Use of force: Defining 'reasonable' versus 'necessary'
For police use-of-force incidents, the definitions of words like ‘reasonable’ and ‘necessary’ are often discussed but sometimes also misused or misunderstood
In the past several years I have heard many different legal “standards” being tossed about regarding how much force an officer can use when effecting an arrest, preventing escape, or overcoming the resistance of a subject. Some of the standards I have heard include: