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49 J. Urb. L. 565 (1971-1972)
Deadly Weapons in the Hands of Police Officers, on Duty and off Duty

handle is hein.journals/udetmr49 and id is 577 raw text is: Deadly Weapons In The Hands Of Police Officers, On Duty And Off Duty JAY GERALD SAFER* This memorandum, prepared at the request of the American Civil Liberties Union as an aid to its study of police practices in relation to the community at large, examines two main questions. First, in what circumstances may police officers properly resort to the use of deadly force in the performance of their duties? Second, should police officers not on active duty be forbidden to bear deadly weapons? CONCLUSIONS 1. Statutes should restrict police use of deadly force to situations in which a peace officer reasonably believes it to be necessary (i) as a defensive measure or (ii) as a means of either effecting an arrest or forestalling an escape when speedy police action is needed to safeguard others against serious physical injury or death at the hands of the es- caper. 2. Forbidding off-duty policemen to bear weapons is not feasible in light of current social circumstances. Lessening the danger of purpose- ful or negligent misuse of firearms (the policeman's chief weapon) must be sought by encouraging vigilant personnel practices and professional- ized directives, rather than by probably finsuccessful advocacy of total disarmament. STATEMENT OF REASONS 1. Use of Deadly Force by Police Use of deadly force-in modern times involving the discharge of firearms in most instances-is no novelty in police administration. Of course policemen have no license to kill or wound. They are subject to the usual constraints of criminal law or tort liability when they act beyond the scope of their duties, whether or not they be at the time of their actions in uniform or in purported discharge of official functions.' In past generations, however, the Common Law of England, which in this respect was absorbed in America, tolerated police officers' resort to deadly force when attempting to apprehend a suspected felon, though * B.A. Vanderbilt University, 1968; J.D. Columbia University, 1971. 1. Rummel, The Right of Law Enforcement Officers to Use Deadly Force to Effect an Arrest, 14 N.Y. LAW FORUM 749, 754 (1968).