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Wiki source code of AE 01 Use of Force

Last modified by Ryan Larkin on 2022/03/01 17:09
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1 **Washington County Sheriff's Office**
2
3 **ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION**
4
5 Policy Manual
6
7
8 Volume:
9
10 Use of Force
11
12 Chapter:
13
14 AE 01
15
16 Use of Force
17
18
19 Replaces and/or Supersedes:
20
21 PJ 40, PJ 41, PJ 42, PJ 44a, PJ 44b, PZ 201, AE 01 08/31/2010
22
23 Published:
24
25 08/31/2009
26
27 Review Date:
28
29 03/01/2022
30
31
32 Sheriff Nate Brooksby
33
34 Undersheriff Barry Golding
35
36
37 **__TABLE OF CONTENTS__**
38
39 AE 01_101 Definitions
40
41 AE 01_102 References
42
43 AE 01_103 General
44
45 AE 01_104 Appropriate Level and Form of Force
46
47 AE 01_105 Use of Weapons and Control Devices
48
49 AE 01_106 Deadly Force
50
51 AE 01_107 Animals
52
53 AE 01_108 Medical Follow-up
54
55 AE 01_109 Justification and Documentation
56
57 AE 01_110 Verbal Warnings
58
59 AE 01_111 Warning Shots
60
61 AE 01_112 Video Recording
62
63 AE 01_113 Sample Force Decision Wheel
64
65
66 **AE 01_101 __DEFINITIONS__**
67
68 1. WCSO: Washington County Sheriff's Office
69 1. PCF: Purgatory Correctional Facility
70 1. Force: Physical or mechanical exertion to overcome or restrain an individual against his/her will.
71 1. Deadly Force (a.k.a. Lethal Force): Any force that is reasonably likely to cause death or serious bodily injury.
72 1. Force Decision Wheel: A guide for the application of force that provides staff an array of force options to control or subdue prisoners. The force wheel does not require incremental steps. Instead, it guides the level of force to be appropriate and specific to the need for force to be used.
73 1. Restraint Device: Any device used to secure or control the hands, arms, feet, legs, head, or torso of a prisoner.
74
75 **AE 01_102 __REFERENCES__**
76
77 1. Utah Counties Insurance Pool:
78 11. ML-IV.A.1.
79
80 **AE 01_103 __GENERAL__**
81
82 1. Policy:
83 11. Force shall be used in a reasonable manner consistent with state and federal laws.
84 11. The use of force is authorized for the purposes of:
85 111. Self-defense;
86 111. Protection of others;
87 111. Preventing escapes;
88 111. Restoring and maintaining order and discipline;
89 111. Overcoming resistance to lawful orders; and
90 111. Protection of property.
91 11. Officers shall not use force:
92 111. As a punishment;
93 111. In a purposeless, malicious, or sadistic manner; or
94 111. For the very purpose of causing harm.
95 1. Rationale:
96 11. The constitutions and laws of the United States and State of Utah protect individuals from excessive and unreasonable use of force. Use of force that exceeds the allowances of law and/or policy may subject WCSO to civil liability and its officials to civil and/or criminal sanctions.
97 11. Situations often occur which require the use, or threatened use, of force to protect persons, protect property, to respond to disturbances, to respond to escape attempts, and/or respond to physical resistance to the lawful orders of WCSO staff. Situations requiring the use of force may not always provide staff with adequate time to fully consider the benefits and drawbacks of all possible options. Comprehensive directives and training will help to ensure better preparation of staff to make rational judgments under circumstances that may require the use of force. Policies and procedures should assist officials to identify circumstances that may require the use of force and the formulation of strategies and options in advance of the crisis.
98 11. Use of force in violation of the limitations herein may violate the constitutional rights of the individual against whom the force is used.
99
100 **AE 01_104 __APPROPRIATE LEVEL AND FORM OF FORCE__**
101
102 1. Policy:
103 11. Staff shall use the lowest level of force necessary to accomplish the lawful intentions of the use of force.
104 1. Rationale:
105 11. Use of force in excess of the lowest level of force necessary to accomplish the lawful intentions of the force could result in an increase in liability for the individual officer and/or the WCSO.
106 1. Procedure:
107 11. WCSO staff are trained to be guided by the Force Decision Wheel in order to make appropriate decisions regarding the level of force to be used.
108 11. The options available by the Force Decision Wheel should be specific to the training of the individual officer.
109
110 **AE 01_105 __USE OF WEAPONS AND CONTROL DEVICES__**
111
112 1. Policy:
113 11. Officers should include all weapons and control devices that they have received training for in their individualized Force Decision Wheel.
114 11. Officers should not ordinarily use weapons and control devices that they have not received training on.
115
116 **AE 01_106 __DEADLY FORCE__**
117
118 1. Policy:
119 11. Deadly force shall be limited to:
120 111. Self-defense or defense of a third party when the officer reasonably believes that deadly force is necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury;
121 111. Preventing an escape from custody when the officer reasonably believes that deadly force is necessary to prevent escape and the officer has probable cause to believe that the prisoner poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officer or to a third party if apprehension is delayed; or
122 111. As detailed in the following section: (% class="marker" %)AE 01_107 Animals(%%).
123 1. Rationale:
124 11. Deadly force is such an extreme action that the justification for its use is narrowly limited to situations in which the officer reasonably believes that it is necessary to protect himself or another's life.
125
126 **AE 01_107 __ANIMALS__**
127
128 1. Policy:
129 11. Officers may use deadly force to destroy an animal when the animal:
130 111. Presents a threat to public safety;
131 111. Is seriously injured (humane action).
132 11. Deadly force to destroy an animal shall only be used when the officer reasonably believes that deadly force can be used without causing harm to the officer or others.
133 11. When destroying an animal as a humane action, the officer shall use the safest means available at the time of need. Undue delay may be considered inhumane.
134
135 **AE 01_108 __MEDICAL FOLLOW-UP__**
136
137 1. Policy:
138 11. Following the use of force, any person against whom physical force was employed should be given an opportunity for a medical examination and, if needed, medical treatment in a timely manner.
139 1. Rationale:
140 11. Timely treatment of serious medical needs is constitutionally required for all individuals. The medical examination shall be provided for involved persons as soon as reasonably feasible following a use of force action to:
141 111. Identify obvious injuries requiring treatment;
142 111. Discover and treat undetected injuries;
143 111. Document the absence of injuries; and
144 111. Provide medical documentation to protect staff members from false or exaggerated claims of injury.
145
146 **AE 01_109 __JUSTIFICATION AND DOCUMENTATION__**
147
148 1. Policy:
149 11. Documentation in the Spillman computer system shall be completed for:
150 111. Use of force events;
151 111. Use of restraint devices in conjunction with a use of force event; and
152 111. Any use of the following restraint devices:
153 1111. Handcuff mitts;
154 1111. Restraint chair;
155 1111. Restraint board.
156 1. Rationale:
157 11. Events, actions, or other information which are not documented may result in greater difficulty in defending the proper use of force. Documentation is essential to preserve the following for future criminal, civil, or administrative proceedings:
158 111. Justification for the use of force or restraints;
159 111. What officials knew at the time;
160 111. How the force and/or restraints were employed;
161 111. What efforts were made to achieve compliance, maintain discipline, or assert control prior to the use of physical force or restraint devices;
162 111. What, if any, injuries resulted to those involved;
163 111. The actions of the those involved; and
164 111. Other information necessary for criminal complaints and prosecution, disciplinary proceedings, and/or defense of civil litigation.
165 1. Procedure:
166 11. The justification of force shall be guided by the components related to the following five criteria:
167 111. The threat reasonably perceived by staff involved;
168 111. The need for force;
169 111. The relationship between the need for force and the amount of force used;
170 111. Any efforts that were made to temper the severity of a forceful response;
171 111. The extent of any injuries suffered by the non-officer person(s) involved.
172 11. Documentation in use of force reports shall include, at a minimum, detailed information related to the above five criteria.
173
174 **AE 01_110 __VERBAL WARNINGS__**
175
176 1. Policy:
177 11. Verbal warnings are recommended in order to help temper the circumstances of a situation.
178 11. It is understood that verbal warnings may not be possible and/or appropriate in all situations.
179 11. The use of verbal warnings shall be at the discretion of the individual officer.
180
181 **AE 01_111 __WARNING SHOTS__**
182
183 1. Policy:
184 11. Warning shots should not be used.
185
186 **AE 01_112 __VIDEO RECORDING__**
187
188 1. Policy:
189 11. All use of force situations should be video recorded whenever possible.
190
191 **AE 01_113 __SAMPLE FORCE DECISION WHEEL__**
192
193 Attached
194
195 [[image:Use of Force Wheel.png||height="420" width="579"]]