Louisville police to carry body cameras

Nice. Well Put.

Had Michael Brown been raised by good parents with good values who cared about right and wrong, he most likely would be here today. Deserved to die? I cannot answer that. But, his behavior put him in the ground.

Cameras can help and they can hurt. You got your fancy new body camera right? What happens when you aren't able to reach up and turn it on and you are still in a critical incident. Then they will say you didn't turn it on, on purpose.

You should brush up on KRS before making 1 more arrest. Deadly force is only permitted when the arrestee either threatened to use or did use force likely to cause death or serious physical injury. The courts have acquitted defendants claiming self defense in the past when officers failed to follow this basic rule of arrest. Remember that the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and completly convince a jury that the defendant was not in fear for his life due to the excessive force of a rogue officer. Choking some guy to death and letting him lie unaided on the ground for 7 minutes afterwards on video, as they did in New York, is going to make these claims even more accceptable to juries. Just use good common sense, remember the law and don't get on a power kick, and you should be fine. Otherwise you could be the next guy on CNN.

503.090 Use of physical force in law enforcement.

The use of physical force by a defendant upon another person is justifiable when the defendant, acting under official authority, is making or assisting in making an arrest, and he:

Believes that such force is necessary to effect the arrest;

Makes known the purpose of the arrest or believes that it is otherwise known or cannot reasonably be made known to the person to be arrested; and

Believes the arrest to be lawful.

The use of deadly physical force by a defendant upon another person is justifiable under subsection (1) only when:

The defendant, in effecting the arrest, is authorized to act as a peace officer; and

The arrest is for a felony involving the use or threatened use of physical force likely to cause death or serious physical injury; and

The defendant believes that the person to be arrested is likely to endanger human life unless apprehended without delay.

The use of physical force, including deadly physical force, by a defendant upon another person is justifiable when the defendant is preventing the escape of an arrested person and when the force could justifiably have been used to effect the arrest under which the person is in custody, except that a guard or other person authorized to act as a peace officer is justified in using any force, including deadly force, which he believes to be necessary to prevent the escape of a person from jail, prison, or other institution for the detention of persons charged with or convicted of a crime.

Effective:January 1, 1975

History: Created 1974 Ky. Acts ch.406, sec.34, effective January 1, 1975.