Police Abuse of Power
Have You Ever Been a Victim?
This kind of treatment is inhumane and
should never be tolerated or accepted.
What is Police Brutality?
• Police Brutality is a term used to
describe the excessive use of
physical force, assault, verbal
attacks, and threats by police
officers.
• Widespread systematic police
brutality exists in many countries
and ours is no exception.
Forms of Police Brutality
Police misconduct in the form of brutality
exists in many forms:
• False Arrest
• Intimidation
• Racial Profiling
• Political Repression
• Surveillance Abuse
• Sexual Abuse
• Police Corruption
What Causes This Injustice?
• Officers may have an agenda
other than protecting and
serving, I.E. race, religion,
political view, or socioeconomic status
• Gradual progression towards
apathy and aggression
Police Brutality Statistics
• American police have killed more
with bullets than have been killed
in all the wars and terrorist attacks
since Vietnam.
• American police have killed more
people with bullets since 2000
than were killed in the terrorist
attacks of 9/11. Few of these
killings have been resolved by a
jury trial.
Famous Cases of Police Brutality
• Most recently a case in New Orleans
where a man was beaten for no
apparent reason. They kept telling him
not to resist when he wasn’t.
http://74.52.1.82/videos1/051012new-orleans-police-brutalityvideo.wmv
Famous Cases of Police Brutality
Officers Involved in
Abner Louima
the Abner Louima Case
Famous Cases of Police Brutality
• After a traffic stop on March 31, 1991, Rodney
King was beaten and arrested by LAPD. Many
believe it was a racially motivated incident. It
eventually caused the LA riots and mass
protests in 1992
How Did It Come To This?
• After interviewing ex-officers they said
it was due to the miscreants they dealt
with on a daily basis
• A single moment or a compilation of
times may evoke this kind of behavior
• A general dislike of the Police by the
majority of the population cause
officers to become lets empathetic to
people over the long run, causing
abuses of power
How Did It Come To This?...continued
• Under-appreciation
for serving and
protecting the
community builds
a foundation for
Police indifference
• When officers are too nice people
take advantage of them and they are
forced to resort back to being hostile
What Does Catholic Social Teaching Say?
• Vengeance, anger and selfishness are
not the ways of the Church
• Against the theme of “Life and Dignity
of the Human Person”
• Violates the “Rights and
Responsibilities” theme
• CST shows us how to be better
Catholics in this constantly changing
world
• Police Brutality/Abuse of Power is
perceived as a wrong against society as
a whole
What Solutions Can We Implement?
• State, federal and local authorities should
ensure that abuses including torture,
brutality and other excessive force by
police officers will not be tolerated and
officers will be held accountable for their
actions as well as brought to justice
• Police departments should be required to
keep detailed records on the use of force
and to report publicly at regular intervals,
providing statistical data on shootings and
other use of force, in-custody deaths and
injuries
More Solutions
• All police departments should introduce
training programs designed to minimize the risk
of unnecessary force and death or injury in
certain common situations, including vehicle
pursuits and coping with mentally ill or
disturbed individuals. Training programs should
also include gender issues and sensitivity to
minority groups
• State, local and federal authorities should
establish effective, independent oversight
bodies for their respective police agencies, with
powers to investigate and review complaints
against the police as well as broader policy
issues and patterns of concern, and to issue
detailed public reports
Solutions…continued
•
Meetings in schools and community town halls
• Guest Speakers
• Videos
• Pamphlets
•
Talk about this issue in schools
• Talk to children about this issue
• Some children think that police officers have absolute control
• Teach them examples of this abuse so they can report these issues
•
Screenings for police officers
• We feel that the community as a whole should know who is protecting
them
• Make sure that the right people are doing the right job
•
Awareness of Power
• Police Department should hold meetings to show the police officers
what their duties and responsibilities
• Police ethics and integrity training
•
Video Cameras
• In order to survey various neighborhoods that have had recurring
incidents of police brutality
Who Has The Power to Make Changes?
• People (through community
organizations)
• State governments/Municipalities
• District Attorneys
• Mayor Bloomberg/Governor Pataki
• Attorney General (Elliot Spitzer)
• Federal government
• President Bush
• Attorney General (Alberto Gonzales)
• Internal Police Commissions
• Federal Bureau of Investigation