Use of force in Policing
I would just like
to start my post off by thanking Cst. Rupert Mainke for talking the time for
teaching the class about when and how to use reasonable force in policing.
Tonight was
interesting for all of us, Rupert began by introducing himself to the class and
gave a brief overview of his careers in policing, corrections, probation and
the military.
Rupert is very
knowledgeable when it comes to how to deal with situations when an officer has
to apply a certain degree of force in a certain situation. He talked about two
sections of the criminal code such as; section 25 and section 495.
Section 25 of the
Criminal Code of Canada provides police officers with authority to use force.
It says that
“everyone who is required or authorized by law to do anything in the
administration or enforcement of the law is, if he or she acts on reasonable
grounds, justified in doing what he or she is required or authorized to do in
using as much force as necessary for that purpose”.
We then continued
on to a debatable question like “What is excessive force”?
Force is excessive
if:
1.
It is
grossly disproportionate to the need for action
2.
It is
inspired by malice or over aggression
3.
If it
shocks the conscience of the courts
An example would
be force that is not reasonable or necessary.
A case that we
went over in class was Cluett V. the Queen (1985) a somewhat interesting and
controversial case that ended in a mentally ill man being killed by police
because of the man interfering with traffic.
“It is not
possible to lay down any hard and fast role, except the test of reasonableness.
If the police officer carry out his own authority acts on reasonable and
probable grounds, he is justified in doing what he is required to do and in
using as much force necessary”.
One of the most
interesting topics (in section 25 of the criminal code) I found to be was “when
is it reasonable to shoot someone in the back”It is reasonable to shoot someone
in the back when:
1.
Someone
who is fleeing after causing or trying to cause fatal injuries to an officer
2.
Someone
who is fleeing and is believed to cause serious even fatal harm to the public.
We then discussed
section 495 of the Criminal Code; section 495 discusses when a police officer
can make an arrest without a warrant.
1)
A
peace officer may arrest without a warrant
a A
person who has been caught or has just committed an indictable offence
b A
person whom he finds committing a criminal offence; or
c A
person, in respect of whom he has reasonable grounds to believe that a warrant
of arrest of committal, in any form set out in part XXVIII in relation thereto,
is in force within the territorial jurisdiction in which the person is found.
After discussing
sections in the criminal we then moved on to the six basic principles that underlie
the National Use of Force Framework, Use of force options and subject behaviors
and how to asses both topics together when dealing with a situation.
The six basic
principles that underlie the National use of force framework are:
1)
The
primary responsibility of a peace officer is to preserve and protect life.
2)
The
primary objective of any use of force is to ensure public safety.
3)
Police
officer safety is essential to public safety.
4)
The
National use of force Framework does not replace or augment the law: the law
speaks for itself.
5)
The
National Use of force Framework was constructed in consideration of (federal)
statute law and current case law.
6)
The
National Use of Force Framework is not intended to dictate policy to any
agency.
When an officer is
confronted with a situation that must be dealt with extreme care and discretion
that officer must go through a 3-step assessment process that involves:
1)
The
situation- environment, number of subjects, perceived subjects abilities,
knowledge of subject, time and distance, potential attack signs
2)
Subject
behaviors- Co-operative, resistant (passive), resistant, (active), assaultive,
grievous bodily harm or death
3)
Officer’s
perception/tactical considerations- 2 separate factors that may affect the
officers overall assessment.
We then ended the
class by talking about the 5 Use of Force Options available to police when
handling a situation, the options are:
1)
Officer
presence
2)
Verbal
communication
3)
Physical
control
Soft
Hard
4)
Intermediate
Weapons
5)
Lethal
force
The officer can
apply any one of these “Use of Force Options” to the assessment process,
officers are taught when and what to use concerning the situation through the
National Use of Force Framework model below.
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