Police Officer 's Use Of Deadly Force Against An Unarmed Teenager

There were boycotts of the malls in Baton Rouge, people were marching even holding up traffic. This didn’t only occur in Baton Rouge, but across the U.S. people were standing up for this injustice. Alton Sterling was selling cd in front of a convenience store when two officers approached him, the situation escalated Mr. Sterling was shot several times resulting in his death. Baton Rouge police did not provide much information about what escalated the incident between the officers and Sterling or what prompted an officer to fire his weapon. A witness, however, described police as “aggressive” and said Sterling was armed but was not holding his gun or touching his pockets during the incident. The level of force an officer uses varies based on the situation. Because of this variation, guidelines for the use of force are based on many factors, including the officer’s level of training or experience.

The heated issue of police brutality and police officers violating civil rights has extensively covered media headlines for several years. Hundreds of people are killed every year by police officers, and many of these cases bring up issues of police brutality. More often than not, it is usually a white police officer and an african american offender encounter that sparks media attention. The shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri is just one of these cases that has caused a major divide in the United States. Michael Brown was fatally shot by Officer Wilson after an unfriendly encounter in the streets. Those who believe that Officer Wilson made the right decision in shooting Michael Brown, point to the fact that the grand jury chose not to indict him. Although Darren WIlson was not charged after the shooting of unarmed Michael Brown, some people believe that his actions were unlawful and he should have received some sort of punishment for his wrongdoing. Acknowledging all of the facts of the investigation, Officer Wilson did not act properly in the circumstances of the time.

In light of the recent spate of police-involved homicides of suspects who may or may not have put the lives of the police involved in fear for their safety and well-being, this paper seeks to examine the use of deadly force by police officers in the line of duty. The training involved in using one’s service weapon in situations that call for a determination of the use of force will be explored, as will the rules, regulations, and extenuating circumstances that lead to the firing of a service weapon in the line of duty, resulting in the death of a suspect. The Supreme Court cases that have led to and/or upheld laws allowing a broader interpretation of what is considered justifiable use of deadly force will be briefly examined. Additionally, the use of non-lethal weapons, such as Tasers, by police forces and how the availability of these weapons influences the rate of deadly force will be inspected. Finally, an elucidation of the various perceptions of the general public of the police after use of deadly force is used within their communities will be addressed.

A young man’s brutal death at the hands of the police is found justified in a court of law due to his “suspicious” appearance: a black hoodie and his hands in his pocket. An elderly woman is fatally shot in her home for her relation to a suspected criminal. A married man with two toddlers is choked to death after a minor traffic stop by an officer who later claimed that his unarmed victim was wielding a gun. These people all have a few commonalities: the color of their skin, their presumed guilt at first sight, and their ultimate unjustified death administered by the law force. These are not uncommon occurrences. Due to the staggeringly disproportionate rate of African-Americans killed by the police, and the underlying rampant racial profiling, police brutality towards blacks in America must be called to light.

On August 9, 2014 a white male police officer named Darren Wilson fatally shot an African-American male named Michael Brown to death in Ferguson, MO. An investigation was immediately launched through the collection of evidence from the crime scene, an autopsy of Michael Brown’s body, and interviews with witnesses. For several months following the shooting and after the Grand Jury met, there was immense public speculation over whether Officer Wilson justifiably shot in self-defense or in racially motivated cold blooded murder. The ballistic evidence collected from the crime scene and from the autopsy corroborated Wilson’s story that he was justified in what transpired that fateful afternoon.

§ 242. The use of deadly force is justified when the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a threat of serious physical harm to the officer or to others. Throughout the report, the evidence does not establish that the shots fired by Officer Wilson were objectively unreasonable under federal law. Next in the legal summary, it states Wilson did not willfully violate Brown’s constitutional right to be free from unreasonable force. Federal law requires that the government must prove that the officer acted willfully “for the specific purpose of violating the law.” Officer Wilson stated that his intent in shooting Michael Brown was in response to a perceived deadly

Everyone has heard of what happened in Ferguson, Missouri. Mike Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old African-American male, was shot and killed by Caucasian police officer Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014. This incident sparked an uproar on police brutality, escalating the whole white cop and black teen discrimination. Apparently Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown while he was trying to surrender. Even after police stated otherwise it was meant with skepticism. It all started after Officer Wilson saw two men walking down the middle of the street. There was a call sent out about a robbery by two African-American men earlier that day. Maybe it was the suspects, Officer Wilson drove by and told them to walk on the sidewalk and that went it from zero to one hundred. After a few words Mike Brown punched Officer Wilson in the face. Officer Wilson went for his weapon telling Brown to back off or he’ll get shot. Brown ignored and attempted to take the gun, that’s when Officer Wilson pulled the trigger. After multiple times pulling the trigger it finally went off. Glassed shattered with blood, Brown backed off then came back with his hands up only to attack Officer Wilson again. Officer Wilson pulled the trigger again until it fired. This time Brown made a run for it, Officer Wilson took chase only to see the Brown had stopped and turn to charge him. After multiple shots it was over with Brown dead on the street. After the Grand Jury decision to not indict Officer Wilson there was an explosion

The current incident I would like to talk about is the shooting of Michael Brown story in Ferguson, Missouri that was occurred on august 9, 2014. Michael Brown was unarmed Black man who was shot to death by a white policer officer, Darren Wilson on Missouri street. The uncertain situations of the shooting, and resulting objections and civil conflict have caused significant argument in the United States. Eyewitness says that Brown was killed while he was trying to surrender himself from the police, but they say Brown attacked Wilson past to the shooting. In addition, they also say that Brown was in robbery before that day, but Wilson did not stop him for robbery, he stopped him for jaywalking.

The shooting of African American teenager Michael Brown by white officer Darren Wilson has been a hot topic of debate. Those in support of Michael Brown believe that Darren Wilson racially profiled Brown and that the shooting would have never occurred had Brown been white. Those in support of Darren Wilson state that he acted in self-defense. This argument has more evidence supporting it than the argument that Brown was racially profiled.

Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed on Aug. 9, 2014, by Darren Wilson, a white police officer, in Ferguson. “Three minutes - that is how long it took from the time Officer Darren Wilson confronted teenager Michael Brown at 12:01, and 12:04 when other officers arrived on the scene to find Brown dead. Those three minutes, and the fallout that followed, have been the source of protests, headlines and general unrest in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson, Missouri” (P 2). But what exactly happened in that time is still a source of confusion. Michael Brown and Dorian Johnson were leaving Ferguson Market and Liquor. Surveillance videos show Mr. Brown stealing some cigarillos. While they walk along West Florissant Avenue in

Police officer Darren Wilson ordered 18 year old Michael Brown and his friend Dorian Johnson to the side of the road for jaywalking on August 9th, in Ferguson, Missouri. As indicated by Wilson, Brown prevented to get out from the road and began an argument while he was still inside his police vehicle (McKay 2014). At the point when Wilson raised his weapon, Johnson ran opposite to the street while Brown kept running down the road opposite to the police car (McKay 2014). Wilson was then observed by different people as lethally shooting a surrendering Brown (Devereaux 2014). The Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson, Missouri is an example of the racial atmosphere change in America that will captivate the overall population. Additionally, there are two different kinds of individuals. There are individuals who can relate to the Michael Brown incident and there are individuals who will defend the officer’s actions to make

As recent incidents of police brutality plague our nation toward minority groups, especially that of African Americans, the question asked by many is if such deadly force necessary, and what other actions could have led to a better outcome? Although our primary thought is to blame police officers for death, we must realize that sometimes deadly action is necessary and anyone put in a similar situation would act the same way. According to the U.S Supreme Court in the 1985 case, Tennessee vs Garner, police force can only be used when, “[the] suspect is a significant threat to officer or others.” Later, in the case of Graham vs. Connor, the Supreme Court ruled that “officers who use force must be judged on the totality of circumstances and a standard of objective reasonableness. Force must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight;” however, this does not excuse police brutality, and officers must face penalties for taking someone’s life. Cases such as, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and Tamir Rice illustrate when police need to be punished for their actions and be held accountable for violence against citizens. Although clearly outlined for what would be a just reason for necessary force, many cases that involved police brutality can be blamed on tactics that relate to “broken windows” and a need for different policies and methods.

Rodney King, is probably one of the most remembered names from America that can create an emotional flashback. Rodney King is one of the first incidents where the use of excessive force was caught on videotape. Excessive force is defined as “force not justified by law or policy”. (Pollock ,2015,p.160) Reports have estimated that around 1.3 to 2.5 percent of all encounters involve excessive force.(Worden and Catlin,2002,p.160) The biggest factors that lead to excessive force can be race, gender, gang membership, and suspect use of force. Police officers that use excessive force can be involved in many ethical dilemmas that can be based on their police training and their mission to protect the public. Excessive force is the result of judgment of social values, racial profiling and quick decision making on the officer’s end. Therefore, police departments should enforce procedures like more trainings that involve the use of lethal items , harsher consequences to wrongdoing and providing more psychological programs for their officers. Following these procedures can help deteriorate the use of excessive force and can help prepare police officers to do their job correctly.

One of the biggest issues in not just criminal justice but also in America is the use police brutality and use of force. The interpreted definition of use of force is when an officer feels like it is necessary to defend themselves or others. There is no set definition of what use of force actually means. The amount of force used depends on the situation the officer is and how the situation ends in the safest result. There are two types force lethal and less-lethal force. Less-lethal force is basic verbal commands and physical restraint while lethal means to use enough force to kill. Reasonable force is classified as force that is constitutionally permissible by the fourteenth amendment. The fourteenth amendment states that citizens should get equal protection of the law. Using more force than is needed to subdue and individual is known as excessive force. Officers who use excessive force should be punished for their actions. There has been a lot of cases in the news about the use of excessive force all over the country and the videos are on all sorts of social media. The result of this is people being afraid of a police and also causing a dislike of law enforcement as well. The use of force has many different outcomes for law enforcement. With the use of force officers can look like heroes or a villain based on a split second decision. Law enforcement as they are put in situations where they can save lives but also end lives in certain situations. The use of force is a very

During the past decade the public’s view on use of force has now been swayed to only “excessive” use of force in practically every situation, because of the result of incomplete information from the media and some recent events over the years- Michael Brown, Freddie Gray and Tamir Rice. The media distorts law enforcement’s use of force upon the public’s eyes by hiding the facts of the full stories that add up to the conclusions on the said event. The majority of the time, the media only tell a portion of the story with the topic of the event and then finally the conclusion of that situation. For example, the media could broadcast out that an african-american police officer shot and killed and unarmed white male (or vice versa) when in reality the officer was in fear for his life from a struggle with the offender while also being downsized from the defender 2:1.