Police Use of Force [United States]: Official Reports, Citizen Complaints, and Legal Consequences, 1991-1992
Description
This national survey was designed to collect information on
police departmental policies and practices pertaining to the use of
physical force--both deadly and less than lethal--by law enforcement
officers. A further objective was to investigate the enforcement of
these policies by examining the extent to which complaints of policy
violations were reviewed and violations punished. Additionally, the
survey sought to determine the extent to which departments kept
records on the use of force, and to collect from those agencies that
recorded this information data relating to how frequently officers
used force, the characteristics of officers who did and did not have
complaints filed against them, and the training of recruits on the
appropriate use of force. The study also provides data on citizen
complaints of excessive force, the disposition of those complaints,
and litigation concerning allegations of excessive force. Additional
variables provide agency size, demographic characteristics, and
workload.