Tennessee Vs Garner Case Study

As Chief of Police during and after the decision of Tennessee v Garner, I would implement stricter use of force policies holding each officer accountable and completing a thorough investigation into all excessive use of force and deadly force incidents. Additionally, a review and revision of officer training in the use of force and apprehension procedures would be required for each officer during annual training and new recruit training. Likewise, the implementation of procedures which require command staff to be aware of situations where officers who have had incidents of use of force and the monitoring of those officers to determine if there are outside factors which may contribute to the use of force exhibited in the performance of their …show more content…
Just as special tactical units are required to recertify each year, each officer on enforcement status would be required to pass the standard agility test to maintain enforcement status. As implied in Tennessee v. Garner. Officer Hymon was not in a position to give chase of the suspect and, therefore, opted to discharge his weapon to subdue the suspect (Tennessee v Garner Et Al, n.d.). While there is no indication of his fitness status, Hymon’s admission of his apparent inability to pursue and capture Garner without attempting to give chase strongly suggests the possibility of a decline in physical stamina and agility which places both the public and himself in danger. Likewise, his concern for the dark area beyond the fenced backyard indicated either a concern for his safety in the area or his unfamiliarity of the area. Therefore, in an attempt to decrease the liability of the department and ensure public safety, all officers would be required to maintain their physical agility, weapons certification, and legal procedure