Police Force Continuum

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The use of force is a necessary and required part of policing. “There are different types of force that can be applied. The levels can range from a loud, commanding voice all the way to deadly force.” (Forst, 2014). Use of force is the amount of effort required by law enforcement to gain control of a situation of an unwilling subject. The different levels, or continuum, of force law enforcement uses can include basic verbal commands and physical restraints, chemical force and even deadly force. However, the use of force must be necessary and reasonable. The use of force that law enforcement takes action upon an uncooperative subject can put both the officer and the subject at risk. This is exactly why we must look into this topic, think of other ways to avoid excessive force and learn from our findings. A valuable and essential element for police agencies is the potential for suspect resistance and the use of/or threatened use of force. According to the Police Public Contact Survey (PPCS), people who had contact with police during the previous 12 months, whether as a driver in a traffic stop or for some other reason, were asked if the police officer(s) used or threatened to use force against them at any time during the stop.…show more content…
A good example is called the use of force continuum. The use of force continuum shows different levels of force that can be used as a resolution for a problem. The National Institute of Justice defines the use of force continuum as; “These policies describe an escalating series of actions an officer may take to resolve a situation. This continuum generally has many levels, and officers are instructed to respond with a level of force appropriate to the situation at hand, acknowledging that the officer may move from one part of the continuum to another in a matter of seconds.” (National Institute of Justice, 2014). Here is a flow chart to better visualize the

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