, so compelling was Garner's reasoning. This essay updates the count of states who still hang on to the common law rule in their statutes, thirty years after Garner and by the same token, records the number of states who have changed their laws. The structure of our essay is as follows: after a recapitulation of Garner - including a discussion of the ambiguity of what is ultimately its holding (Part I) - we turn to our updated count of states that still retain the common law rule (Part II). Part III explains why, contrary to the belief of many, the decision in Garner did not require states to abandon the common law rule. Part IV looks at the most recent legislative efforts to reform the use of police force statute in Missouri. Details: St. Louis, MO: Saint Louis University - School of Law, 2016. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: Saint Louis U. Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2016-1: Accessed April 27, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2725926 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2725926 Shelf Number: 149930 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice BrutalityPolice Use of ForceTennessee v. Garner |
Author: Frankham, Emma Title: Victim or Villain? Racial/ethnic differences in the portrayal of individuals with mental illness killed by police Summary: Using an intersectional approach toward race/ethnicity and mental illness, this paper examines racial/ethnic differences in how 301 individuals with mental illness killed by police during 2015 and 2016 were portrayed in news reports. Content analysis indicates that frames that portray individuals as being victims of mental illness are most common in news reports about Whites, while African-Americans are most likely to be portrayed as victims of police actions. Graphic content is much more prevalent in news reports about African-Americans, serving as a visceral reminder of the actions of police.Hispanics are most likely to be portrayed as 'villains' through discussions of substance use, criminal records, and expressions of support for police. Implications of the findings are discussed in the context of theory on the attribution of personal responsibility and the portrayal of 'victims' and 'villains' crime news, as well as research on the portrayal of individuals with mental illness and racial/ethnic minorities in crime news. Details: Unpublished paper, 2018. 37p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 10, 2018 at: https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/v8fbx Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/v8fbx Shelf Number: 150138 Keywords: Deadly ForceMass MediaMentally Ill PersonsPolice Use of ForceRacial Disparities |
Author: Eiler, Brian A. Title: The Behavioral Dynamics of Shooter Bias in Virtual Reality: The Role of Race, Armed Status, and Distance on Threat Perception and Shooting Dynamics Summary: There are clear racial disparities in police violence such that being Black puts one at a higher risk of being killed by police (Mapping Police Violence, 2016). One hypothesized mechanism for this disparity is "shooter bias", which refers to the tendency to shoot unarmed Black men more often, and armed Black men more quickly, than Whites in a shoot/no-shoot task (Correll, Hudson, Guillermo, & Ma, 2014). The current project addressed four potential influences on threat perception and shooting decision-making (biological complexity, implicit racial bias, armed status, and distance). A novel, yet simple, bias awareness feedback method as a potential intervention to reduce discriminatory shooting was also tested. Participants viewed a series of Black and White, armed and unarmed avatars at various distance locations in two experiments. In Exp. 1, participants judged each avatar in terms of threat level while in Exp. 2, participants made shooting decisions, both in virtual reality using a hand held controller. Feedback was given on the shoot/no-shoot task between two trial blocks. Heart rate was measured via the Empatica E4 and implicit bias was measured via a mouse-tracking version of the IAT using the MouseTracker Software. Participants demonstrated stronger associations for stereotype congruent pairings of race and armed status and had higher heart rate during incongruent trial blocks of the IAT. In Exp. 1, results revealed main effects of distance, race, and armed status (no interaction effects) such that armed avatars and closer distances produced the highest threat ratings. White avatars were perceived as more threatening than Black avatars. In Exp. 2, results revealed that participants performed more accurately for White targets than Black targets and held the trigger down for longer (and were more variable) when the target was Black. These trigger pull dynamics were also related to dynamic measures of implicit bias. Finally, performance feedback, resulted in improved performance (i.e., correct shoot/no-shoot decisions). Moreover, participant post-feedback trigger pull dynamics were no longer associated with implicit bias. The results of the pre-experimental testing demonstrated that participant heart rate increased (i.e., higher arousal/stress) during stereotype incongruent trials, illustrating the potential link between arousal and implicit bias. Exp. 1 demonstrated that threat perception was related to armed status and distance. However, participants rated Whites avatars as more threatening than Black avatars, indicating that threat perception can be influenced by social desirability concerns (i.e., aversive racism. The results of Exp. 2, however, were largely consistent with the hypothesis that Black avatars would produce biased shooting performance and shooting dynamics compared to White avatars. The results of Exp. 2, also validated the modified VR paradigm for measuring shoot/no-shoot decision making and the more nuanced dynamical measures of shooter bias employed (i.e., trigger dynamics). Furthermore, results implicated trigger pull dynamics as the underlying link between implicit bias and shooting decision making. Importantly, the results of Exp. 2 also demonstrated that racial differences in shooting behavior may be altered by a simple bias awareness feedback intervention that disrupts the association between race and weapons. Details: Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati, 2017. 121p. Source: Internet Resource: May 17, 2018 at: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/pg_10?0::NO:10:P10_ACCESSION_NUM:ucin1511798377909988 Year: 2017 Country: United States URL: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/pg_10?0::NO:10:P10_ACCESSION_NUM:ucin1511798377909988 Shelf Number: 150255 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice Decision-MakingPolice Use of ForcePolice ViolenceRacial Disparities |
Author: New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board Title: A Mutated Rule: Lack of Enforcement in the Face of Persistent Chokehold Incidents in New York City Summary: For more than 20 years, the NYPD Patrol Guide has prohibited the use of chokeholds, relying on a Police Department rule that unequivocally forbids any pressure to the neck, throat or windpipe that may inhibit breathing. This rule was plainly intended to prohibit all chokeholds. As defined, chokeholds, though not illegal, are unambiguously prohibited by Department policy. This report reveals that officers have continued to perform chokeholds and, based on the complaints the CCRB received from the public, the use of chokeholds appears to be increasing despite the Patrol Guide prohibition. It also reveals that this crystal clear prohibition has been degraded over the course of the last decade. Put simply, during the last decade, the NYPD disciplinary decisions in NYPD administrative trials of chokehold allegations failed to enforce the clear mandate of the Patrol Guide chokehold rule. In response to these decisions which failed to hold offending officers accountable, the CCRB and NYPD Department Advocate's Office failed to charge officers with chokehold violations pursuant to the mandate of the Patrol Guide chokehold rule. In essence, in their respective charging decisions, the CCRB and the Department Advocate redefined a "chokehold" to require force to the neck during which an officer actually and substantially interfered with a complainant's breathing rather than "pressure" to the neck which "may" interfere with breathing. In this respect the chokehold rule "mutated" to adapt to the NYPD disciplinary process, rather than the disciplinary process following the NYPD rule. This pragmatic redefinition of the rule in response to the NYPD's systematic refusal to impose discipline in all but the most severe chokehold cases, evolved into an unwritten, much less protective definition: actual and sustained interference with breathing was substituted for the Patrol Guide's clear and unequivocal prohibition of any pressure to the neck which "may" inhibit breathing. In essence, inadequate disciplinary practices transplanted the heart of the chokehold rule during a period in which, as the number of chokehold complaints suggests, chokehold incidents were increasing. The NYPD's blanket prohibition of chokeholds should be restored and uniformly enforced. Details: New York: The Civilian Complaint Review Board, 2014. 155p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 24, 2018 at: Lack of Enforcement in the Face of Persistent Chokehold Incidents in New York City Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: Lack of Enforcement in the Face of Persistent Chokehold Incidents in New York City Shelf Number: 150359 Keywords: ChokeholdsCitizen ComplaintsPolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice DiscliplinePolice Use of Force |
Author: Gonzales Rose, Jasmine B. Title: Racial Character Evidence in Police Killing Cases Summary: The United States is facing a twofold crisis: police killings of people of color and unaccountability for these killings in the criminal justice system. In many instances, the officers' use of deadly force is captured on video and often appears clearly unjustified, but grand and petit juries still fail to indict and convict, leaving many baffled. This Article provides an explanation for these failures: juror reliance on "racial character evidence." Too often, jurors consider race as evidence in criminal trials, particularly in police killing cases where the victim was a person of color. Instead of focusing on admissible evidence, jurors rely on race to determine the defendant's innocence, the victim's propensity for violence, and the witnesses' credibility. This Article delineates the ways in which juror racial bias is utilized to take on evidentiary value at trial and constructs evidence law solutions to increase racial equality in the courtroom. Details: Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 2018. 72p. Source: Internet Resource: ; U. of Pittsburgh Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2018-13. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3183408: Accessed May 30, 2018 at: Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3183408 Shelf Number: 150382 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice KillingsPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForceRacial Disparities |
Author: Yesberg, Julia Title: Affect and Trust as Predictors of Public Support for Armed Police: Evidence from London Summary: Police in England, Scotland and Wales operate largely unarmed, and have done since the formation of the London Metropolitan Police in 1829. However, recent terror attacks and concern over serious violent crime have prompted increased funding for armed officers and even calls for routine arming of police. In this paper we present results from the first in-depth study of public attitudes toward the arming of more police. Starting from the assumption that most people have little concrete knowledge of the potential benefits and risks of doing so, we show that trust, and particularly affective responses to the idea of armed police, are central in shaping support for the routine arming of more officers. A range of other sociological and psychological variables are also important, but only in as much as they are correlated with trust and, again, particularly affect. Our findings have implications not only for this specific policy development, but also wider consideration of lay reactions to changes in police policy and technology. Details: London: University College London - Jill Dando Institute of Security and Crime Science, 2018. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 27, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3191056 Year: 2018 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3191056 Shelf Number: 150712 Keywords: Armed PolicePolice LegitimacyPolice Use of ForcePolicing |
Author: Goodwin, Alexandra Title: Police Brutality Bonds: How Wall Street Profits from Police Violence Summary: As the costs of police misconduct rise, cities and counties across the United States are going into debt to pay for it. Often this debt is in the form of bond borrowing. When cities or counties issue bonds to pay these costs, banks and other firms collect fees for the services they provide, and investors collect interest. The use of bonds to pay for settlements and judgments greatly increases the burden of policing costs on taxpayers, while producing a profit for banks and investors. Using bonds to pay for settlements or judgments can nearly double the costs of the original settlement. All of this is paid for by taxpayers. We call the bonds used to cover police related settlement and judgment costs "police brutality bonds", because they quite literally allow banks and wealthy investors to profit from police violence. This is a transfer of wealth from communities-especially over-policed communities of color-to Wall Street and wealthy investors. The companies profiting from police brutality bonds include well known institutions like Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, and Bank of America, as well as smaller regional banks and other firms. In our research into the use of police brutality bonds, we found that cities and counties across the United States issue bonds to pay for police brutality settlements and judgments. The cities range from giant metropolises such as Los Angeles to smaller cities like Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Our report includes details on police brutality bonds in twelve cities and counties, including five in-depth case studies: Chicago, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Lake County, Indiana. Details: s.l.: Action Center on Race & The Economy, 2018. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 10, 2018 at: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58d8a1bb3a041137d463d64f/t/5b330815562fa7d3babc1fd4/1530071089421/Police+Brutality+Bonds+-+Jun+2018.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58d8a1bb3a041137d463d64f/t/5b330815562fa7d3babc1fd4/1530071089421/Police+Brutality+Bonds+-+Jun+2018.pdf Shelf Number: 150805 Keywords: Police BrutalityPolice Brutality BondsPolice MisconductPolice Use of Force |
Author: International Association of Chiefs of Police Title: National Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Study: A National Assessment of Critical Trends and Issues from 2009 to 2013 Summary: Prior research tells us Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) approaches vary across all of the state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies in the United States (U.S.), of which there are more than 17,000. In particular, SWAT staffing levels, composition, policies, training, and deployment can fluctuate noticeably when looking at major, midsize, and smaller agencies. Looking at SWAT operations from a policy perspective (refer to the NTOA Tactical Response and Operations Standard at http://ntoa. org/swat-standard/ or the IACP Model Policy on SWAT or Use of Force at http://www.iacp.org/ model-policy) we also know there are substantial variations in the components that go into a SWAT or special operations unit, including, but not limited to, tactical, canine, conflict resolution, and medical response. The compositions of SWAT units vary as well, from functions staffed exclusively by fulltime personnel, to those operated by part-time personnel, and those which use both full- and parttime personnel. SWAT is often included in a broader special operations division (SOD) in many major county and city departments. There is also variation in the jurisdictional reach of SWAT, with some designed as city- or county-specific, while others may serve multiple cities within a specified region. Lastly, local SWAT teams often work in partnership with federal SWAT or special operations units, further complicating how SWAT activity statistics are collected, analyzed, and reported. Over the past several decades, the National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA) has worked diligently to create and support the implementation of best practice policies into SWAT operations across the U.S. Performance standards have been developed, as well as guidelines for minimum training, model policies, and learning validation, measuring officer comprehension and retention of policy details. Due to the complexity of the issue and a need from the law enforcement field, the NTOA contracted the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) to conduct a national research study assessing critical trends and issues related to SWAT in the United States from 2009 through 2013. To avoid any unintended bias, the IACP engaged the services of the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago to provide data analysis. Through the development and implementation of the national survey, the NTOA has collected information from 254 law enforcement agencies regarding teams composed of specially selected, trained, and equipped personnel who are activated and, if necessary, deployed to resolve high-risk incidents. Many individuals have a reasonable interest in understanding SWAT practices more fully, particularly citizens, the media, community organizations, and governing bodies. Generally, these individuals rarely get a chance to hear firsthand from either SWAT members or those involved in a SWAT action, which could help them better understand the complexities of SWAT deployments. This report reveals the results of the research studies and looks into the composition of SWAT teams, protocols, practices, training procedures, community relations, deployment decisions, outcomes, and incident reporting. Details: Alexandria, VA: IACP, 2016. 57p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 23, 2018 at: http://www.theiacp.org/portals/0/documents/pdfs/IACPNTOANationalSWATStudyReport.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.theiacp.org/portals/0/documents/pdfs/IACPNTOANationalSWATStudyReport.pdf Shelf Number: 138797 Keywords: Police Special Operations Police Use of ForceSpecial Weapons and Tactics SWAT Teams |
Author: Massachusetts. Executive Office of Public Safety and Security Title: Electronic Control Weapons in Massachusetts: 2016 Summary: This report examines data prepared by Massachusetts law enforcement agencies with approved electronic control weapons (ECW) training programs for the period January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2016. Approved agencies are required to complete and submit semi-annual ECW reports on information related to: 1) the number of sworn officers serving the agency; 2) the number of ECW trained officers serving the agency; 3) the number of ECWs owned by the agency; 4) the number of total incidents that occurred during the reporting period; 5) general details about each incident (e.g., warnings, deployments, submissions, etc.); and 6) demographic information about the subject. Details: Boston: The Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, 2018. 23p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 6, 2018 at: https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2018/03/15/2016_ECW_Annual_Report_Final.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2018/03/15/2016_ECW_Annual_Report_Final.pdf Shelf Number: 151411 Keywords: Non-Lethal Weapons Police Use of ForceStun Guns Tasers |
Author: Crusto, Mitchell Title: Right to Life: Interest-Convergence Policing Summary: In the United States, police officers fatally shoot over a thousand people every year. Yet, those officers are seldom prosecuted for, and rarely found guilty of, unjustified use of lethal force. This Article contends that the lack of prosecutions results mainly from leading United States Supreme Court decisions that establish the criminal liability standard for police use of lethal force. It also contends that this standard discourages investigation of such incidents, which diminishes the quality of policing. Using empiricism and normative principles, this Article seeks to re-direct the doctrinal approach for assessing the legality of police use of lethal force in non-custodial situations. Through a case study, it analyzes how some police officers used lethal force in an unjustified manner and (nearly) got away with murder. It concludes that a constitutional right to life principle requires the lowering of the criminal liability standard for assessing police shootings and recommends the mandating of federal investigations of all such incidents. Finally, it proposes federal legislation regulating the investigation and prosecution of police officers' use of lethal force and provides the constitutional basis for this proposal. Details: New Orleans: University of Loyola, 2018. 50p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 12, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3207886 Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: file:///C:/Users/AuthUser/Downloads/SSRN-id3207886.pdf Shelf Number: 151483 Keywords: Criminal Law Lethal Force Police Police Use of Force |
Author: U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Title: Police Use of Force: An Examination of Modern Policing Practices Summary: The relationship between law enforcement and many communities in the U.S. is fraught and challenging, particularly for those who experience violent crimes coupled with intensive police presence and surveillance. A number of recent developments suggest a renewed commitment to resolving this issue. For the first time in decades, the country has witnessed ubiquitous and sustained protests by young people, communities of color, and other impacted populations in cities all across the country. Further, in hope of fostering better community-police relationships, many law enforcement and city officials around the country have started implementing reform strategies to allay communities' concerns about actual or perceived unfair and unequal policing. Reform advocates often acknowledge the positive steps that some jurisdictions are undertaking, but reported cases of excessive force remain a national concern. Furthermore, the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the fundamental rights of both law enforcement and the communities they serve, whose rights are protected under the Fourth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments. While allegations that some police force is excessive, unjustified, and discriminatory continue and proliferate, current data regarding police use of force is insufficient to determine if instances are occurring more frequently. The public continues to hear competing narratives by law enforcement and community members, and the hard reality is that available national and local data is flawed and inadequate. A central contributing factor is the absence of mandatory federal reporting and standardized reporting guidelines. Former FBI Director James Comey stated that: Not long after riots broke out in Ferguson [in 2014], I asked my staff to tell me how many people shot by police were African-American in this country. I wanted to see trends. I wanted to see information. They couldn't give it to me, and it wasn't their fault. Demographic data regarding officer-involved shootings is not consistently reported to us . . . [b]ecause reporting is voluntary, our data is incomplete and therefore, in the aggregate, unreliable. Until recently, data on officer-involved shootings were extremely rare; moreover, the data that are available is most frequently compiled by grassroots organizations, nonprofits, or media sources.5 Data are not only lacking regarding fatal police shootings, but data regarding all use of force are scant and incomplete: Data on lower level uses of force, which happen more frequently than officer-involved shootings, are virtually non-existent. This is due, in part, to the fact that most police precincts don't explicitly collect data on use of force, and in part, to the fact that even when the data is hidden in plain view within police narrative accounts of interactions with civilians, it is exceedingly difficult to extract. Without accurate data on police use of force, allegations by community members and actions by law enforcement not only sow distrust among communities and the police, making policing more dangerous, but also jeopardize public safety. Research consistently shows that positive relationships between community members and law enforcement are essential for safer communities. Citizens are more likely to aid in crime reduction and partner with police if they believe that law enforcement are engaging in equitable treatment and are impartial towards all. Communities are calling for greater transparency and accountability on the part of the police. Similarly, law enforcement officials are calling for better data on current practices, and instituting policies aimed at reducing bias and improving community relationships. All citizens in every community in this country live subject to police enforcement practices, and therefore benefit from effective, constitutionally sound police practices. Against this backdrop, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Commission) investigated rates of police use of force; questioned whether rates and instantiations of that use of force violate the civil rights of persons of color, persons with disabilities, LGBT communities, and low-income persons; and evaluated promising or proven policies and practices worth replicating to minimize unnecessary use of force and the perception and reality of discrimination in police use of force. The Commission held a briefing on April 20, 2015, on police practices and the use of deadly force in the U.S. The panels consisted of community leaders and police reform advocates, law enforcement and court officials, scholars, and legal experts. These experts convened to discuss the longstanding and emergent causes of the recent police-involved fatal shootings of people of color and other disadvantaged populations. Since 2015, several of the Commission's state advisory committees have also investigated police practices, and testimony and findings from their briefings are incorporated throughout the report. No single solution stands out as an immediate fix to the complex problem of police unauthorized use of force. After examining the literature and data available regarding police use of force in Chapters 1-3, the Commission highlights the following findings and recommendations, discussed in full in Chapter 4: Highlighted Findings: Police officers have the difficult and admirable job of providing crucial services to the communities they protect and serve. Their job sometimes puts them in harm's way and may require the use of force. Accordingly, police officers must operate with the highest standards of professionalism and accountability. Every community resident should be able to live, work, and travel confident in an expectation that interactions with police officers will be fair, operate consistent with constitutional norms, and be guided by public safety free from bias or discrimination. Unfortunately, today, too many communities are not confident in that expectation and do not trust fair police-community interactions. Communities have demanded reforms to foster better community-police relations and to prevent unjustified and excessive police uses of force. Accurate and comprehensive data regarding police uses of force is generally not available to police departments or the American public. No comprehensive national database exists that captures rates of police use of force. The best available evidence reflects high rates of use of force nationally, and increased likelihood of police use of force against people of color, people with disabilities, LGBT people, people with mental health concerns, people with low incomes, and those at the intersections of these groups. Lack of training and lack of funding for training leave officers and the public at risk. Critical training areas include tactical training, de-escalation techniques, understanding cultural differences and anti-bias mechanisms, as well as strategies for encounters with individuals with physical and mental disabilities. Repeated and highly publicized incidents of police use of force against persons of color and people with disabilities, combined with a lack of accurate data, lack of transparency about policies and practices in place governing use of force, and lack of accountability for noncompliance foster a perception that police use of force in communities of color and the disability community is unchecked, unlawful, and unsafe. Details: Washington, DC: The Commission, 2018. 230p. Source: Internet Resource: Briefing Report: Accessed January 23, 2019 at: https://www.usccr.gov/pubs/2018/11-15-Police-Force.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://www.usccr.gov/pubs/2018/11-15-Police-Force.pdf Shelf Number: 154381 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice AccountabilityPolice BrutalityPolice Decision MakingPolice MisconductPolice Use of ForcePolice-Citizen InteractionsPolice-Community Relationships |
Author: Ristroph, Alice Title: The Constitution of Police Violence Summary: Police force is again under scrutiny in the United States. Several recent killings of black men by police officers have prompted an array of reform proposals, most of which seem to assume that these recent killings were not (or should not be) authorized and legal. Our constitutional doctrine suggests otherwise. From the 1960s to the present, federal courts have persistently endorsed a very expansive police authority to make seizures - to stop persons, to arrest them, and to use force if the arrestee resists. This Article reveals the full scope of this seizure authority. Of particular importance are the concepts of resistance and compliance. Demands for compliance with officers, and a condemnation of resistance that authorizes police to meet resistance with violence, run throughout constitutional doctrine. Ostensibly race-neutral, the duty of compliance has in fact been distributed along racial lines, and may be contrasted with a privilege of resistance (also race-specific) elsewhere protected in American law. Tracing resistance and compliance helps reveal the ways in which the law distributes risks of violence, and it may help inspire proposals to reduce and redistribute those risks. Details: Unpublished paper, 2016. 58p. Source: Internet Resource: Seton Hall Public Law Research Paper: Accessed January 28, 2019 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2847300 Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2847300 Shelf Number: 154406 Keywords: Fourth AmendmentPolice Deadly ForcePolice Use of ForcePolice ViolenceRacial Profiling in Law EnforcementRacismStop and SearchTraffic Stops |
Author: Wetchler, Everett Title: Fact Sheet: Officer-Involved Shootings and Custodial Deaths in Texas Summary: Since 2005, there have been 8,730 deaths of civilians in the custody of Texas law enforcement. In the past decade, officer-involved shootings in Texas have been on the rise. Data obtained from the Texas Office of the Attorney General shows that since Sept. 1, 2015, there have been 466 civilians shot by Texas law enforcement, and 78 officers have been shot. Officers involved in shootings skew younger and male than the general population of Texas law enforcement officers. Overall, most deaths that occur in Texas law enforcement custody are due to natural causes, but that nearly half of all deaths of inmates housed alone in a jail cell are suicides. Details: Austin, Texas: Texas Justice Initiative, 2018. 9p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 17, 2019 at: http://texasjusticeinitiative.org/publications/ Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1d2UBGXA_5YSv6TdcTZLrGe2X3zUBU3QR/view Shelf Number: 154986 Keywords: Deaths in CustodyJailOfficer Involved FatalitiesOfficer Involved ShootingsPolice Accountability Police BrutalityPolice ShootingsPolice Use of Deadly ForcePolice Use of Force Police-Citizen Encounters Suicide |
Author: Krieger, Nancy Title: Police Killings and police Deaths Are Public Health Data and Can Be Counted Summary: Summary Points - During the past year, the United States has experienced major controversies-and civil unrest-regarding the endemic problem of police violence and police deaths. - Although deaths of police officers are well documented, no reliable official US data exist on the number of persons killed by the police, in part because of long-standing and well-documented resistance of police departments to making these data public. - These deaths, however, are countable, as evidenced by "he Counted," a website launched on June 1, 2015, by the newspaper The Guardian, published in the United Kingdom, which quickly revealed that by June 9, 2015, over 500 people in the US had been killed by the police since January 1, 2015, twice what would be expected based on estimates from the US Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI). - Law-enforcement-related deaths, of both persons killed by law enforcement agents and also law enforcement agents killed in the line of duty, are a public health concern, not solely a criminal justice concern, since these events involve mortality and affect the well-being of the families and communities of the deceased; therefore, law-enforcement- related deaths are public health data, not solely criminal justice data. - We propose that law-enforcement-related deaths be treated as a notifiable condition, which would allow public health departments to report these data in real-time, at the local as well as national level, thereby providing data needed to understand and prevent the problem. Details: PLoS Medicine, 2015. 7p, Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 11, 2019 at: https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1001915&type=printable Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1001915&type=printable Shelf Number: 155359 Keywords: Deadly ForcePolice BrutalityPolice ShootingsPolice Use of ForcePublic Health Data |
Author: Beck, Charlie Title: Use of Force Year-End Review: Los Angeles Police Department Summary: Following several highly publicized police shootings throughout the United States in 2015, the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners (BOPC), executive body of the Los Angeles Police Department (Department), requested the Chief of Police (COP) to provide a comprehensive internal report regarding the Department's use of force (UOF). In response, the Department published the Use of Force Year-End Review (Report), an annual five-year comparison study now released in its third edition. The Report has come to serve as a vital platform of measurability and analysis of the Department's UOF occurrences. In review of the statistics published herein, the Department seeks to identify areas where potentially ineffective or outdated UOF-related policies and training can be enhanced, and new innovative practices can be implemented. A notable change was the 2016 concept of tactical de-escalation; the use of techniques to reduce the intensity of an encounter with a suspect and enable an officer to have additional options to gain voluntary compliance or mitigate the need to use a higher level of force while maintaining control of a situation. The components of tactical de-escalation, as prominent as they were in past Department practices and training, needed to be refined and more thoroughly articulated. As such, the development of tactical de-escalation as a concept, and ultimately a policy change, provided the Department a more effective and functional way of introducing the embodied material to officers. As of April 2017, tactical de-escalation has been featured in the preamble of the Department's UOF policy and has become a crucial element in officers' decision-making processes. The Department is also committed to learning from the greater law enforcement community through sharing of knowledge and experiences that have become best practices. Honest self-examination is necessary to shift organizational methods to align with current conditions. As Los Angeles Police Commissioner Matthew Johnson has stated: Any healthy organization must pause every now and again to do some self-examination and make sure that it's using the best and most current methods, giving its employees the best tools, and meeting the public's expectations, as well as its own. This Department must always strive to be the best in the Nation. That means that we must constantly re-evaluate what we are doing and be willing to be self-critical - so that we are always moving forward, always improving. The Report serves as a vital instrument in the self-assessment process and is an important medium in sharing of information with the public. As with past efforts and accomplished solutions, the Department continually strives to maintain its global leadership role in transparency, innovation, and service. The Use of Force Year-End Review stands as a symbol of those principles. Details: Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles Police Department, 2019. 203p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 21, 2019 at: http://www.lapdonline.org/research Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: http://assets.lapdonline.org/assets/pdf/2017UseofForceYear-EndReview-1-compressed-3.pdf Shelf Number: 157034 Keywords: De-escalation Law Enforcement Police Departments Police Misconduct Police Officers Police Shootings Police Use of Force |