After doing
my show and tell presentation on social media, and writing about the
controversy surround police worn body cameras, I began to think about how
social media has affected the perception of police officers.
With the increase in the use of technology and
the media, the tensions within the public regarding police brutality have
continued to grow. In the news, more and more cases of police brutality have
been reported. Recently, there have been debates about whether or not all
police officers should wear body cameras. This debate has been brought up
because of all the cases of police brutality presented by the media. One side
argues that body cameras are necessary in order to prevent unnecessary police
force. However, the other side argues that even if there is video evidence for
every case involving the police, no two people will watch the video and
perceive the situation in the same way. Each person within society has their
own perception on police brutality, making it more difficult for society to
come together and establish a clear line of what is considered excessive and
what is justifiable. Oftentimes society places too much emphasis on the
wrongdoings of a minority of police officers or they develop preconceived
notions that police officers use excessive force because of the negative light
the media presents them in creating the stereotype of the “bad cop”. In order
to end the stereotype of the “bad cop,” a standard to evaluate police brutality
must be developed.
Under many circumstances, police officers are
legally able to use deadly force; however, as seen in "Law Enforcement Restraint
in the Use of Deadly Force within the Context of 'the Deadly Mix,'"
majority (93 percent) of police officers choose not to use the amount of force
that could kill a person. The media does not show the public each time an
officer decides not to shoot someone, instead they focus on the cases where
force was used. Even when force is used, it can be justified (not in all cases,
but in many). Even if a police officer chooses to use force, it does not mean
that they are using excessive force. There are a multitude of reason why a
police officer may use force, a major one being in a life threatening situation
and another reason being for the safety of others. As seen above, 93 percent of
the time where it was legal for an officer to use deadly force, they choose not
too. There are many cases where a police officer refrains from using force, or
uses force while still following protocol; however, because of the way the
media has presented police officers, the public has created a negative attitude
towards the police force as a whole.
While the excessive use of police force is a
significant matter within society, society should not look only at the minority
of the police force as presented in a negative light by the media in order to
avoid prejudice and to end the “bad cop” stereotype. In order to solve the
controversy involving the police, a better baseline should be established to
create a clearer system for handling police brutality cases. Although no person
on the planet, besides the police officer who committed the alleged crime, can
know what that police officer is thinking in the moment that they decide to use
their firearm or force, a better standard for police force can aid society in
distinguishing what is “excessive”. If a standard is created for what is and
what is not excessive force utilized by the police, the issue may not be 100
percent solved, but society would have a clearer distinction between with what
is “right” and what is “wrong”. Also with a better baseline, it would be more
difficult for the media to spin stories into a negative light. Overall, if
better standards are put into place, there would be less controversy on police
brutality.
No comments:
Post a Comment