Justifiable Police Force

improperly? As this is not an exact list of questions asked, these will be used to represent the use of force used by a police officer for the purpose of this paper. The most important decision an officer must make before using force to apprehend a suspect is the force that they are about to use justifiable? As stated in 609.06 in the Minnesota state statutes an officer may use force, “When used by a public officer or one assisting a public officer under the public officer's direction, in effecting a lawful arrest, in the execution of legal process, in enforcing an order of the court, or in executing any other duty imposed upon the public officer by law” (“609.06 - 2016Minnesota Statutes,” 2016). The use of force will only be justified when
The force used by a police officer cannot be more than what a reasonable person would say is necessary to make a valid arrest, detain a suspect, or to protect another police officer or another person. Once the officer has decided that the use of force is necessary for the above situations the officer will have to use a force option that is reasonable from the use of force continuum. The use of force continuum is as follows: officer presence, verbal commands, hands-on techniques, impact weapons such as baton Taser or OC spray, and finally deadly force is at the very top of the continuum. Many departments do not call it the “use of force continuum” anymore they have changed out the word continuum with the word options. This is because the word continuum implies that the officer must always start at the lowest option on the continuum and work up until the suspect/arrestee has stopped what they are doing and comply with your commands. For example, it is irrational for the officer to start at the bottom of the continuum with presence, then
The term “use of force options” allows the officer to make the decision to instantly use the option that is best for the particular situation they are in. training is key