Fears for Americans as police brutality reaches record levels
Frightening statistics reveal nearly one in three people who have been killed by U.S. police officers since 2015 were trying to flee.
This number is rising, with police brutality now reaching record levels.
In the seven years since 2015, 2500 people have lost their lives when authorities fatally shot or use lethal force against them as they tried to get away.
This averages out to around one killing a day of someone running or trying to escape.
In 2022 alone, officers have killed 633 people, including 202 who were fleeing.
“The only person left to tell the story is the cop.”
Adante Pointer, a civil rights lawyer SPEAKING TO THE GUARDIAN
Research shows many of these incidents begin at traffic stops where there was no indication of crimes prompting police contact.
Hunted down and confronted – some people were shot in the back while running and others were just passengers in vehicles.
It’s Black Americans who are disproportionately affected, making up 32 per cent of all individuals killed by police while fleeing.
It’s a concerning trend and one that is growing.
What’s even more worrying is the lack of accountability
But with police brutality reaching record levels, data tells us prosecution remains rare.
Of the 2500 people killed while fleeing, only 50, or 2 per cent, have faced criminal charges.
Experts believe this is a clear indication of how the U.S. justice system favours officers over civilians.
They warn it also exposes fundamental flaws in police departments.
Laws have long protected police officers.
In 1985, the Supreme Court ruled officers can use lethal force against a fleeing person if they reasonably believed the person was an imminent threat.
They later added that an officer’s ‘state of mind’ and ‘fear’ in the moment is also a relevant factor.
The fact is us police officers kill more people in a week than many countries do in years.
These numbers haven’t budged since the start of the Black Lives Matter movement, in fact they’re only rising.
