Steve Armstrong said on November 20, 2006  

Ken,
I think the most important thing in your post was don't "give the mob time to form".

In THIS situation, I would have probably hauled him out in handcuffs after a brief "hands-on" encounter. Our agency went with the "pepper" spray/mace in lieu of the stungun, and I had the fire extinguisher size can- so, had the student really bucked on me, he would have gotten it.

But, I would have given him the verbal challenge, “Sir, please leave now…” then, when that didn’t work- I would have escalated to “Sir, you are now under arrest, place your hands behind your back…” If he didn’t comply, it would have been mace time, and I would then effect the arrest. But, all of the above would have taken place in under 20 seconds.

The last thing you want is a big scene with the student (and all his friends/people in the area) to allow a chanting mob to form.

 Tom McKenna said on November 20, 2006  

Good summary of the "use of force continuum" as I call it when I'm teaching law enforcement folks.

My only change would be to include at the beginning, use of verbal commands as the lowest level of "coercion" in response to a non-comliant offender.

 Tom McKenna said on November 20, 2006  

One other amendment I would have: I think tasers belong lower on the continuum. They are in reality quite safe in the vast, vast majority of situations and do nothing more than cause physical discomfort. It belongs, in my view at or slightly above the level of capstun.

This kid in the library was not just going limp, but was actively resisting. The taser use was an "incentive" to gain comliance and was both moderate and justified given his resistance, IMHO.

 martin said on November 20, 2006  

"HOWEVER, this does not mean that tazers should not be available for officer use."
I can't remember how often I have read that line.
Law enforcement, and I count prosecutors right in that group, always claim they need all the tools lest the nation fall apart in utter lawlessness. They ensure the public the tools will only be used in strict compliance with all those cumbersome rules and regulations and then ... they fail to hire people of the necessary personality and they fail to train and supervise them properly.

 Ken Lammers said on November 20, 2006  

martin,

Actually, that's not the case I was making. Police can keep the nation from falling into utter lawlessness with firearms and nightsticks. More people would be hurt or killed, but order would be maintained.

My argument relies more upon the thesis that making police avail themselves of these various other tools is actually to keep those whom the police come into conflict with from being harmed unecessarily. They are tools allowing a graduated response.

 martin said on November 20, 2006  

Point taken Ken.
A taser is less lethal than a gun any time. Could that knowledge perhaps lead to overuse though? What troubles me is the apparent need for many cops to enforce their authority rather than be measured and try to handle the situation with the least damage possible.

 Windypundit said on November 21, 2006  

When I was in college at the Illinois Institute of Technology the campus cops had guns but not nightsticks or, as I recall, any other non-lethal weapons. I asked why, and was told this allowed them to confront dangerous criminals (IIT was in right next to some projects) but discouraged the kinds of cops who might enjoy roughing up a few snotty students. I can't say if it worked, but nothing happened in the ten years I was there to suggest it didn't.

(On the other hand, one of the cops got into a gunfight when some guy tried to rob the cashier's office. He and the robber were both wounded. I remember going over to look at the bullet holes in a vending machine.)

 Anonymous said on August 28, 2007  

In the use of force continuum, you don't just start with "hand to hand". And the specific tools used at each level are incident only to the definition of the level itself.

1. Command presence. Many times, our presence alone is enough show of force.

2. Verbal commands.

3. Weaponless strategies. This is "laying hands" on the subject.

4. Non-lethal weapon strategies (OC, taser, rubber bullets, baton used non-lethally).

5. Deadly force.