Social Contract and the Police Use of Deadly Force (From Moral Issues in Police Work, P 237-249, 1985, Fredrick A Elliston and Michael Feldberg, eds. -- See NCJ-99027)

• NCJ Number: 99039
• Author(s): J H Reiman
• Date Published: 1985
• Length: 13 pages
• Sale Source: Rowman and Allanheld Publishers
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Under the social contract developed by classical theoreticians, the defense of life is the only morally acceptable standard for the police use of deadly force.

Abstract

In the social contract envisioned by such philosophers as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes, citizens relinquish their freedom to use force as they see fit and entrust a public agency to use force in the name of society for the protection of society and its individual members. Since the social contract emphasizes the use of force as a protective measure, it is not proper for the police to take a life except to preserve a life, either an officer's or a citizen's. States misuse their mandate of social control when they permit police to shoot at fleeing felons even if they are unarmed and pose no immediate threat to citizens in the vicinity. Those most likely to be shot by the police -- the poor, blacks, hispanics, and other minorities -- are already victimized by the social and economic hardships and discrimination imposed on them. Any standard that permits the police use of deadly force except to save a life under immediate threat increases the risks and inequities for those already suffering injustices. Because they are not full beneficiaries of the social contract, the oppressed should be treated with special care by those public agencies assigned to protect citizens. Eleven notes are listed.