True Crime: A Criminal Justice Blog

Police brutality is a form of misconduct performed by either police on duty or off duty. This form misconduct can involve the unlawful use of violence and brute force, in extreme cases police brutality can lead to the death of the victim. Police brutality has always been an issue in the United States, but the last couple of years this issue has magnified itself. Some police officers have seemed to be lost to the true meaning of what their job is supposed to be about and now only use the authority granted to them as way to give abuse. This problem has been the downfall for many lives not only for the people who have died by the hand of police officers or have scars received by police officers but also for the family of those victims. The country created the law force to protect every citizen and to stop crime, if this job is carried out successfully the fear and hatred for police officers should diminish. The problem within the United States goes deeper than police bru...

      Police brutality has been a recurring situation in the news. Through all social media platforms, and all news channels nationwide it has become known that many have been injured, but most killed because of law enforcement. 987 people have been shot and killed by police officers in 2017, and 264 have been killed in 2018. It’s truest shocking how many have died due to the same law enforcement that is supposed to also keep us safe. Granted some might also be justifiable, as in there life was truly at risk and it was either get shot or shoot. Many deaths, that have been revealed to the public have been in the African American community, could this mean that many of these fatal incidents have a racial motive behind them or is it really “an accident”?       Stephon Clark, a 22 year old African American male was shot and killed by Sacramento police officers earlier this month. According to Mark Berman from, The Washington Post , he was shot eight t...

Police brutality is serious because race is being involved in this issue. It does not make any sense to abusively beat someone down to the point that the person is badly injured because of color. The police is taking it to the extreme by beating someone down 50 times with their batons or shooting someone without giving a warning/command. This is unfair for the victim(s) and it is not right for the public to see these kind of behaviors coming from the police. This makes the public worry for their safety because police beating, tasing and/or shooting someone is an issue that it can not be ignored. Officer Blane Salamoni, who shot Alton Sterling, has been fired from the police department . Salamoni's partner only got suspended for three days, this is what the punishment that the police department has given. The family for all of those who lost their loved one(s) are devastated because the families that went through the traumatizing moment, it must be hard for them to ...

Law Enforcement abuse had no action. Many police officers do not get prosecuted; they get no action for what they do wrong. Changes should be made in regards to the way law officials are dealt with in the act of shooting encounters. Officers should be charged accordingly because it is unfair, unjust and violates morality. Eric Gardner, a 43 year old male, was pronounced dead after being compressed in his neck to death by police during an encounter in which police had believed him to be selling cigarettes that were considered "loose". Footage had surfaced during the 90's of police beating a man named Rodney King to death; none of the officers involved in the situation were charged. Another man named  Stephon Clark  was killed in Sacramento, California by police who had misinterpreted the situation; those officers were not charged, even though they MUTED their body cameras.  Officers  involved in the Alton Sterling incident are not being charged.

It is simply impossible to deny the existence of police brutality, racism, and unjust treatment in the United States. When looking at cases such as Freddie Gray or Rodney King, most decent people are appalled at the extreme, racially motivated use of force against these individuals. The police officers responsible for these atrocities do not deserve the badge they wear or the authority they carry. That being said, rare and isolated instances should not reflect as a whole on the thousands of police officers that responsibly carry out their duties every day for the betterment of society. Statistics, without context, can often appear condemning to the police of the United States, touting shocking numbers that would easily convince a reasonable person that minorities are subject to the most extreme racism. One such article which was written by German Lopez for  Vox  which states that "Black people accounted for 31 percent of police killing victims in 2012, even though the...

The duties of a police officer, also known as the boys in blue, Five-O and the derogatory term Pig consists of protecting the people and property. The boys in blue patrol areas they are assigned to, respond to calls, enforce the law, write citations and sometimes testify in court. Even though the officer's responsibilities involve enforcing the law cases have been made where police use excessive force to control the situation. This use of excessive force could be because of, departments not providing adequate training, and consequences are minimal for the officer. Police brutality will only strengthen the distrust towards the officers more. Deborah Danner a New York resident who suffered a serious meltdown was gunned down on Oct 18 in her own apartment, when a security guard of the appt complex called the police. The officer arrived and heard that Danner was screaming "F you! Die! Leave me alone!" the 66-year-old diagnosed schizophrenic started to swingi...

Although police brutality is an issue that concerns everyone, it is important to see that the main victims of this practice are the African-American population. According to the Mapping Police Violence page, the African-American population only represents 13% of the total US population; however, they are who represent 25% of the fatalities in incidents of police brutality. Which demonstrates the enormous problem with respect to the predisposition that the police themselves can have when it comes to doing their job . Even when the police should be neutral when it comes to stop a citizen who breaks the law, it is very common to see that many policies make their decision in based on racial stereotypes before take a stand on a suspect. However, it would be reckless and irresponsible to affirm that this criterion is done intentionally, since many factors can affect this criterion, among which we can highlight the violent past between policemen and African-Americans since the midd...

In the recent years involving police shootings, countless standpoints have been taken on this topic, whether that being towards gun laws or the authority of police officers themselves. Regardless of what has transpired throughout the country within the last several years, a question should be seriously asked if the length of police academies is at a current appropriate standard. Currently the average length of police academies within the United States is anywhere from 4-6 months . With countless stories of innocent lives being taken due to shootings themselves, a closer look should be taken into who exactly is being let through the academies themselves. As officers vow to abide by duties presented upon their badge to carryout, there are others who choose to do otherwise. Does it make sense that anyone can feel safe in public around an individual who posses a firearm that he/she may only have experience with over the course of a few months? Police academies should extend the length of t...

With all of the controversies surrounding police shootings and the growing number of questions as to whether or not police officers involved in these instances are competent enough or have ulterior motives, the public's safety is in question.  It seems as though police are getting more, "trigger happy", and more in fear for their lives.  The incorporation of body cameras and dash-board cameras have been put in place to make sure that officers are following the law and protocol.  The police officer's motto, "To protect and serve", is being questioned by a growing number of people whose trust in police protection is lessening.  In communities where there is a higher population of African-Americans, due to the majority of recent shootings being of African-Americans, there is an outcry for justice and change. Many ideas are given as to how best to fix the issues.  Unfortunately, the reasons behind these shootings are just as diverse as the theories on a soluti...

    Throughout America police brutality has been such a raging topic on the news, in the newspapers, and even for the general public. There is no simple definition for what police brutality means, but Encyclopedia.com defines it as “the use of force exceeding that reasonably necessary to accomplish a lawful police purpose.” Over the past few years, police brutality has definitely increased. Statistics aren’t even needed, the number of deaths across the U.S. shows enough. Police brutality doesn’t always mean death as a result, but even the smaller things such as false arrest, racial profiling, or even sexual abuse. These days, you could get pulled over, but you will never really know what kind of officer you’re dealing with.     Back in 2009 on New Year’s Day in Oakland, California, a 22 year old African American man named Oscar Grant was shot by a white police officer, Johannes Mehserle. Grant and a few of his friends were getting off the subway when suddenly...

Police Brutality is the use of excessive or unnecessary force by police when dealing with its citizens. By "excessive force" it means using a force that is beyond deemed necessary when handling a situation. A police officers role in the United States is to make sure everyone feels safe, and protected while enforcing the law. When citizens no longer feel safe anymore, that's when people start turning towards protests, riots and organizations like Black Lives Matter in order to be heard. Actions will always speak louder than words. When there is a police shooting, we automatically assume it is interracial. In June 2016 Dylan Noble's  death was claimed as "suicide by cop". The boy was nineteen years old but his death never reached the same amount of attention as other deaths by police have. This lack of interest is due to Dylan being white and not black. A few days later, another police shooting had taken place. This time, it was between black men in the t...

     Police brutality has been a trending topic on the news because of the many killings that have happened. There have many multiple reports of police officers using unnecessary force on people of color. Many of these altercations have led to the police officer shooting at the victim, and the majority of the time the victim is unarmed. Police brutality has caused many people to protest and form groups such as Black Lives Matter. Not all police officers are abusing their power but some are and they are focusing on minorities. The role of a police officer is to enforce the law, patrol the areas they are designated, and protect people and their property.      Police officers have the right to protect themselves if and when there is a situation that might put their life in danger. They do not have the right to shoot at people who are unarmed, and could be suppressed using different measures. Police brutality is trending because of the number of police that h...

     Police brutality is a form of police misconduct which involves excessive violence by police members. According to Fox News ,  in 2016, there were 57,180 officers who were assaulted by civilians. By contrast, in 2017, police fatally shot 987 people ( Washington Post ). This is 1% of those who assaulted the police in 2016. Out of the 987 people who were killed by police, 2% were unarmed black men and boys. This means that 98% were not. So, the role of racism in police brutality remains debatable. However, people in predominantly black communities continue to be deeply mistrustful of the police, and they are not imagining things. There is no doubt that the police acted abominably in the killings of Eric Garner, Walter Scott, and Philando Castle ( The Daily Beast) .          What are some of the possible causes of police brutality? The police are expected by the public and their management to use force if they feel it is necessary, and the...

The role of being a police officer in a community viewpoint is to answer calls of emergencies from civilians, monitoring criminal activities, and arresting individuals who are suspects of a crime.  Not to harm or kill civilians that have not committed any crime or nor have been given warnings of shooting them unless it was self-defense for themselves or for the safety of the public.  Police brutality results in the lack of trust towards policemen, it is their task to protect citizens, not harm them.  Brutality disgraces professional honor. A police misconducts is refer to the "Improper or illegal behavior engaged in by a police officer while attempting to administer justice"  which involves the example of police brutality.  According to the Department of Justice  , "Federal laws that are address police misconduct include both criminal and civil statutes.  These laws cover the actions of State, country, and local officers, including those who work in...

Throughout history, the police has become a united organization to enforce local and federal laws of the United States. Even though the job of the FBI and local police officers is to put criminals away and to enforce the laws, many issues have rose from the police such as police brutality and race. Is police brutality and race an issue in the FBI, and if so, how? Are most police brutality done on purpose or is it an accident? Many cases that involve police brutality evolve from race. This is true on many occasions because according to Vox , over 60% of minorities who are unarmed without a gun are shot compared to only 30% of whites. Blacks who do get killed by the police are 31%, even though blacks only make up 13% of the US population. Whites, who get killed by the police is 50%, even though they only make up 63% of the population. There is a huge racial gap in police brutality between whites and minorities, minorities often seeing the worst of the police.   Even though race i...