An Interesting Look Into The Use Of Force.....

[Laxman]

by law enforcement in New Jersey was recently published by NJ.com They undertook a massive project to assemble data on the use of force by police departments across NJ. You can access their data base here: http://force.nj.com/ Like any assemblage of statistics, there are questions about what the numbers they present here actually mean. The size of the force, the number of arrests, the definition of what constitutes force and other factors in this study make drawing hard conclusions difficult. However, they do show places in the state where departments are well out of the norm, where there are officers that are out of control, where the rate of use of force against minorities is not able to be justified with any rational explanation-or should I say there is a rational explanation, just not an explanation that we should accept as a society.

They did a number of follow-up articles after publishing their data base that have included Black people in N.J. say they're more likely to be punched, kicked by cops. Now, data backs that up. , Visualization: These 252 N.J. cops used the most force during arrests. See why they’re the extreme, which includes an interesting way of looking at incidents of police use of force and this article from today that focuses on Atlantic City's out-of-control department:

Aggressive cops are ‘out of control’ in this N.J. city, insiders say, costing taxpayers millions

Atlantic City police officers used painful holds, punches, kicks and other types of force to subdue suspects 2,854 times from 2012 through 2016, according to The Force Report, a 16-month investigation by NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. The investigation found New Jersey’s system for tracking police force is broken, with no statewide collection or analysis of data, little oversight by state officials and no standard practices among local departments.

The news organization collected 72,609 use-of-force reports covering every municipal police department and the State Police. The results, available at NJ.com/force, revealed police across the state used force in about 3 percent of all arrests. Officers in Atlantic City, where 40 percent of residents live in poverty amid the 30 million visitors to its casinos and beaches every year, used force in 11 percent of arrests.

Read the full article here: https://www.nj.com/news/2018/12/this-police-force-is-one-of-the-most-aggressive-in-nj-its-out-of-control-cop-says.html

The ability to adequately communicate the problem is the first step to solving it. While this data collection includes any need to restrain a suspect physically as an "incident" and that is a situation that is almost impossible to avoid completely, the numbers on the whole reveal patterns that can be used to help address this issue effectively. Bad departments, bad officers, bad training all stand out here. This is the kind of analysis that needs to be done nationally.

[Wounded Bear]

1. One of the big problems with violence in our society...

is how special interests manage to block studies like this. Between the NRA, the various LEO organizations (including, sadly, unions), and Republican intransigence, we don't totally know how much violence is out there and the underlying currents driving it.

Studies like this need to be done all over.

[Laxman]

2. I Couldn't Agree More....

I have worked with a number of law enforcement agencies as well as with individual officers in several capacities during my career. In my humble estimation and based upon my direct interactions, only 2-4 out of every 10 officers are really qualified for the job. The rest should be managing a Wendy's or engaged in some other suitable occupation. Embedded racism masks the much larger and dangerous problems of incompetence, corruption and lack of ability. These factors lead officers to bad actions because they are incapable of acting appropriately.

[TreasonousBastard]

3. Well, the story is even worse than the video...

http://www.bonjeanlaw.com/david-connor-castellani-jr/

At least he got a $3mill settlement.

And, yes, they did sic the dog on him.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

4. I just read one of those other articles. Data is important.

The police chief in Millville says it isn't a problem because nobody has complained. Now there's some logic that you just can argue with!

But now, there's a trove of never-before-seen data exposing the truth.

As part of The Force Report, a 16-month investigation by NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, the news organization filed 506 public records requests and collected 72,609 forms covering every restraint, punch, kick or other use of force by local police and state troopers from 2012 through 2016, the most recent year available.

The resulting database provides hard evidence of racial disparities in police use of force across New Jersey.

Among the findings:

-Black people are three times more likely to face some type of police force than whites.
- In 68 cities and towns, black people were at least five times more likely to face force. In Millville in South Jersey, they were seven times more likely. In Lakewood, they were an astounding 22 times more likely.
- Black people were more likely to face nearly every kind of force used by police, including punches, kicks, pepper spray, baton strikes and dog attacks. They were more than twice as likely to be shot.
- Black children faced a disproportionate amount of force. Of the more than 4,600 uses of force against people under 18, slightly more than half were black. But they account for only 14.5 percent of the state's child population.
- The data shows white people are more likely to show aggressive behavior toward police, like threatening or attacking police with a car, knife or gun. Black people are more likely to run away.

"It is the data on the front end that is able to show without a doubt the injustice that's being done," said the Rev. Charles Boyer, pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Woodbury and the founder of Salvation and Social Justice, a nonprofit advocacy group focusing on civil rights reform through the clergy.

"Because historically the word of black people is not good enough. The vocalizing of our experience is never good enough. It is not until it is shown and it is proven by statistics. Once that is done, there can be no justified argument."

[Nitram]

5. Some background to the video is needed to provide context.

Bottom line, after beating the kid up and handcuffing him, a K-9 car arrived, parked where it would block the video camera, and released a dog on the helpless suspect, which severely mauled him. The K-9 officer was later arrested and indicted. Five years later!