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Pages:
1 page/≈275 words
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3 Sources
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MLA
Subject:
Social Sciences
Type:
Coursework
Language:
English (U.S.)
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Topic:

Excessive Use of Force by Police Officers and the Objective Reasonableness

Coursework Instructions:

Excellent work will be supported by evidence from the course materials and offer new substantiated ideas. You should read the Graham v. Connor case before attempting to complete this assignment. Then, use the following two articles to respond to the questions below.
Hollis, M.; Jennings, W. (2018). Racial disparities in police use-of-force: a state-of-the-art review. Policing 41(2), 178-193.
Frank, C.; Frank, J.; Liederbach, J. (2014). Understanding police use of force. Policing 37(3), 558-578.
Questions
What do the studies show concerning race as a factor in excessive use of force by police officers? How might some of this research be characterized as problematic?
What do you think is the proper standard for determining whether an officer in a given situation used excessive force in a stop or arrest? Should it be whether it was reasonable from the perspective of an objective observer, as the Supreme Court determined in Graham v. Connor?
Is it possible to come up with a standard that is better defined than "objective reasonableness"? What should it be?
Do you agree with the Court in Graham that an officer's intentions should not be taken into consideration in determining whether use of force was reasonable? What if those intentions appear to be based on race?
What does "de-funding" the police mean? Is this a viable solution to the excessive use of force by police officers?

Coursework Sample Content Preview:
Name
Professor
Course
Date
Excessive Use of Force
Excessive use of force is one of the most controversial issues affecting police officers. The study by Frank et al. (2014) suggests that racial profiling is why police tend to use excessive force. This is a reason why racial tensions have been common in different communities. Some of the studies are problematic since they fail to define and explicitly outline what is meant by force (Frank et al. 560). For instance, force can also involve nonviolent behaviors.
I think the best standard to determine if an officer in a specific circumstance used excessive force is from the perspective of an objective observer, such as another police officer at the scene. In the Graham v. Connor case, the observer can state what they would do in the same scenario (Graham v. Connor). Objective reasonableness helps determine if excessive use was forced based on specific circumstances such as the severity of the act and whether the suspect is a risk to the public or police officer's safety (Hollis and Jennings 188).
It is possible to develop a better standard than "objective reasonableness." It can entail u...
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