If you are injured during a police action and you do not receive medical attention right away, that’s also a violation of your constitutional rights.
The people of Utah are mobilizing against police brutality. The massive Black Lives Matter protests last year played an important part in bringing police misconduct issues under scrutiny. As a result, more and more Utah residents were emboldened to seek justice when they were faced with police abuse. However, you cannot fight alone. The system is too powerful and you’ll need a knowledgeable ally. If you were a victim of police misconduct, look up the best police brutality lawyers in Utah and let them help fight for your rights.
Police brutality in its many forms is a violation of your constitutional rights. The fact that someone carries a badge doesn’t give them the right to trample on your rights, nor does it place them above the law. Police brutality, also defined as the use of excessive or unnecessary force, is illegal and those responsible should answer for their actions in a court of law.
If you were physically or verbally abused in the course of a police action, you are entitled to file a civil complaint against the officers involved. Racial slurs or the use of derogatory terms is reason enough to file a complaint. Words can hurt just as much as a baton over your head, especially if the incident occurred in a public place, causing you to be humiliated.
As for physical violence, there’s a very fine line between the type of force police agents are allowed to use and what is illegal.
The use of force in the course of their duty is strictly regulated, but law enforcement agents are allowed to make decisions based on their feelings in the heat of the moment. This makes such cases extremely difficult and you’ll need a Salt Lake City police brutality lawyer with many years of experience to prove the police used excessive force against you.
According to the law, police officers are allowed to use a reasonable amount of force if they have reason to fear for their lives or for the safety of others. Your lawyers will have to talk to eyewitnesses and review body cam recordings or videos recorded by eyewitnesses to prove that you were not threatening the officers in any way, so the use of violence was unnecessary.
If you are injured during a police action and you do not receive medical attention right away, that’s also a violation of your constitutional rights. If, for instance, you’re thrown in a cell and left there to wallow in pain until someone can be bothered to call a doctor, that’s police abuse and a violation of the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. Unnecessary strip searches are also a form of abuse while in custody, as is sexual harassment or rape.
Even if you are guilty of some crime, you still have constitutional rights and a skilled criminal defense attorney can help you. If you were illegally stopped and searched, that is a violation of the Fourth Amendment. Also, any charges resulting from an illegal seizure or search can be invalidated. Evidence that was illegally obtained cannot be used in court and your lawyer might have the charges against you dismissed.
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