Police Excessive Force
Police use of force is a hot topic. The question is how much force should a police officer use in order to affect an arrest, or protect the safety of themselves and others?
The law is clear: A police officer may only use deadly force when either the officer or others are believed to be in immediate danger. The use of deadly force is justified only under conditions of extreme necessity as a last resort when all lesser means have failed or cannot reasonably be employed.
In order to determine whether excessive force was used, a court looks at the following factors: the need for an application of force, the relationship between that need and the force applied, the threat reasonably perceived by the responsible officers, the efforts made to temper the severity of the force employed, and the extent of the injury suffered by the prisoner.
Furthermore, an officer may not “recklessly and accidentally” injure another. A police officer must execute their duties professionally. If a police officer recklessly discharges his weapon and injures another, they may be held civilly liable for that conduct.
