NCJ Number
134396
Journal
Police Studies Volume: 14 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1991) Pages: 121-126
Date Published
1991
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Police, accident, damage, and complaint reports were used to study the incidence of force used by police in The Hague; under Dutch law, police force against citizens violates the constitutional right to physical integrity. This research is based on the interaction approach in which the use of force is attributable to an escalation of the interaction between police and citizens.
Abstract
The research found that not all incidents of police force were reported; the authors estimated an annual rate of 1,500 incidents or force among 800 patrol officers. In over 96 percent of the incidents, police officers from the neighborhood patrols or police-dog brigade are involved. Most officers involved in incidents of force are 25 or 26 years old; they have been working on the streets for several years and are therefore drawing on their personal experience as well as their frustration about the behavior of a segment of the population. Most citizens involved in these incidents are male, living in The Hague, and are young. Certain ethnic groups, including Surinamese and Antilleans, are overrepresented among those involved in violent incidents. Nearly 70 percent of the incidents occur in public streets; the police initiate force in two-thirds of these cases. The method of force most often used is physical strength; guns are usually used only to threaten. The survey documents the material, physical, and psychological effects of the use of police force. 1 note and 9 references