NCJ Number
193784
Date Published
2001
Length
13 pages
Annotation
After considering the ethics of the police use of force, this paper discusses the extent of police use of force and means of ensuring that police officers will use force in accordance with ethical policies.
Abstract
Bittner (1999) has advised that the ethics of the police use of force is not designed to prevent police use of physical force, especially deadly force, but to relegate it to the last and unavoidable resort. No matter how dangerous and despicable a person may be, officers must always afford him or her an opportunity to yield to the officer's demand for nonviolent submission. Under no circumstances should an officer ignore the offer of such an opportunity. Based on a survey of a nationally representative sample of U.S. residents conducted jointly by three Federal agencies in 1996, an estimate was made of the extent of police use of force. The survey estimated that 1.3 million persons (0.6 percent of the U.S. population age 12 or older) had been handcuffed or were hit, held, pushed, choked, threatened with a flashlight, restrained by a police dog, threatened or actually sprayed with chemical or pepper spray, threatened with a gun, or experienced some other form of police force during 1996. The adoption of a clear departmental statement to guide the ethical use of force is the first step for ensuring it. Some examples of such departmental statements are provided in this paper. Some ways of ensuring that officers will comply with departmental mandates are the effective selection of new officers, realistic and values-based recruit training, proper field training, in-service training, adequate supervision, early identification and intervention when force is used inappropriately, timely discipline, strong leadership, and ongoing research and analysis of incidents of the police use of force. 22 references