home

Joey Thomas, Zack Evens ILJ Period 5 Police Brutality

= = **Table of Contents** 1.Definition 2.History 3.International 3.1 Indonesia 3.2 Russia 3.3 Canada 3.4 China 4.Causes 5.Rodney King 6.Independent Oversight 7.References


 * Police brutality** is the excessive use of physical force with the intent to harm, by a police officer. Over the years many police forces all over the globe have experienced corruption in the justice system. Wheather the harm be physical or verbal, police brutality is a serious issue that needs to be dealt with all over the globe.[1]

The word "brutality" has roots dating back to 1633, meaning savage cruelty. However, the term "police brutality" was first coined in 1893, in the //New York Times.// The origin of modern policing dates back to the seventeenth and eighteenth century France. By the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, many countries had modern police departments and law enforcement. There have been countless cases of police brutality since the nineteenth century, many of them occurring at labor strikes, or riots. The most famous case of police brutality of all time was in 1992 in Los Angeles. That day the riots in Los Angeles proved to be fatal, causing 53 deaths, 2,383 injuries, over 7,000 fires, and nearly one billion dollars in financial losses. This tragic event led to major reform and reconstruction of the police departments across America.[7]
 * =History=


 * =International=

Indonesia
Many of the police officers in Indonesia have targeted Islamic extremists as terrorists. The police corruption goes as far as capturing, or even killing the so-called terrorists. The cases in Indonesia go even further, claiming that the police even target the media when they attempt to expose the hidden corruption. There was yet another case in 2010 when public citizens were protesting the death of a victim of police brutality. The |Indonesian police officers fired into the riot, killing 5 and injuring 34. Today, the police system in Indonesia is being examined and altered to meet up to international standards.[5]

Russia
In 2012, Russian protests gained international attention when Vladimir Putin got reelected. The police force has been criticized for the unjustified use of force against innocent citizens. Corruption has also been found in 2012 investigations of the Russian police force. Some officers were capturing and torturing citizens to obtain a false confession in order for these officers to meet their quotas. Recently, the head of Russian forces have began attempts to reform the police force, in an effort to minimize violence. Today, the technologies of the internet, video cameras, and photography, the citizens of Russia have been able to bring their problems to public attention.[4]

Canada
Canada, like most developed countries with an established police force, have encountered numerous cases of police brutality towards the public. The recent questionable actions by the police officers have raised concerns about the police fulfilling their duties.[6]

China
Historically political riots and protests have become common in China. Chinese dissidents have been able to arrange effective mobilization through use of social media and other informal communications such as Twitter. Although the domestic media is censored, foreign media portrays a different message about China's law enforcement system. A journalist from Switzerland reports that plainclothes policemen are usually deployed to reduce violence. Also, the widespread use of censorship is used by the Chinese government in order to maintain political stability. Citizens can be charged for surfing the internet with a false identity. After arrests, the accused persons' home is completely searched for evidence on computers, flash drives, etc. [2] [3]

According to the origins of policing, officers are permitted to use necessary force according to the circumstance. However, it is common that those working in law enforcement develop an overwhelming sense of authority over society. Some police believe they are 'above the law' and can get away with their excessive use of force. The police use of force is usually standardized by the issuance of a use of force continuum[7]. This is a use of force guideline that officers can use to determine when to use the appropriate amount of force[7]. Society must also keep in mind that police force may seem excessive at times, even when it is lawful. The iconic case of police brutality is the Rodney KIng case. On April 3, 1991, King was involved in a high speed chase with the Los Angeles police department. When the chase was stopped King was forced out of his car and was brutally beaten. Reports say that King was kicked, punched, and beaten by baton repeatedly. All of this was videotaped by an amateur cameraman, George Holiday. There were four officers involved in the beating and all four were indicted on charges of assault by deadly weapon and excessive use of force by a police officer. the trial, however, did not favor King. After the three month trial, the officers were acquitted by a mostly white jury.the result of the case resulted in violent riots in Los Angeles in 1992.[9] Citizens as well as communities help prevent such things like police brutality by having independent project to monitor police violence. Often called "Cop Watch" the tool most commonly used for prevention is a video recorder. Tapes of police brutality are all over the internet and can be very useful when it occurs.[10]
 * =Causes=
 * =Rodney KIng=
 * Independent Oversight
 * =References=
 * 1)  Oxford English Dictionary
 * 2) [|^] []
 * 3) [|^] []
 * 4) [|^] []
 * 5) [|^] []
 * 6) [|^] []
 * 7) __^__ __http://esheets.wordpress.com/history/__
 * 8) __^__ __http://reallifesuperheroes.org/tutorials/use-of-force-continuum/__
 * 9) __^__ __http://www.biography.com/people/rodney-king-9542141__
 * 10)  ** [|^] ** Krupanski, Marc (March 7, 2012). [|"Policing the Police: Civilian Video Monitoring of Police Activity"] . Retrieved 2012-03-13