There is no question about police brutality being an epidemic in our country. This paper will address the factors that police consider when resorting to exceeded use of authority. Through this, cases like Tulsa, Oklahoma’s fatal shooting of an unarmed, African American man, Terrence Crutcher, and the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of another unarmed, African American man, Michael Brown will be reviewed. Related topics such as: Racial Threat Theory, racial profiling, institutional racism, and police policies regarding ethics and use of force will be applied to establish a connection to police brutality. The Racial Threat Theory implies that white people grow inferior to the rise in the percentage of African Americans, which leads to an increased
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By researching the recent cases of fatal shootings from studying Michael Brown and Terrence Crutcher, connections can be drawn to understand what factors the police made while choosing the decision they did. Other factors and theories will provide a basis for these decisions including: Racial Threat Theory, racial profiling, institutional racism, and current police policies. With these reasons in mind, solutions can be produced to combat these ongoing police shootings.
Inside The Case of Michael …show more content…
Wilson’s overuse of force led to Michael Brown’s death. In the grand scheme of things, people would initially jump to conclusions and call Wilson’s actions a hate crime. Michael Brown’s case embodies the definition of institutional racism. The justice system did not serve justice, rather it did the opposite. It also proves the Racial Threat Theory. In a neighborhood, predominantly African American, Officer Wilson, a white male, could have arguably felt inferior towards Brown and shot him based on his failure to comply in the first place. The problem is, how many shots is too much? Some say even one shot is too many. It was the first time Wilson had never shot his gun on patrol. Wilson also claims that Brown never let up even after being shot. Most of Wilson’s judgement all boils down to fear. Wilson reports thinking to himself, “How do I survive? I didn 't know if I 'd be able to survive another hit like that," (CNN). The Department of Justice states that, “Under the Fourth Amendment, a police officer’s use of physical force against an arrestee must be objectively reasonable under the circumstances,” (Dept. of Justice). Wilson genuinely feared that if he did not kill Michael Brown, he would have been the one that lie dead. The adrenaline that ran through both of their veins caused irrational choices to be made. Judgements may be clouded in the heat of the moment, but that is not an initiative to resort to
By researching the recent cases of fatal shootings from studying Michael Brown and Terrence Crutcher, connections can be drawn to understand what factors the police made while choosing the decision they did. Other factors and theories will provide a basis for these decisions including: Racial Threat Theory, racial profiling, institutional racism, and current police policies. With these reasons in mind, solutions can be produced to combat these ongoing police shootings.
Inside The Case of Michael …show more content…
Wilson’s overuse of force led to Michael Brown’s death. In the grand scheme of things, people would initially jump to conclusions and call Wilson’s actions a hate crime. Michael Brown’s case embodies the definition of institutional racism. The justice system did not serve justice, rather it did the opposite. It also proves the Racial Threat Theory. In a neighborhood, predominantly African American, Officer Wilson, a white male, could have arguably felt inferior towards Brown and shot him based on his failure to comply in the first place. The problem is, how many shots is too much? Some say even one shot is too many. It was the first time Wilson had never shot his gun on patrol. Wilson also claims that Brown never let up even after being shot. Most of Wilson’s judgement all boils down to fear. Wilson reports thinking to himself, “How do I survive? I didn 't know if I 'd be able to survive another hit like that," (CNN). The Department of Justice states that, “Under the Fourth Amendment, a police officer’s use of physical force against an arrestee must be objectively reasonable under the circumstances,” (Dept. of Justice). Wilson genuinely feared that if he did not kill Michael Brown, he would have been the one that lie dead. The adrenaline that ran through both of their veins caused irrational choices to be made. Judgements may be clouded in the heat of the moment, but that is not an initiative to resort to