Discussion Q&A

using this video:

https://www.police1.com/use-of-force/videos/excessive-force-officers-must-intercede-and-report-DpMuUvOu6PuAVHXm/

 Review the scenario below and respond to the questions:

  • You are a rookie police officer who responds to a call for officer assistance. Arriving at the scene, you see a ring of officers surrounding a suspect who is down on his knees. You do not know what happened before you arrived, but you see a sergeant use a taser on the suspect, and you see two or three officers step in and take turns hitting the suspect with their nightsticks about the head and shoulders. This goes on for several minutes as you stand in the back of the circle. No one says anything that that would indicate this is not appropriate behavior.
  • What would you do? What would you say later when asked to testify that you observed the suspect make “threatening” gestures to the officers involved?
  • Be sure to respond to at least one of your classmates’ posts.  

Repond to Lajetta:

  1. What would you do? 

I would intervene quickly by calling for assistance or additional officers. I would take immediate actions to separate the officers from the suspect then ensure that the suspect gets medical attention immediately due to the use of force. Soon afterward I would communicate with the officers involved to gain clarity of the incident, speak to the suspect, and then complete a statement (report) of what I witness and observed. 

  1. What would you say later when asked to testify that you observed the suspect make “threatening” gestures to the officers involved? 

I will respectfully decline because I will not testify falsely to anything. In the previous question, I also mention that I will follow the incident up by reporting or stating exactly and accurately what happened. I will simply testify with the truth and only the truth.