NCJ Number
105536
Journal
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Volume: 57 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1987) Pages: 6-9
Date Published
1987
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This 1985 study measured the resistance encountered by St. Paul police officers (Minnesota), the force or weapons officers used to overcome that resistance, and the effect of the encounter on the officer and citizen.
Abstract
From March 1, 1985, to February 28, 1986, officers were required to complete separate reports for all incidents where persons were taken into custody, including the frequent transports of intoxicated persons to the county detoxification facility and the acutely mentally ill to hospitals. Using a checklist format, the report provided information on resistance level, police weapons used, and the effect of the force and resistance on the suspect and the officer. Postarrest interviews with 102 persons taken into custody tested the validity of the police reports. In the 11,989 custody situations, officers encountered significant resistance 1,750 times or approximately 5 times a day. Only 1 percent of the resistance incidents resulted in injuries to suspects that required outpatient medical treatment. Five persons were hospitalized overnight, and two died. The data indicate that St. Paul officers use force professionally, with minimal injury to citizens or officers. This type of validated statistical information should be admissible and defensible in any civil suit against a department where the quality of departmental training is an issue. 3 figures.