Excessive Force Essay
Excessive Force or Reasonable Force?
Recently there have been a number of cases that involve the U.S policing force using excessive force. This has caused an uproar in many communities concerning the lack of equality among all races. Police have to use a certain amount of force to overcome a suspect, but the recent deaths caused by the hands of the police have fueled a heated debate among Americans. In America, black males are generally perceived to be more aggressive and dangerous than the average white male. Police are trained to assess the level of threat. This racial bias can affect the way a police officer might think. Making the situation seem “reasonable” on one hand and “unreasonable” on the other. There has been a rift between policing …show more content…
On July 17 2014, in N.Y.C Eric Garner was killed with a chokehold by the police officer . Everyone at the scene was acquitted of the crime or only put on probation at the worst, which “sparked outrage” with many people . The same year an unarmed eighteen year old Michael Brown was shot and killed by police officer Darren Michael. Michael Brown was seen with his hands in the air as the officer shot him. This started the “hands up” protest in Ferguson. On November 22, 2014 Tamir Rice was shot and killed for having a toy gun at the park. The police officers involved in this were only placed on administrative leave. Walter Scott was stopped by the police on a routine traffic stop for a non-functioning light and was shot and killed. Scott's death furthered the conversation with policing and race. Freddie Gray a 25 year old black man was being transported by the police and fell into a coma while in police custody. Later he was pronounced dead at the trauma center “setting off widespread unrest”(2). These are a few examples of many cases where police used excessive forces to subdue a victim resulting in the death of young black
Recently there have been a number of cases that involve the U.S policing force using excessive force. This has caused an uproar in many communities concerning the lack of equality among all races. Police have to use a certain amount of force to overcome a suspect, but the recent deaths caused by the hands of the police have fueled a heated debate among Americans. In America, black males are generally perceived to be more aggressive and dangerous than the average white male. Police are trained to assess the level of threat. This racial bias can affect the way a police officer might think. Making the situation seem “reasonable” on one hand and “unreasonable” on the other. There has been a rift between policing …show more content…
On July 17 2014, in N.Y.C Eric Garner was killed with a chokehold by the police officer . Everyone at the scene was acquitted of the crime or only put on probation at the worst, which “sparked outrage” with many people . The same year an unarmed eighteen year old Michael Brown was shot and killed by police officer Darren Michael. Michael Brown was seen with his hands in the air as the officer shot him. This started the “hands up” protest in Ferguson. On November 22, 2014 Tamir Rice was shot and killed for having a toy gun at the park. The police officers involved in this were only placed on administrative leave. Walter Scott was stopped by the police on a routine traffic stop for a non-functioning light and was shot and killed. Scott's death furthered the conversation with policing and race. Freddie Gray a 25 year old black man was being transported by the police and fell into a coma while in police custody. Later he was pronounced dead at the trauma center “setting off widespread unrest”(2). These are a few examples of many cases where police used excessive forces to subdue a victim resulting in the death of young black