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Keywords Standards, Legislation, Police, Case law, USA
Abstract Allegations of excessive force in policing have been cited as one of the most frequent claims filed against the police in arrest situations. The United States Supreme Court in Graham v. Connor (1989) determined that "objective reasonableness" is the Fourth Amendment standard to be used in evaluating claims of excessive force. This paper analyzes the patterns of lower federal court decisions in 1,200 published Section 1983 cases decided from 1989 to 1999. The assessment examines how these courts have applied and interpreted the standard in four categories involving force. Policy and training issues are discussed and future research concerns are presented.
Introduction
By custom and law in the USA, the intervention by the police into the affairs of men is regarded as legitimate provided it is done legally (Reiss, 1971). As our society has become more complex, more is expected of the police regarding the various services they provide and the professional manner in which they perform their duties. In response to the changes in our society, various forms of community policing have emerged which have expanded the roles, duties, and expectations of the police. The intrinsic nature of policing and societal conditions, however, occasionally require police officers to exercise some degree of force in fulfilling their sworn duties. With regularity, the type and degree of force used by the police in citizen and police encounters has been the subject of much concern.
The concern regarding the police use of force while not new, intensified during the 1980s and 1990s. As all categories of crime increased nationally, citizens increasingly have demanded more action from the police for safer neighborhoods. During the 1990s, and based on numerous factors, including varying strategies of community policing and citizen efforts, crime rates have dropped (FBI, 2000). Despite this successful outcome some "police tactics," and officer conduct regarding the use of force, have been questioned by the community. The concern centers on accusations that the police use of force has become too commonplace and abuses of force are more frequent (Nelson, 2000). Allegations of police abuse of force and misconduct are underscored by atypical incidents such as the Rodney King case (1991), Malice Green in Detroit (1992), the Abner Loumia...