Police Brutality in America

Police Brutality and African Americans

Police Brutality and African Americans

I

Darlene Baker

Capella University

Abstract

This paper will show the corruption and the brutality that African American face in the United States by police officers (Blair 2010). It will also explain how African Americans, bear the agony of repeated police brutality. The author discusses how African Americans are the most affected, especially men, targeted and harassed by the police on a regular basis (Phillips National Injury Group 2011).

In addition, the author discusses how many times African Americans are stopped for no reason and are subjected to callous behavior and the hands of a police officer. The author points out how African Americans are also inappropriately stopped for traffic violations, arrested for drug offenses, swept off the street for loitering and sent to prison.

Overall, this research paper will examine the identity, the problems, the causes, and what can be done to possibly stop police brutality against African Americans in the United States (Holmes 2000). This paper concludes that although cases of police brutality against African Americans are capturing the attention of the public, African Americans continue to face racial profiling.

Introduction

Police Brutality and African Americans

Police brutality is a term that is described as the excessive use of force by the police against members of the

Public ( Encyclopedia, 2008). Corruption is conferring a benefit on an official, outside those benefits that are prescribed by law, to influence the actions. All official body, organized at the local or national level, to keep order. Police are empowered to make arrest for violations of the criminal law, and to use force at least at resort to enforce their actions when lawful, by any other means are brutality (Encyclopedia, 2008).

Types of Police Brutality

Police Brutality may be divided between brutalities that occurs as part of the order-keeping and crime prevention function of police on the one hand, or brutality that occurs during the investigative function on the other (Encyclopedia, 2008). Many types of police brutality includes, tasers, beating s, fire arms, chemical and physical.

Police Use of Force

According to Wikipedia, the use of force is to prevent actions or to settle certain conflicts by applying different measures to stop them. For deterrence, the government permits the citizen, police, corrections, and other security personnel to force the prevention of crime (Wikipedia).

Use of Force Continuum

There are five steps, which presents guidelines for the degree of force. Quote:

1. Presence (using the effect of the presence of an authority figure on a subject)

2. Verbalization (commanding a subject)

3. Empty hand control (using empty hands to search, relieve weapons, immobilize, or otherwise control a subject)

4. Intermediate weapons (using non-lethal chemical, electronic or impact weapons on a subject)

5. Deadly Force (using any force likely to cause permanent injury or death to a

subject (Wikipedia).

The use of deadly force is a force that causes death or a permanent

injury (Wikipedia). "Deadly force may not be used unless it is used to prevent the escape of a suspect who the officer has probable cause to believe poses a significant threat to of death or serious injury to the officer or others" (Adler).

Police officers have a duty to explain and justify their actions. If they do not they could be held liable or they could face criminal charges. In the Policy Study Review, the focus is on the use of deadly force by a police officer. The study discusses the practices, "especially the

discharging of a firearm" that could lead to death by a police officer (Dwyer).

Uniform Crime Reports

The uniform crime report is official data, which reports crimes throughout the United States (Wikipedia). The UCR includes homicide, forcible rape, aggravated assault, motor vehicle thief, arson, larceny, and robbery. All of the following are considered index crimes.

Index crimes are crimes that public report to the police. In addition, the law enforcement agency also report to the FBI, in their jurisdiction (Wikipedia). In addition, the UCR crime statistic data are published and compiled annually by the FBI. This action allows them to address certain limitation of UCR.

The rules of law in law enforcement in the use of force and deadly force are devoted and required reforms (Police Brutality, 2011). The Law enforcement Use of Force is required to learn reform, and shape law all over the nation. Everyday officers are put in situations that are life threaten and dangerous, but they must still be able to know how and when to use force or deadly force in any given situation.

Racism and police brutality goes hand in hand, and causes a major concern in today's

society, in the United States. To understand why there is racism and police brutality regarding African Americans, one must first understand the history of African Americans in the United States. The root of racism, thus, the ongoing cases of police brutality, is the first imperative to understand the beginning.

According to the International, racism against blacks began long before the race riots of 1960's. Many states passed laws disallowing