Today’s case from the Sixth Circuit reviews a vehicle chase that ended in a suspect’s death from two gunshot wounds and a collision that occurred after he fled from an officer. To understand today’s ruling, we need to talk about a 2017 case, Latits v. Phillips. In Latits, the court held that in evaluating the reasonableness of deadly force in the context of a
Fleeing Drivers and Use of Force: Gordon v. Bierenga Continue Reading
This webinar will focus on protest response standards and the soon-to-be-released Public Order National Standards recommended by the National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA). The NTOA Public Order Section Chair, Spencer Fomby, and the NTOA Legal Section Chair, Attorney Eric Daigle, will discuss why the standards were developed, what they are, and why your agency should adopt them. The webinar will review applicable legal, policy,
Protest Response and Anticipated NTOA Public Order Standards Webinar Continue Reading
The Complexities of Balancing Non-Lethal Force with First Amendment Rights An often-overlooked issue in the context of law enforcement is the concern over potential violations of individual’s First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and assembly. Police Departments around the Nation have faced widespread criticism and legal condemnation for their use of crowd control tactics in response to protests and large public gatherings. It is important to
From Pepper Spray to Public Perception Continue Reading
The recent case from the Seventh Circuit, United States v. Jones, raises important questions about Fourth Amendment rights and consent to search. The case involved an arrest warrant that led to a consensual search, ultimately revealing a hidden firearm. The issue at hand is whether a person who initially grants consent to a search retains the right to withdraw that consent during the search.
Consent to Search Granted and then Taken Away Continue Reading
In a recent opinion, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals established their position on the extent to which the First Amendment protections extend to recording and livestreaming officer civilian interactions. In Sharpe v. Winterville Police Department[1], the court considered the First Amendment right for a passenger to livestream their own traffic stop. After issuing this opinion, the Fourth Circuit became the second even-numbered circuit to
The best way to combat “custom” is through the implementation of clear policies, comprehensive training on those policies, and close and effective supervision. To this end, innovations in law enforcement training have benefited and will continue to benefit departments. Effective, comprehensive training, however, must maintain focus on legal objectives and “clearly established law.” The 2020–2021 U.S. legislative session resulted in an all-time high of
Balancing Training Innovations with Legal Standards Continue Reading
Ensure Supervisory Ideals are Practiced as Well as Preached The death of Tyre Nichols on January 7, 2023, is a tragedy that resulted from being severely beaten by five officers from the Memphis Police Department. The tragedy is compounded by the fact that it was entirely preventable. From the outside looking in, the question that should be asked is ‘were there any failures within
The Failure of Supervision: Is It The Cause of Officer Failures? Continue Reading
The Eleventh Circuit case of United States v. Sanchez involved a warrant for the seizure of a cell phone. The court cited Riley v. California, which held that a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy in the data contained in their cell phone, including the call log. The court in Riley declined to extend the incident to lawful custodial arrest exception to the
Always Follow the Suspect Holding Their Phone Continue Reading
Baude v. Leyshock from the Eighth Circuit has a lot of legal issues that we have discussed and a new term that we have not, which is “kettling.” First let’s start with what we have discussed before: our case today brings to question excessive use of force during a protest. As a reminder, a court evaluates the reasonableness of the force by examining the
“Kettling” and Keeping the Peace Continue Reading
In United States v. Ambriz-Villa, the Seventh Circuit Court dealt with a case involving a traffic stop and consent to search a suspect’s vehicle based on suspicion of drug trafficking. The suspect argued that their consent to search the vehicle was not voluntary. To evaluate the voluntariness of consent, the court considers various factors, such as the person’s age, intelligence, and education, whether they
United States v. Ambriz-Villa: The Right Way to Conduct a Traffic Stop Continue Reading