Police Brutality
Throughout history, efforts to police society have been flawed by brutality in one way or another. Police Brutality exists in many countries and is only one of several forms of police misconduct. Abuse by law enforcement officers in the United States is one of the most serious human rights violations in the country. Police officers have engaged in unjustified shootings, severe beatings, fatal chokings, and unnecessarily rough treatment. The history of police brutality is cyclical, going through phases of violence, corruption, and reform. Police brutality is the excessive use of physical force, assault, verbal attacks, and threats by police officers and other law enforcement officers. The targets of the violence are usually the poor, the working class, political dissidents, and ethnic minorities. Police brutality is often associated with racial profiling. Differences in race, religion, politics, and socioeconomic status between police and citizens can contribute to how some police officers view the population as generally deserving punishment. Cases in which police officers, prison guards, and other law enforcement authorities have used excessive force or other tactics to violate victims’ civil rights have increased twenty-five percent from 2001 to 2007. Federal prosecutors are targeting a rising number of law enforcement officers for alleged brutality. Some victims see the police as protecting the upper classes. They think police violence only came under examination when “decent” people became victims. The causes of police brutality may vary from the individual police officer to the leadership of an entire squad. Stress is an inherent part of police work, especially since lives are literally in their hands. The extreme stress and pressure placed on police officers has caused an increasing number of extreme use of force cases across the United States. Police officers are rarely required to fire their guns and most calls are more along the nature of domestic
Cited: www.abanet.org/publicized/courts/arrestprocedure.html www.carusesof.org/causes-of-police-brutality.php Johnson, Kevin. “Police Brutality Cases on the Rise Since 9/11.” USA Today 17 Dec. 2007. www.policebrutalitylaw.com Schmalleger, Frank. Criminal Justice Today: An Introductory Text for the Twenty-First Century. 9th Edition. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abner-Louima