Posted by mike on January 5th, 2009
to use force in the course of their duties. But unlike many
of the activities for which law enforcement officials are
responsible (e.g. traffic control, conducting an arrest, etc.),
the use of force should always remain exceptional.
As a matter of fact, the use of force by law enforcement
officials is strictly regulated and limited, or ought to be,
by domestic laws. Such laws may differ from one country
to the next, and you should make yourself familiar with
them.
The international community has also sought to
establish general principles that should be observed by law
enforcement officials throughout the world and that may
guide the regulations established by domestic law. These
principles are embodied in two documents: the United
Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials
(1978) and the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force
and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials (1990).
According to these international standards, force of any
kind should only be used exceptionally: in other words,
the use of force should not be the norm but the exception.
Law enforcement officials may use force only:
â ¢ when strictly necessary
â ¢ to the extent required for the performance of their
duty, including
þ to prevent crime
þ to effect or assist in the lawful arrest of suspected
offenders
â ¢ after all non-violent methods available have been used
but have remained ineffective
The use of force beyond these limits is characterised as
â œexcessiveâ .
Letâ ™s look at the various elements composing this
definition:
â ¢ strictly necessary: A possible way to interpret this
expression is the following: it is reasonable to assume
that, under the circumstances, law enforcement
officials had no alternative but to use force. No force
going beyond that may be used.
â ¢ to the extent required for the performance of
officersâ ™ duties: These duties include: to prevent
crimes, to effect a lawful arrest. Broadly speaking, a
crime may be defined as all those activities prohibited
by criminal law. It should be the responsibility of the
law enforcement officials to demonstrate that the
activities they were trying to prevent constituted a
â œcrimeâ in accordance with the law in force in the
country. Conducting an arrest will be lawful if the
required procedure has been followed, such as, in many
cases, obtaining an arrest warrant.
â ¢ after all non-violent methods have been tried:
this is pretty straightforward. Non-violent methods
may include: spending time trying to convince someone
to surrender or to stop acting in an unlawful way,
talking to individuals, etc. All such methods should
be included in internal guidelines or regulations
regarding policing or security operations.
Some national states and NGOs have sought to define the
limits imposed on the use of force through the principle
of proportionality.
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