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Hands-On Tactical Legal Issues, Policy
Training Considerations of Officer Involved Shooting
Length of Seminar:
2 Days
Instructor: Jack
Ryan
Course Overview:
The law enforcement community has been scrutinized and
criticized on a regular basis for incidents involving
use of force. Perhaps part of the lack of understanding
on police use of force from television. The reality of
police use of force is that it is not the pretty picture
that Hollywood creates.
From a policy perspective, many agencies
nationally are beginning to do away with the term "use
of force" in terms of policy and reporting. New terminology
emphasizes the defensive nature of police use of force.
Ther term, "Response to Resistance" is beginning to appear
on agency policies that were once labeled "use of force."
The term "Response to Resistance" may seem like semantics
at first glance, however when one considers how officers
view their conduct, benefits can be found in this terminology.
The single most important case on police
use of force is Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989).
In Graham, the United States Supreme Court concluded that
all uses of force in the course of an arrest will be judged
by the Fourth Amendment standard of objective reasonableness.
The Court also held that uses of force will be viewed from
the perspective of an officer on the scene and without
the benefit of 20/20 hindsight.
In determining the reasonableness of a particular
use of force, the Court announced a three-part test:
How serious is the offense?
Did the suspect pose a threat to the officer or others?
Was the suspect actively resisting or trying to evade
arrest?
Reasonableness is determined by the answer
to these questions. The more serious the offense the greater
the degree of force will be reasonable. If the suspect
poses a threat or is actively resisting, more force will
be reasonable. The opposite is also true, if the offense
is minor, the suspect does not pose a threat and is not
actively resisting, force will not be justified.
The term "response to resistance" contemplates
the defensive nature of police use of force and at the
same time, reminds officers of one of the reasonableness
requirements that will be considered by a court in reviewing
an officer's actions.
As a practical matter, officers should be
regularly reminded of the three-part test from Graham.
Officers can then consider these factors when deciding
what degree of force is justified in a particular set of
circumstances.
It is also advisable to consider the three-part
test when completing use of force report forms. By reporting
in terms of the three-part test, officers will be reminded
to articulate the justifications for their use of force
in the legal terms by which these acts will be judged.
Use of Force review panels and Internal
Affairs investigators would also benefit from analyzing
use of force cases in terms of the three-part test. By
using the Supreme Court's analysis, consistency will be
achieved in these reviews and findings will be consistent
with the law as it relates to use of force.
Hands-On:
AIS Advanced Interactive System will provide
the decision-making simulator training that will allow
attendees to participate in real life Use of force scenarios
to enhance their judgmental skills based upon legal issues
learned and real time training.
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