Unity Group members said they are "highly concerned" about alleged excessive force used by two county deputies in a drug arrest of a black citizen.
Officials said, "The Unity Group is highly concerned about video that has surfaced which displays the unlawful apprehension of two community members. This incident went far beyond the basic procedural parameters defined in section 40-7-103 (Grounds for arrest by officer without warrant), or those which delineate the proper procedures for conducting a strip search in 40-7-119.
"This incident was a direct violation of constitutional and civil rights. In addition, Tennessee Annotated Code 40-7-121 specifies in section B: "No person shall be subjected to a body cavity search by a law enforcement officer or by another person acting under the direction, supervision or authority of a law enforcement officer unless the search is conducted pursuant to a search warrant issued in accordance with Rule 41 of the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure."
"Further, the Constitution of the United States clearly conveys in the 4th Amendment which prohibits unlawful Search and Seizures that, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated."
"There are also 14th Amendment concerns such as the lack of Due Process and Equal Protection under the law. In fact, just a month ago, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Campbell v. Mack (2019), issued a decision which denied qualified immunity to a law enforcement officer who engaged in unlawful search and seizure. Correspondingly, the International Association of Chiefs of Police has described use of force as the "amount of effort required by police to compel compliance by an unwilling subject" Likewise, the National Institute of Justice has stated, “Law enforcement officers should use only the amount of force necessary to mitigate an incident, make an arrest, or protect themselves or others from harm. The levels, or continuum, of force police use include basic verbal and physical restraint, less-lethal force, and lethal force."
"The Advancement Project in, "The Change We Need,” notes that 5 issues should be part of efforts to reform policing in our local communities. Accountability and Transparency because of lack of trust, systemic failures to adequately address community issues and accountability systems should be directed by the communities that police departments are supposed to protect and serve.
"Transparency includes, “Improved data collection and reporting practices are necessary to expose interactions with law enforcement and as a tool of accountability. There is no federal database tracking the number of people killed by law enforcement, use of force, or stop-and-frisks.” They note that, “Many local departments do not keep this important data either,” and that, “Departments should collect and release this data to the public annually.”
"The Advancement Project also summaries that other issues that should be a part of reforming policing includes banning: (2) excessive use of force; (3) discriminatory stop and frisk policies and practices; (4) broken windows policing; (5) and inadequate training.
"Similarly, in March 2019, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights began a new campaign, “New Era of Public Safety,” which is aimed at increasing “trust, fairness, justice, and mutual respect between police departments and the communities they serve.” The recommendations from this report include:
-
End “broken windows policing” and other models that emphasize quantity over quality.
-
Maintain and optimize a range of community partnerships.
-
Tailor policing strategies to meet the needs of specific neighborhoods.
-
Encourage communities to participate in the development and delivery of community policing training.
-
Ensure officers inform community members of their rights to refuse or revoke consent and to document it.
-
Develop stand-alone policies for fair and objective interactions with specific groups.
-
Collect, analyze, and publicly report data relating to bias-based policing.
"The unlawful use of excessive force by law enforcement officers can no longer be sustained in our community. The lack of accountability and transparency eviscerates public trust between law enforcement and the communities they are sworn to protect and serve. As the ACLU notes, “Police should use force only when unavoidable and to the extent necessary. Police training, policies and equipment should emphasize avoidance of force and de-escalation rather than condoning excessive use of force.” We will continue to work with the many stakeholders, community members, and city elected and appointed officials to address concerns about the use of force as a part of current landscape of policing.
"Further, we call for a full independent and impartial investigation that is transparent and accountable which includes the abstention of qualified immunity for any and all parties who acted outside of acceptable and lawful practices. We call for the HCSD to uphold the Standards of Conduct.
"We call for the legal and constitutional rights of all persons to be upheld. We call for a change in the culture of law enforcement and policing that recognizes this incident, like Ferguson, Baltimore and others that have surfaced across the nation, serves to necessitate a full and immediate change in the culture of policing."