NCJ Number
175188
Journal
Crime to Court Volume: lice Officers's Handbook (October 1998) Issue: Dated: Pages: -
Date Published
1998
Length
22 pages
Annotation
These articles explain to police officers the facts and constitutional law relating to a case involving police use of deadly force.
Abstract
The case involved an investigative stop in San Antonio, Tex. The suspect appeared to be intoxicated. He was stumbling around in the street, slipping and falling, and swinging his arms wildly. One of the police officer handcuffed the suspect for both the suspect's and the officer's safety. The suspect was later hog-tied. The suspect was dead on arrival at the hospital. The man's family filed a claim alleging that the police officers used excessive force. The police officers moved for dismissal on the ground that they were entitled to a qualified immunity from suit under the facts of the case. The court ruled that the officers were not entitled to have the case dismissed. A legal analysis of the case concludes that a police officer has seized any person when the officer restrains the person's freedom to walk away and that police use of deadly force is unlawful unless the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a threat of serious physical harm either to the officer or to others. Deadly force is any force carrying with it a substantial risk of causing death or serious bodily harm. Illustration, photographs, questions and answers about police procedures, and discussion of crime-scene procedures in cases involving serial murderers