Police Use of Excessive Force

Police Use of Excessive Force
Name
Institution

Police Use of Excessive Force
The role of the police in the society is to use their force to maintain law and order and not using it excessively to hurt the citizens. Essentially, the use of excessive force by the police has been rampant in America, and the citizens have been developing strong feelings towards these incidents (Palmiotto & Unnithan, 2011). This publication will discuss the police use of excessive force.
To begin with, the case of the fatal shooting of Michael Brown who was eighteen years old in Ferguson New York is an example of police use of excessive force. It was alleged that an altercation ensued when Michael Brown attacked the police officer with the intention of controlling the gun until it was fired. The outcome of the case is that the police officer was not charged even after being taken to court. The case raises concern on the issue of justice and race since Brown was a black and the officer was white. Police sometimes misinterpret the suspects’ movements and miscalculate the severity of the threat and hence should be trained on appropriate procedures to avoid such cases of excessive use of force.
Additionally, another example of a brutal killing by the police was that of Eric Garner. He was choked by police while being arrested after he was accused of selling untaxed cigarettes (Laura & Croffie, 2018). Civil rights charges have been recommended against the officer. However, the top officials in the department of justice have been expressing strong doubts of moving forward with the case as they perceive it as not being winnable.

It is very rare for the prosecutors of civil rights to charge officers against cases of excessive use of force. Officers should ensure an objectively reasonable action based on facts before deciding on using force on suspects.
References
Laura, J. & Croffie, K. (2018). Justice Department leaning against charges in Eric Garner case. Retrieved from: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/04/20/politics/rod-rosenstein-eric-garner/index.htmlPalmiotto, M., & Unnithan, N. P. (2011). Policing & society: A global approach. Clifton Park, NY: Delmar Cengage Learning.