Much has been said over time about the mechanics of rendering first aid to a prisoner. Hours are spent on how to monitor a subject in your care and custody, i.e. how to determine level of consciousness; how to check for airway, breathing, and circulation; how to perform a body check; how to provide treatment to your level of training; and how to continue to monitor the subject. But, very little is said of why it is important for an officer to do so. Why is it so important for you to provide for a prisoner’s medical needs?
There are four main reasons why it is in your best interest to take care of the medical needs of a prisoner in your “care and custody.”
1. It is the moral thing to do
You will need to answer for what you did or didn’t do to your agency, to the courts, and to community members who will sit on the jury that will eventually judge your actions criminally and/or civilly. To all these people you want to be viewed as the protector, the helper, the good person doing a hard job. A good person would provide medical care for an injured person – even a criminal.
2. It is a legal requirement
Most agencies have policies and procedures requiring officer to provide medical care for prisoners in their custody. Training standards often require and train officers how this medical care needs to be provided. Some states, like Wisconsin, even have statutes that require an officer to “Render Aid to a Prisoner” and have criminal felony sanctions for failure to do so.
3. It is a defense against charges of “police” brutality
Here is a simple question that I ask officers that I am training about officers who provide appropriate medical care to prisoners that they have needed to use physical force to control. Would a “brutal” officer beat us someone and then provide them medical care? I don’t think so and neither would your agency or the jury evaluating your actions. On the other hand, a good officer who is acting in a reasonable manner would use appropriate force and then render aid to his prisoner as a well-trained officer is expected to do.
4. It helps to determine authenticity of the subject’s injuries
One added advantage of rendering aid to your prisoner, especially one that you have been required to use force on, is to find out just how badly they are injured. This assists in determining what level of medical assistance in needed. More importantly, it helps you determine the extent of the prisoner’s injuries. Is he or she “playing possum” – just waiting for you to let your guard down in order to assault you and/or escape?
For all these reasons, providing appropriate medical care to a prisoner is not just the right thing to do but a sound tactic for keeping you, your fellow officers, your agency, and the prisoner safe.
