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Use of Force

The Use of Force topic provides news, information and training on one of the most commonly discussed areas in police training programs. Learn how to educate your community about use of force, the risks unarmed individuals pose and more.

Court refused to dismiss county liability allegation that sheriff tacitly authorized pattern of unlawful bean bag deployment
Continuum does not accurately describe police response options to resistance
How to mitigate the legitimate risks of viewing video evidence, including the risk of corrupting an officer’s memory
Attorney Mike Freeman had promised a charging decision by year’s end, but on Thursday, he said his office was “getting more information”
Brian Krebs said people who make these calls frequently can face stiff penalties, while others often get off free
Police said the hoax call was a case of “swatting,” in which a person makes up a false report to get a SWAT team to descend on an address
Right now, an officer in Washington can’t be convicted of a crime for using deadly force if he or she acted in good faith and without malice
The agency concluded that a “reasonable officer” would not have believed he was in danger of death or serious injury
The officer was fired for violating his department’s use-of-force policy despite being acquitted in the 2015 fatal shooting of 18-year-old Brandon Jones
Michigan State Police tried but failed to suspend Mark Bessner for his use of a TASER months before he fired a TASER at a teen who crashed an ATV and died
The department’s force policies are significant not just as guidelines but because they dictate conduct that can lead to discipline for an officer
A shootout ensued after a man allegedly shot and killed his estranged wife and their two children
The deputies were hit in their arms and legs but are expected to recover
Police said the deputies’ injuries were serious but not expected to be life-threatening
Ahmed Aminamin El-Mofty fired at police in several locations in Pennsylvania’s capital before officers fatally shot him
Marcus Fischer began harming himself with a knife and ignored commands to drop it before he was shot
A look ahead at the challenges for law enforcement in 2018
Cray Turmon said he wasn’t “going to stand around and do nothing” when he saw a suspect attack Officer Ashley Hardesty
Defense attorney Andy Savage said “there are issues in the sentencing proceeding that we are concerned about”
Mark Bessner fired his TASER at Damon Grimes while trying to stop him from driving an ATV on a street, causing the teen to crash
The 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office cleared deputies Buddy Gillespie and Matthew Schambow of criminal wrongdoing
The union’s president said the “facts of this case do not add up to a termination” for Sgt. Kenneth Pierce
The physiological responses that occur during a shooting incident are widely known, but what goes through an officer’s mind after pulling the trigger is hard to predict
Capt. Dave Davis said no one was seriously injured during the incident
Fort Worth police Chief Joel Fitzgerald said Sgt. Kenneth Pierce became “impatient, initiated an unnecessary physical confrontation”
The union said the officers tried to stop the man from cutting his throat before shooting
The Supreme Court heard three cases this past October Term 2016 that further added to its use of force case law
The man pulled out an “edged weapon” and began hurting himself before Minneapolis LEOs tried to subdue him
A federal report says the response of Orlando police and other agencies likely saved lives during a deadly mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub
One officer was released from the hospital while another underwent surgery but is in “satisfactory” condition
Richard Mitchell, 54, took a swing at a store’s glass front door with the baseball bat and went inside before being shot by police
Gov. Mark Dayton’s comments come after Attorney Mike Freeman said investigators “haven’t done their job”