Police Use of Excessive Force

III Essay Assignment

You are required to research a police officer who was convicted by a jury for the excessive use of force. While the case of Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke and the killing of Laquan McDonald is an example of the type of case you may examine, you may not use that case for this assignment.

After selecting an appropriate case, write an essay that addresses the following components:

• Begin with an introduction discussing the expected standards of conduct within the criminal justice system.
• Provide a detailed overview of the officers use of force in the selected incident.
• Apply relevant criminological theory to explain the actions of both the officer and the victim.
• Identify any key decision-making points within the criminal justice process where issues of discrimination may have been considered or determined.
• Discuss how multiculturalism and diversity (e.g., race, religion, ethnicity) within society may influence offender punishment and broader system outcomes.

Requirements

• The essay must be at least five full pages in length, not including the title page or reference page.
• You must incorporate at least two of the scholarly sources I have attached, along with at least one additional scholarly source.
• The paper must adhere to APA formatting guidelines, including proper in-text citations and a complete reference page.

The final submission must reflect original academic writing in my own voice and comply fully with institutional academic integrity standards.

The paper should demonstrate authentic critical thinking, proper source integration, and accurate APA citation

Prior to submission, the essay will be reviewed using independent originality verification tools (e.g., Originality.ai, ZeroGPT, and Humbot 1.0) to ensure it reflects original student work and meets academic integrity expectations.

• Save the completed assignment as a Word document (.doc or .docx) and upload it to Blackboard.

Submission Checklist

Minimum of five full pages (double-spaced)

Title page and reference page in APA format

At least two attached scholarly sources used

At least one additional CSU Online Library source

Proper APA in-text citations and reference list

Writing reflects original academic work

Submitted as a Word document (.doc or .docx)