Police in the US use force on at least 300,000 people each year, injuring an estimated 100,000 of them, according to a groundbreaking data analysis on law enforcement encounters.
Mapping Police Violence, a non-profit research group that tracks killings by US police, launched a new database on Wednesday cataloging non-fatal incidents of police use of force, including stun guns, chemical sprays, K9 dog attacks, neck restraints, beanbags and baton strikes.
The database features incidents from 2017 through 2022, compiled from public records requests in every state. The findings, the group says, suggest that despite widespread protests against police brutality following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, overall use of force has remained steady since then – and in many jurisdictions, has increased.
If we remove the current police we have the room to reform them better. Also the FBI is less corrupt than current state level police.
Still corrupt. But less. The FBI can do it in the meantime.
But in reality we need police reform. We need to make them walk their beats again. They need to police the places they live, not neighboring counties. They should mostly not have guns. A good chunk of the force should be replaced with social workers. And qualitative immunity needs to go away permanently.
That’s something I can get behind.