State of Policy Report

Insights about policy information from over 340 law enforcement professionals from 46 states can be found in PowerDMS' State of Policy report.

Point of Law: The Plain View Exception

A recent eighth circuit court of appeals case is very instructive on when you can seize an object without a warrant.

The Totality of Circumstances

People pass instant judgment on officers' actions on video without seeming to know anything about the investigation and analysis that necessarily includes policy, training, and the laws that govern police use of force.

DOJ Launches Investigation of MA Police Department

The investigation of the Worcester Police Department will include a comprehensive review of policies, procedures, trainings, investigatory files, and data.

FBI Announces Launch of National Use-Of-Force Data Collection

The FBI says that the goal of the collection is not to provide insight into specific use-of-force incidents, but instead to offer a comprehensive view of the circumstances, subjects, and officers involved in such incidents nationwide.

Time and a Half of What?

Most police officers and police employers know that the federal Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime pay at "time and one-half' for FLSA overtime hours worked. Less well known, however, are some of the FLSA rules governing how time and a half must be calculated. This has sometimes resulted in arithmetic mistakes which have deprived officers of wages to which they are entitled under the law.

Pennsylvania Officer Acquitted of Murder in Shooting of Unarmed Motorist

A Dauphin County jury acquitted Hummelstown, PA, Officer Lisa Mearkle of third-degree murder and voluntary and involuntary manslaughter charges in a shooting captured by a camera attached to her stun gun. More Here.

The International Association of Chiefs of Police

Point of Law: Using the Baton

Your agency's use-of-force policy needs to specify when the baton can be used, the legal justification for its use, and what to do afterward.