Police officers are faced with the potential to apply deadly and other means of force within the course of their job duties. Discretion and application of force represent complex human interactions that are often poorly understood by the general public. How do the legal precedents of Graham v. Conner [490 U.S. 386 (1986)] and Tennessee v. Gardner [487 U.S. 1 (1985)] impact law enforcement applications of force? What is the “split second syndrome” and how does it impact use of force decisions. Procedural, how do officers assess use of force decisions? Write a 300-500-word paper on the Seminar topic above.
