24
NEW JERSEY COPS ■ FEBRUARY 2015
LPP
Officer-involved shootings
and shooting protocols
THE
To shoot or not to shoot, that
is the question.
Sworn law enforcement officers have been granted the
extraordinary authority to use
force when necessary. The relevant statute states that “…the
use of force upon or toward the
STUART
person of another is justifiable
ALTERMAN when the actor is making or assisting in making an
arrest and the actor reasonably believes that such
force is immediately necessary to effect a lawful
arrest.” N.J.S.A. § 2C:3-7(a).
In determining to use force, the officer shall be guided by the principle that the degree of force employed in any situation should be
only that reasonably necessary. “Law enforcement officers should
exhaust all other reasonable means before resorting to the use of
force.” Attorney General's Use of Force Policy. Lethal force must be
exercised pursuant to the use of force continuum and only utilized
as a last resort. The use of force continuum essentially provides that
a police officer can raise the level of force used against that police officer to overcome the force and protect the police officer and/or
protect the property. Set forth by the “Attorney General's Use of Force
Policy,” issued in 1985 and revised in 2000, this continuum of actions
that officers may employ to control a situation escalates to the use of
deadly force.
The continuum begins with “Constructive Auth ܚ] K8