Use of force is a daily occurrence in the police world but the level chosen is not always the correct one. Police have split seconds to decide or it could be there life on the line. In this paper I am going to discuss the difference in use of force at the state level of Montana and the local level of Missoula located in Montana. Before the comparison and analysis begins, here from the Federal level, is the definition on use of force that I think is important to point out when talking about this topic.
“The “reasonableness” of a particular use of force must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight. Reasonableness must embody allowance for the fact that police officers …show more content…
The categories are listed in order from least amount of force to the most deadly. The categories are officer presence, verbalization, empty hand control, less- lethal methods, and lastly lethal force (DOJ). Officer presence is considered the best way to resolve a situation, where the mere presence of an officer works to deter crime or diffuse a situation. In this form officer’s attitudes are professional and non-threatening. Second level of the continuum is verbalization which means force is not physical. Officers use calm and non-threatening commands to gain compliance. Third level of the continuum is empty hand control. Empty hand control requires officers to use bodily force to gain control of a situation. This may require officers to use types of holds, grabs, and locks to restrain an individual …show more content…
The city of Missoula has been under scrutiny for some of their officer’s use of force actions stating they were un-justified. Officers of Missoula have a policy that they have to follow and that is a department policy that all officers have to follow. Missoula’s use of force policy is the same as the state of Montana’s with few variations.
Missoula categorizes there use of force into five sections. Physical force, serious bodily injury, non-deadly force, forcible felony, and lastly deadly force. Missoula’s variations begin with the classification of the Taser and chemical agents. These items fall under the least amount of force in this police department, being under the same category as the use of verbal force and the use of hand to hand tactics. Physical force defined by Missoula is physical contact necessary to obtain lawful compliance or overcome resistance by
“The “reasonableness” of a particular use of force must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight. Reasonableness must embody allowance for the fact that police officers …show more content…
The categories are listed in order from least amount of force to the most deadly. The categories are officer presence, verbalization, empty hand control, less- lethal methods, and lastly lethal force (DOJ). Officer presence is considered the best way to resolve a situation, where the mere presence of an officer works to deter crime or diffuse a situation. In this form officer’s attitudes are professional and non-threatening. Second level of the continuum is verbalization which means force is not physical. Officers use calm and non-threatening commands to gain compliance. Third level of the continuum is empty hand control. Empty hand control requires officers to use bodily force to gain control of a situation. This may require officers to use types of holds, grabs, and locks to restrain an individual …show more content…
The city of Missoula has been under scrutiny for some of their officer’s use of force actions stating they were un-justified. Officers of Missoula have a policy that they have to follow and that is a department policy that all officers have to follow. Missoula’s use of force policy is the same as the state of Montana’s with few variations.
Missoula categorizes there use of force into five sections. Physical force, serious bodily injury, non-deadly force, forcible felony, and lastly deadly force. Missoula’s variations begin with the classification of the Taser and chemical agents. These items fall under the least amount of force in this police department, being under the same category as the use of verbal force and the use of hand to hand tactics. Physical force defined by Missoula is physical contact necessary to obtain lawful compliance or overcome resistance by