Police Brutality Cases

Police officers, as sworn upholders of the law, are expected to "protect and serve" their communities. However, police officers are also human beings, and the line between protecting their community and the apprehension of suspected criminals often crosses the line. The United States is famous for several notorious cases of police brutality long before the videotaped Rodney King beating sparked rioting in Los Angeles.

Police brutality is defined as the deliberate use of excessive force. Nearly every nation on Earth can be surveyed for case of police brutality. In the United States, numerous historical examples of social unrest, including the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s were met with outright police brutality. Some critics argue that the increased militarization of police departments in the wake of 9/11, especially involving the threat of terrorism, the so-called War on Drugs, and the equipping of departments with military-grade hardware, has increased police brutality in the United States.

Some studies suggest that, while numerous instances of police brutality are now being caught on camera, the vast majority of incidences continue to go unreported. Amnesty International also condemns the United States for having high rates of prison guard brutality. Many police brutality cases in the United States raise questions regarding law enforcement's treatment of African Americans, as most of these higher profile cases have African American victims at the hands of the police.