What Is Fear In Law Enforcement

Fear and Deadly Decisions

Over the past several decades attitudes towards law enforcement have changed tremendously. Law Enforcement officers are looked down upon by most people because of wrong decisions made in the heat of the moment by a growing percentage of police officers. Those wrong decisions that some have made, have had a huge impact on the nation because lives were wrongfully lost. In order to prevent needless killings, all law enforcement officers should be required to take fear training classes to make better decisions under times of pressure. This could result in the saving of many lives, while changing and restoring attitudes towards policemen. One incident that some believe may have started the trend in police officers
Police are often believed to act out brutally on someone because they are fearful for their own life or well being. What about the young boy shot 10 times that had a toy gun, or an unarmed man although suspected of stealing cigarettes, ends up dead? Could it be that since law enforcement personnel spends most of their time working alone, or with a close trusted partner, that they feel they are allowed to do anything they want because there is no one watching over their every move (Every 7 Hours, Cops Kill an American Citizen)? If that is the case, they can easily cover up their indiscretions. Maybe they are so brutal because there are no clear policies on using force in the police field (15 Reasons America’s Police Are so Brutal). They are taught to use what is needed, leaving that to be interpreted in a variety of ways from person to person. When policemen act unnecessarily brutal and the victim has proof, the case is almost always dropped (10 Police Brutality Statistics That Are Absolutely
A solution to the problem was body cameras (body cams) for policemen to wear. The body cam would work as an extra eye in case something did go wrong during a confrontation to be able to tell whose fault it actually was. They work well except for when the officers involved use the excuse that there was a malfunction with the police camera; either it died, or it was not on when the incident occurred. According to the powers that be, there is no proof of anything that happened except the word of the victim (Research on Body-Worn Cameras and Law Enforcement). Policemen react brutally for different reasons; some fear for their own lives and some just cannot separate the rush and excitement from the job at hand (15 Reasons America’s Police Are so