Suspect and Officer Injuries Associated With Modern Police Use of Force

Study Objectives

Use of force (UOF) by police officers can result in injuries or fatalities in suspects and officers. Patterns of police force utilization have been changing due to introduction of new technologies, yet the risk of significant injuries associated with different force modalities has not been well defined. We sought to define modern UOF patterns and to determine the likelihood of significant injury seen with different force modalities.

Methods

A retrospective study of all UOF incidents was conducted at two police agencies. Police personnel provided details from mandatory investigations conducted after each UOF, while physicians reviewed police and medical records to determine injury severity using a priori criteria. Moderate and Severe Injuries were grouped as “significant.”

Results

Over a one-year period force was used in 503 cases against 507 suspects. UOF patterns included unarmed physical force (86.1%), conducted electrical weapons /TASERs (59.6%), chemical sprays (6.4%), canines (3.6%), impact weapons (1.8%), specialty munitions (1.6%), firearms (0.4%), and other (1.8%). Of 507 suspects, 241 (47.5%) sustained some injury; 21 (4.1%) sustained significant injuries. Of 797 officers utilizing force, 81 (10.1%) sustained some injury; 5 (0.6%) sustained significant injuries. Significant injuries included bony fractures and a variety of soft tissue injuries. These were most commonly seen with firearm use (50%; 95% CI 1.3 - 98.7) and canine deployment (44%; CI 21.5 - 69.3), and least commonly with unarmed physical force (2.8%; CI 1.4 - 4.8) and TASER use (0.3%; CI 0.01 - 1.8).

Conclusions

Police commonly rely on unarmed physical force and TASERS as force modalities in modern practice. UOF commonly results in minor injuries. Significant injuries are uncommon, and associated with firearm and canine use.