Critical Response Essay 1: Graham v. Connor

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Box 3.3 on page 85 of the text provides an insightful comment on the United Supreme Court decision in Graham v. Connor.  The NCJA Graham vs. Connor video (Links to an external site.) provides a short overview of the case as well. This case established the “objectively reasonable” standard for officer use of force.  The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) (Links to an external site.) is a national research organization with a prominent membership base of over 300 Police Chiefs from major American cities. In 2016, PERF strongly objected to the “objectively reasonable” standard and argued that police departments should go beyond the Graham decision in their training and policies related to use of force.  “By adopting policies that go beyond the minimum requirements of Graham, agencies can help prevent officers from being placed in situations that endanger themselves or others, where the officers have no choice but to make split-second decisions to use deadly force” (PERF, 2016, p. 17). PERF’s public comment and disagreement was an unprecedented action by a law enforcement chiefs membership organization and created considerable debate in the field.  Put yourself in the seat of a Chief of Police faced with the Supreme Court’s faced with the Graham decision and PERF’s recommendation. Why would PERF make a decision to make the Supreme Court’s decision more restrictive in practice.  What does this tell us about the role of the Supreme Court and responsibility of Police Chiefs in applying the law to practice? You are encouraged to conduct outside research to support your analysis.