The jury in the case of former Louisville, Kentucky police detective Brent Hankison has come in and it found the officer not guilty of the three charges in the case. He was charged with firing his weapon into the apartment of Breonna Taylor with those rounds ultimately entered the next apartment placing the innocent residents […]
Category Archives: Use of Force
What the law requires when an officer uses force, and how individual incidents measure against it. The standard is Graham v. Connor: judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, not with hindsight.
An interesting question
I received a text from a former law enforcement officer that said: “Ok,,,is it just me, or has the world of LE collapsed in on itself? I do not recall there being so many excessive use of force incidents and certainly not so many cases where a child is shot and killed. What the hell […]
a recent use of force case worth reading
Use of Force: Officer Involved Shooting – Goffin v. Ashcraft
The Breonna Taylor debacle
The death of a young woman in Louisville, Kentucky has started a firestorm that extends throughout the United States. It stemmed from the execution of a valid search warrant signed by a Judge. The “No Knock” warrant is a special request allowing the officers to execute in nighttime hours without identifying themselves. It requires sworn […]
The stupidity of politicians
The City Council of Louisville, Kentucky just passed an ordinance prohibiting “NO KNOCK” warrants within the City of Louisville. The death of Breonna Taylor is a tragedy. Louisville narcotics officers served a NO KNOCK warrant on a drug dealer, but served it at the wrong house. Taylor’s boyfriend opened fire when the officers made entry […]
A new strange case
In what gets ever stranger, a Grand Jury in Oklahoma City has indicted a Blackwell, Oklahoma Police Lieutenant for second degree murder in the shooting death of a 34 year old female who had fired at police officers and others. It is reported that the Grand Jury based their decision on the number of shots […]
Nashville Police Officer charged in shooting
A twenty-five year old Nashville, Tennessee police officer has been charged with felony Criminal Homicide after shooting a twenty-eight year old suspect. The facts of this case are convoluted as Nashville Police became involved in a vehicle pursuit of a carjacking suspect who was able to elude them. A police radio broadcast was initiated and […]
A different standard for police use of force
The United States Supreme Court has written the legal standard for police use of force in the Graham and Garner cases. The standards and clear and explicit in all courts in the United States to legal experts and criminal justice practitioners, but can be confusing to the general public. It is time to create a […]
Understanding police use of force
The only information available to the general public concerning the decision to use force by police comes from entertainment television and media outlets. That is both mis and dis-information. The “decision” to use force by police officers is rarely an action. When it is an action, it is usually wrong. Rather, it is a response […]
Police Shootings of “Unarmed” suspects
The media’s use of the word “unarmed” in the high profile cases of police shootings as a catch phrase is simply inaccurate and enflames tragic incidents of police use of deadly force. It indicates that the suspect was not in possession of a firearm which, looking at two of the incidents, is simply wrong. In […]
Are police held to a different standard?
There has been an outcry across the country that police officers receive special treatment in the decision of whether criminal charges are appropriate in a use of force case. Police officers are, by necessity, given a different standard that other citizens for a valid reason. If a police officer were held to the same standard, […]