Deadly Force Research Paper

McClain 1
Kaitlyn McClain
Professor Bates
ADMJ 300
7 March 2015
Homework # 4
Deadly force is defined as the amount of force likely to cause death or great bodily harm to another person. In earlier years, deadly force was used by police in order to apprehend a suspect regardless of the crime committed or situation at hand. Due to many cases arising against police officers and their use of deadly force, the courts have put certain restrictions on it and have said only to use in situations where the lives of others are in imminent danger. As media headlines continue to generate news stories of Law Enforcement Agencies and their use of deadly force, the question on its morality continues to rage on.
During earlier times, Common Law was put in place
Upon finding out of his son’s unlawful killing, the suspects father sought action in a
Federal Court seeking damages against the violation of his son’s constitutional rights. The courts held that the police actions of deadly force is only justified where they have reason to believe the suspect poses a significant threat to the public or officer. After much deliberation, the Court said it is constitutionally unreasonable to use deadly force as a preventive measure on suspected fleeing felons.
Furthermore, “The Supreme Court established the standard of objective reasonableness“ (Schmalleger 293). This means that an officer should make the decision on their extent of force based off the actions of the suspect. If the suspect is in compliance with the officer and non-resistive, then the officer will have “no reason” to use force of any kind. On the 


McClain 3 other hand, if the suspect is resisting arrest and reaching for a knife he stashed in his pants, the officer has every right to use whatever force he deems necessary during that split-second decision he has to make.
Most cases on deadly force stem from claims of discrimination. These claims say
In both cases, the suspects were black and both suffered a fatality at the hands of white officers. Although these are two entirely different cases, both cases sparked major controversy throughout the country for the same reasons. Neither officers were ever indicted on any criminal charges, and both officers actions were described as justifiable.
People rioted, protested, looted stores, and assaulted numerous officers over the outcomes of these cases.
It is clear that the use of deadly force has sparked a lot of outrage in the recent years. To police officers, it is necessary in order to protect the safety of others and themselves. Officers do not know if or when deadly force is needed until the situation unfolds. Regardless, an officer is expected to make a reasonable decision based on the situation at hand. Back when Common Law was around, there were a lot less restrictions and stipulations regarding the use of force officers could use. If a felon was fleeing and not cooperating with an officers orders, they were allowed to shoot under the Fleeing Felon Rule, regardless if the felon posed a threat. This rule wasn’t reevaluated until the late 1900’s when multiple cases started surfacing about the unnecessary