Police officers are people whom we trust to prevent crime and to keep our community safe. We can see that a lot of police officers take their jobs seriously and dedicate themselves to the job of protecting the people. We are thankful for the many law enforcement professionals who risk their lives in order to secure a safe community for us.
Yes, there maybe many respectable police officers but you will also find those who do not keep their sworn duty of keeping the people safe, but they themselves harm innocent people. Any victim of police brutality has the right to make a legal claim against an abusive police officer and the police department where they work.
Sometimes police brutality can injury or even kill innocent victims and when this happens, you should seek the help of a police brutality lawyer who has knowledge and experience in police brutality and civil rights laws.
We all know that police have broad authority to carry out their duties as they should. These powers, however, are limited. You can file legal claims for police brutality or abuse if the law enforcement officer goes beyond the limits of authority and cause needless injury.
If you are a victim of police brutality or abuse, here are some types of legal claims you can file.
When police officers carry out their lawful duties they can use force that are reasonable necessary. Reasons why the police attempted to stop or arrest an individual, the way the person responded to the police request, and the circumstances surrounding the encounter can actually lead an officer to use excessive force.
But police may use no more force than necessary. They should not hit, rough up, or hurt a person who is unarmed, acts in a non-threatening manner, and follows directions. Even if a person is aggressive, police must stop using force as soon as the individual is restrained. If injury results from illegal excessive force then this can be the basis for any legal claim for excessive force
You can file claim for false arrest if you are taken into custody without an arrest warrant and without probable cause. If a police sees you committing a crime or suspects that you will soon commit one, then he has probable cause to arrest you. When police lack legal jurisdiction, the person taken into custody may have a claim for false arrest.
You cannot succeed in your case by simply proving that the police officer was careless or negligent in his duty. The victim has to prove that the action of the police office was with full knowledge of its unlawful nature and that the injury was inflicted intentionally. Policy brutality cases can only be handled by an experienced attorney. It will take a careful investigation by the attorney to establish your claims.