Term Paper on "Excessive Force by Police"

Term Paper 4 pages (1285 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Excessive Force by Police

Many people are familiar with the cases of Abner Louima and Rodney King, two famous examples of police brutality. The death of Amadou Diallo in New York is another example covered extensively in the media. However, for every case of police brutality that receives media coverage, many more go unnoticed.

This paper argues that police brutality is far from an aberation, covered in the media only in extreme cases. Instead, this paper maintains that the police brutality is a growing problem.

The first part of this paper looks at data regarding the police use of extreme force, especially among racial minorities. The second part then examines why these abuses continue. In the last part, this paper looks at the role of the media, and the reasons behind selective media coverage.

A national pattern

Far from being aberrations, the cases of Louima and Diallo are part of a national pattern of excessive force. The late 1990s saw several more cases that did not garner as much press coverage. In 1998, for example, a thirteen-year-old named Timothy Wilson was fatally shot after six officers chased the boy for weaving and reckless driving. In 2000, Louisville, Kentucky residents erupted in protest after an unarmed black man suspected of auto theft was chased by two police officers, and shot 22 times and killed. A similar case happened in Houston in 1998, resulting in the death of unarmed Mexican national Pedro Oregon. (Novick 1999).

These last three cases have much in common. First, they did not happen in major cities. King was a resident of Los Angeles, while Louima and Diallo were residents of New York City.

In contrast, Louisville, Houston and Kansas City are not considered large media markets. Thus, similar shootings in smaller markets do not garner as much national attention.

Another similar thread is that the shootings involved members of racial minorities. Police officers contend that excessive force in less than 1% of contacts with civilians and suspects. Contrary to these statistics, however, blacks perceive excessive force as a problem. A further survey conducted by NBC News found that 43% of black respondents had little confidence on the police in the matter of "not using excessive force on suspects" (cited in Weitzer 1999).

Many members of various minority groups feel that they are unfairly targeted, especially with regard to the use of excessive force and the differences that white and black residents ascribe to these incidents. In many cases, such as the cases of Wilson and Oregon, the incidents are sparked by non-violent offenses.

In addition to fatal shootings, many police officers are also resorting to the use of TASER or stun guns, in situations which were previously resolved without the use of force. Statistics from the Orange County Sheriff's Office in Florida, for example, show a stunning increase in the use of TASERS. In 2000, there were only three reported uses of TASER guns. A mere two years later, that figure jumped to 295 (Amnesty International 2005).

Systemic bias

There are several reasons behind this national pattern of abuse. First, despite efforts from grassroots organizations and community leaders, there is a clear lack of political will in solving this problem.

Jesse Jackson, for example, equates the excessive use of force against black people as "domestic terrorism." Additionally, Salim Muwakil (2002) observes that many African-Americans are incredulous that the four police officers who fired 41 bullets at Diallo were acquitted of any charges.

Analysts like Muwakil locate this problem in the system of law enforcement, pointing out that "anti-black biases are so tightly woven into the fabric of American law enforcement" (Muwakil 2002). These biases are invisible to everyone but the black victims, many of whom have come to expect practices such as racial profiling as standard.

The September 11 terrorist attacks have added another dimension to racial profiling. In… READ MORE

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