Police abusing their powers on unarmed civilians is one of the most controversial topics in the recent past. The major reasons for these abuses may include hatred towards specific races and the mental health of some specific police officers. Recently, an incident happened on the streets of New York where an innocent person kept begging for his life and saying I cant breathe, but nobody listened to him until he was brought near death.

It is to keep in mind that good and bad people are found everywhere, and police departments are no exception. While most of the police officers are courteous, kind and abide by the law, some officers exceed their powers.

The article below will help you if you wish to read about the examples of police abusing their powers to exploit the general public. 

Most Common Police Abuse Instances

Throughout history, police have used various ways to exploit people by excessively using their powers. Organizational-level policies might be held responsible for the excessive use of powers by some police officers. The absence of no penalty or punishment for officers exceeding their powers is the major reason for increasing cases of police brutality.

Let’s have a look at some common examples of police abusing their powers:

Excessive Force

A lot of times, police officers have been found guilty, or they are put on trial for the use of excessive force. A question is raised in the situation what exactly excessive force is? Well, the answer is pretty simple. Use of any excess force by an officer than is required in a particular condition. A recent movie, icanbreathe, depicts the story of using excessive force by a police officer.

These are the situations where police officers are allowed to use force, such as stopping an incident from happening, stopping a suspect, or protecting themselves. Even in these conditions, they are allowed to use only a necessary amount of force.

Following are the situations where a police officer is allowed to use force:

The perpetrator tries to resist or get away when an arrest has to be made.Perpetrator tries to escape with a deadly weapon.The perpetrator threatens other people's lives.The perpetrator has already threatened a crime that has caused serious injury to other people’s lives.

Turning Off Body Cameras

Body cameras are something that is installed with a police officer to keep track of performance and improve the accountability of an officer. This is how police brutality and violence can be reduced, but unfortunately, this is not always the case.

These cameras are quite expensive, so not all departments can afford them. Furthermore, they are not reliable enough. Sometimes, police officers deliberately turn them off to deceive the police department and accuse the camera that crashed.

There are many cases where the camera “malfunctioned” when a police officer is accused of using excessive force. In such cases, the police officers deliberately turn off the cameras to avoid recording their acts. The officers might be arrested for turning the camera off deliberately or indeliberately.

Lying About Arrests

It is seen in the practice that police officers lie about the arrest when the camera is not installed, turned off or malfunctions. In these conditions, the officers lie that the perpetrator was resisting, using a deadly weapon or threatening other people’s lives.

In such a case, the proceeding goes against the words of the police officer versus the wordings of the perpetrator. The case then went into deep investigation when the court looked into the CCTV cameras at the site.

It is to keep in mind that the camera may actually malfunction or get turned off due to these conditions:

The battery of the camera diesIt malfunctions on its ownThe police officer forgets to turn the camera on. It often happens when they are learning a new device.The camera gets damaged or turned off during a struggle

Warrantless Arrests/Searches

According to a general rule, a police officer can not search or arrest a person without a warrant. In such cases, it is possible that the case gets dismissed. The police officers often search your home or vehicles to look for drugs or money and may confiscate them. However, they can do it without having a legal warrant.

Ending Notes

The use of excessive force by police can be seen at a higher rate during the last couple of decades. It is a very controversial concern, and the government is devising policies to control this increasing brutality.

The factors for this increasing violence may be broadly classified into two categories; individual-level and organisational level. At an individual level, it has been observed that police officers suffering from PTSD from work-related stress have a high chance of involving in police violence. While the organisational; level factor includes the absence of policies regarding excessive use of force by police officers where it is unnecessary.

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