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More litigation and lawsuits are being filed against police agencies today than ever before. One common denominator that seems to occur in almost all of the cases is failure to train. The price of being the subject of just one civil liability lawsuit alleging malice can be more than some police departments' entire operating budget, The courts have recognized that police work is inherently difficult and requires discretion; a crucial issue is discretionary action or inaction by the officer.
Protecting the Departnent
Court decisions have consistently held that local governments are liable for damages by public employees whose actions are governed by wrongful policy or no policy at all. The most successful defense to these liabilities issues such as false arrest, negligence, official misconduct or civil rights violations is the demonstration by the defendant that the actions in question were proper and in accordance with established departmental standards.
This issue is addressed in the court decision of Canton v Harris, 489 US 378 (1998). Under this Circuit Court precedent, the municipality is liable for the failure to train its police force, where the plaintiff proves that the lack of training was so reckless or grossly negligent that it deprived a person of constitutional rights with a substantially certain outcome. In general, it has to be demonstrated that training does not currently meet acceptable standards within the law enforcement training community- it omits important aspects, is not satisfactorily documented, is not properly taught or contains inadequate standards.
In order for agencies to protect themselves against claims some very basic procedures can be utilized to help minimize and defend departments and their officers. First and foremost, a good, clear documentation of training is a must. All officers should have copies of all...