THE UNJUSTIFIABLE VIOLENCE AGAINST POLICE OFFICERS: AN ACT THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED FOR A SECURED A STATE

BY CSP JOAN M.S BULL ESQ

Just few months ago, a Sgt, Mohamed Lamin was transferred from Waterloo Police Station to Magburaka Police. He was assigned a matter for investigation involving cattle and growing crops for investigation. During the course of investigation, the mounted tension between the two factions led him to make an invite which was never honoured. Warrant of arrest was ordered for the suspects and this poor officer went with other officers in the village to effect the arrest. They were attacked by the villagers and this officer was captured, killed and burnt in the village. To date, the police have been the only entity fighting their battles. No press release from Civil Society Organisations, no community mobilisation and support to the family of the late officer, no counselling and support and nobody seems to care. The villagers deserted the village and the rest they say is history. Just a month ago, a group of bike riders attacked and beat up several police officers in the Eastern part of Freetown. Before other officers could mobilise to rescue the affected officers and secure arrest, the people around the community had intervened and helped the bike riders to disappear.

Should we sit down and do nothing until we are directly affected by these unfortunate incidents? What are we doing to educate the public with regards their roles in helping the police during their course of duties? How many times have we been so guilty of accusing the police immediately an incident occurred due to our bad perception about the police? I will never forget when a teacher advised me strongly against joining the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) as, according to him, officers do not make heaven. Few months later, I was his saviour when he was violently attacked and wrongly accused during an issue with his relatives. Had I listened to him rather than my conviction, I wonder what would have become of his matter.

Make no mistake; there are officers who have sworn to protect the public and doing just what they have sworn to do. It is disheartening that the bad actions of few members of the SLP, whom you find in every institution, have created a negative perception on the minds of people. Even people who have never had bitter experience with the police are sometmes the first to point out the injustice of the police. In Sierra Leone, people have more respect for other forces than the police even though dangers meted out can be incomparable. I can still recall and with the greatest respect to my sister forces when an action was perpetrated by a member of a sister force. People still tag the action as police brutality. Even Civil society activists strenuously termed their Press Release as Security Brutality. This is very sad. My personal experience in court has been no better on the way the police officers are treated. The respect some clients give to other court officials can be incomparable to ones given to police prosecutors. I have witnessed on several occasions when the victims that police officers support and protect from the inception of an investigation to prosecution can just ignore a prosecutor and indicate their disposition to settle a criminal matter in court without recourse to the prosecutor who was fighting for them. Most times, I would have to intervene by warning them that the prosecutors were handling a state case though they served as victims and it did not lie on them to direct the course of the prosecutions. I have also realised over the years that the police can be so easy to blame because none comes in their defence. I went to a court where police officers have been working assiduously to ensure that their cases are proceeded with under strict conditions. I saw a notice pasted by a renowned NGO in this country blaming the police prosecutors for the delay in court matters. I was not only angry but dumbfounded that I had to meet the head of the organization who strenuously tried to defend their position without any proper or sufficient evidence. Imagine a court in which the police officers are always available at 7:45am with probably only a few Magistrates available and definitely no defence counsel. Police prosecutors in Sierra Leone, like all prosecutors, have the duties of preparing their cases, look out for witnesses, on several occasions pay transportation for witnesses, prepare court processes and also handle the security situations in courts. This NGO representative could not avert his mind to any of these responsibilities by the police officers but blamed the police prosecutors for the delay in court when most of the delays could not be divorced from the non-attendance of defence counsel, the unavailability of witnesses even when coaxed by prosecutors due probably to settlement of cases. How many times have police investigators been in court from 8am to 4pm just to give evidence in a matter that was not mentioned at an early time?

The violence and brutality perpetrated on police officers during the course of their duties should be addressed if our society needs the protection they deserve. No police officer signs up to join the force to be embarrassed, harmed or killed during the course of his/her duties. However, it is sad that the public is always ever happy to see officers being molested and harmed in their line of duties. How many times have we not called the police to attention when there is a seeming violence and/or violation of law and order in the country and a given community? A typical example is the nuisance and damages caused by bike riders in the street. The lawlessness of bike riders accounts for most of the death and serious injuries emanating from reckless and careless driving in Sierra Leone. A call for action led to a ban on bike riders using the Central Business District in Freetown. Even after the ban, bike riders lawlessly and defiantly plied. The worst you can see is when the police effect arrest and these arrests are resisted. The citizens have on several occasions helped these riders resist arrest by harming the officers and supporting these riders against the officers in the course of their duties.

The constant spate of attacks raises question as to what is the police institution doing to protect its officers from harm. Every institution has the right and responsibility to protect its workers and personnel against harm or unjust treatment. We have the duty as an institution to be proactive and not only reactive. Effecting an arrest and the eventual prosecution for harm against police officers reactionary measures. The police must be proactive to ensure it protect its institution and its personnel and I am thankful for a friend in the police force in Trinidad who asked me whether we have a Defence Mechanism to protect our police and I sure will start with this as my suggestion to the management of the Sierra Leone Police.

THE NEED FOR A TRAINING ON DEFENCE MECHANISM, TECHNIQUES AND STRATEGIES.

The constant attacks on police officers inform that police officers in Sierra Leone need training to deal with today’s violence and aggressive behaviour.  The recent posted video on social media where a police officer was whisked and dragged by a civilian is an implication that the police officers in Sierra Leone lacks necessary techniques and skills to ward off attacks during their course of duties. Many other videos and graphic photos speak to this fact. The disrespect meted out against officer can be so unbearable. As such, the promotion of self defence mechanisms, techniques and strategies could not have come at a better time. These are vital components of officer survival training[1]. In order to be prepared for society’s dangerous and unpredictable attacks, police officers need to be trained on how they can protect themselves from both armed and unarmed encounters. Physical assaults are an inherent problem of society. One strategy in order to prevent violence is to strengthen the capacities to defend oneself (Renden, Landman et al. 2015), which is the scope of various self defence programs and systems.  Research has shown that more training experience results in better performance ((Renden, Landman et al. 2015). Self Defence and personal protection trainings are needed to ensure that officers are able to handle aggressive behaviours. Management of the SLP should get experts to train officers’ proactive and practical Self Defence training including strategies for aggressive behaviour and management techniques. These trainings should include exceptional control measures, workplace emergency training, self-defence strategies, and confidential integration[2].

The investigation on the “effects of reflex-based self-defence training on police performance in simulated high-pressure arrest situations”[3] by Peter G. Rendon indicates that police officers who received the above training including but not limited to self-defence skills and control trainings in concert with regular trainings, display improved performance after the reflex-based training, while there was no such effect witnessed by the regular police training. The investigation reveals that there are lots of advantages to be observed when officers undertake trainings on defence mechanisms. Trainings can lead to improved performance that averts itself to “better communication, situational awareness (scanning area, alertness), assertiveness, resolution, proportionality, control and converting primary responses into tactical movements”[4]. The investigations also reveal that officers, who receive the training to handle complete violent situations and not just physical skills, do not only learn to use their actions before physical contact for de-escalation but also in anticipation of possible attacks. Furthermore, they learned to respond against attacks with skills based on the trainings they receive. The trainings officers receive at the Sierra Leone Peace Keeping and Law Enforcement Academy (SILEA) during recruitment are basic fitness trainings. Apart from the trainings received for Peace Keeping Deployment, there are no follow up trainings on special skills to handle violent attacks, aggressive behaviour, resistance during arrests, repelling physical attacks, stress management etc. Added to this, our code of conduct requires officers to only use proportional force in handling violent situations and even in effecting arrest, the arrest should be performed with lesser and minimal damage to officer, colleagues and/or suspect.

Renden, Landman, Savelsburgh and Oudegans (2016) conducted an investigation on whether officers with additional martial arts training experience do perform better in effecting arrest and self-defence scenarios under low and high anxiety. They realise that officers with additional experience (also those who trained once a week) performed better under high anxiety than officers with no additional experience. Their study also reveals that officers were better able to maintain performance under high anxiety than officers who just rely on regular police trainings. The need for constant trainings should not be underestimated by law enforcement organisations especially when duties performed by personnel cannot only be risky but varied and far reaching. Acosta et al (2016) describes some operational tactical procedures (OTP) in a study aimed to improve policing and reduce officer injuries resulting from interventions in controversial or violent situations, such as problematic arrests. The result discloses that The OTP-based training substantially reduced officer who sought sick leaves and the reduction in the level of sick leaves cannot be ascribed to a reduction in criminal act but a reduction in police physical interventions in problematic arrests. Moreover, in “Effectiveness of multilateral training didactic method on physical and mental wellbeing in law enforcement” Moro et al (2019) considers the appropriateness of even including psychological pressure in the simulations during trainings and workout. They believe that this would create an environment where law enforcement officers can achieve greater personal self-esteem that leads to positive effect on mental and physical wellbeing. Several other studies and investigations have been able to reveal the essence of additional trainings for the physical, mental and social wellbeing of police for better service delivery. We will never want the SLP  to resort to a puppet institution where its personnel are scared of their lives and the maintenance of their dignity by the level of attacks on them for a course they have taken oath to do. We do expect violence in a society where people exist due to varied dispositions. Therefore, establishing ways to curb crimes and empowering personalities at the helm of curbing criminal activities should be considered paramount.

THE ROLE OF THE LOCAL UNIT COMMANDERS AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS DEPARTMENT IN BRIDGING GAPS BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE COMMUNITY

Criminologists believe that there has always been a social contract between the police and the community/society in policing. Individuals sacrifice some individual freedom to ensure that the police does their work as long as the work done is effected with fairness and unbiased disposition. This has led to the formation of the Community Relations Department in various jurisdictions including the Sierra Leone Police. The Department has a lot to do in securing trust and ensuring that the community understands the role of the police and their need for support and security of the community. Over the years, I have realised that the work of the Community Relations Department can sometimes be diverted to other duties, making the performance of their actual duties a daunting task. In most communities in Sierra Leone, people view the police as an obstacle, separating them from their economic and physical amenities, than viewing them as a protection to their society. Poverty, illiteracy and even lack of access to resources have led people to find illegal means for what they need. Police presence increases to fight crime, but due to decades of abuse, people often mistrust police and view them as oppressors rather than protectors. Distrust in the police discourages members of the community from reporting criminal behaviour which will be bad for the community. The social contract, and the police-community relationship, is most times broken. My engagement with people physically and through their write ups on social media has enabled me to understand that people do have extensive sympathy for criminals. People feel intense sympathy for criminals with the mind-set that desperate circumstances have basically forced them to do bad things. I once read in a friend’s page that “…having empathy for someone doesn’t mean you condone their actions. In fact, I’d say it’s often quite a healthy thing to feel. As others have said, if you feel empathy for them because you understand that criminals are not always in control of the circumstances that led them to the crime, then there’s nothing wrong with that. It's not screwed up at all and in no way makes you a bad person. The vast, majority of people aren't born with evil desires to make other people unhappy for no reason, despite how the media portrays villains. Everyone has a reason for doing what they did, even if it leads to them getting arrested”. This and many other engagements have enabled me to view criminal actions and people with a balanced lens including the relevance of engagement with the public for acceptable behaviours.

In order to establish and preserve the acceptability of policing in the community, police personnel must strive to be courteous, fair, and respectful when dispensing their duties. The approval of the community towards the operatives of the police helps build and maintain community trust and confidence. The legitimacy of the actions of police officers and the institution they represent are upheld by the value they place on the rights of all individuals and the observation of the rule of law. The social media can be a powerful tool in publicizing the actions of the police. Negative incidents between the police and members of the public and/or perceived violation of their rights can precipitate disharmony and loss of trust on the police by members of the public. Distrust of the police, due to perceive injustice among members of the community and or dissatisfaction in the outcome of police interventions, often serves to undermine police legitimacy and community policing initiatives with catastrophic effects, as the one that precipitates this write up. As such, police officers must be seen to promote positive perception by their behaviour which can include but not limited to the treatment of everyone with respect, acting with fairness etc. Most of the times, an individual or group of individuals cooperate with law enforcement when they perceive fairness in the process rather than the outcome of an event[5].

The Community Relations Department together with the Local Unit Commander have a major role to play in community engagement. Engagement with the public is vital in helping them understand the operatives of the institution and also understanding shared concerns for future collaboration and coordination. Where ignorance is bliss, it is folly to be wise. Several contemporary law enforcement agencies interface with the public to foster public trust and promote confidence between the police and the public. Meet and greet can be organised, including social activities like sport to build and promote healthy relationships between the police and the public and to educate the public on the role of the police and their obligation in supporting security. A face to face meeting creates a forum for deeper engagement and the establishment of trust including adequate response to questions and understanding fears and anxieties of the public to be able to address them[6].

 RE-EVALUATION OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Finally, the Executive Management Board of the Sierra Leone Police should to set up robust devoted committee for the re-evaluation of the institutions’ policies and procedures to be in tandem with contemporary issues. We still conduct our operations within the legal provisions of an act enacted in 1964. The Sierra Leone Police has experience vast improvement since that date. The essence of reviewing laws and policies can be rooted in the fact that effective policy and procedure superintends drafting and keeping documents in a stock of library which even personnel do not know about. The social media video in which the police officer was being whisked and dragged by a civilian in front of other police officers who were either scared to act or just standing as bystander reveals the fact that officers do not even know the operating standards in times of distress. The details in making a policy adapts to changes in any institution can be done in regular reviews ad revisions. A vital policy that must be evaluated is the police community engagement policy. The Community Relations Department should work with management to establish effective policy that will regulate community engagement which will be effective in accomplishing the the goals of building trust, transparency and accountability. Engagement with stakeholders in evaluating this policy should be a must as that will foster greater trust in the public and result in policy that community leaders and personnel have prepared for a common good.

CONCLUSION

The Sierra Leone Police is a vital component in the security of the state. Police officers have now been seen as constant target of attacks during the conduct of their duties. Management of the Sierra Leone Police needs to put in robust measures for self defence mechanism training for a greater output. There is high need for the Community Relations Department and the Local Unit Commanders to work with the community to establish trust and facilitate education through social gatherings on the roles, duties and responsibilities of the police including understanding grievances of the community and striving to address them. Finally a review of our policies must not be overlooked if we need an institution that has to be in tandem with contemporary institutions and also addressing the needs of its personnel for effective service delivery.

REFERENCES

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2.      Carlos Vera Jiménez , Francisco Fernandez , Jesus Ayuso, And Jose Antonio Lorente Acosta 2020 “Evaluation of the police operational tactical procedures for reducing officer injuries resulting from physical interventions in problematic arrests. The case of the municipal police of Cádiz (Spain) Jose”

3.      Effectiveness of multilateral training didactic method on physical and mental wellbeing in law enforcement” Moro et al (2019)

4.      Mario Staller 2015 “Bridging the Gap: Investigating Effectiveness in Self-Defence Conference”https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278028617_Bridging_the_Gap_Investigating_Effectiveness_in_Self-Defence

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6.      Mesloh C. Less lethal weapon effectiveness, use of force, and suspect and officer injuries: a five-year analysis. A report to the National Institute of Justice [Internet]. Fort Myers: Florida Gulf Coast University; 2008 [cited 2019 Aug 7]. Available from: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/ grants/224081.pdf

7.      Nieuwenhuys A, Caljouw SR, Leijsen MR, Schmeits BAJ, Oudejans RRD. Quantifying police officers’ arrest and self-defence skills; Does performance decrease under pressure? Ergonomics. 2009;52(12):1460–8. https://doi.org/10. 1080/00140130903287981

8.      Police arrest and self-defence skills: Performance under anxiety of officers with and without additional experience in martial arts.

9. Peter G. Renden, Geert J.P Savelsbergh, Raoul R.D Oudejans February 2015 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272184759_Police_arrest_and_self-defence_skills_Performance_under_anxiety_of_officers_with_and_without_additional_experience_in_martial_arts

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 11. Renden, P. G., A. Landman, S. F. Geerts, S. E. M. Jansen, G. S. Faber, G. J. P. Savelsbergh, and R. R. D. Oudejans. 2014. “Effects of Anxiety on the Execution of Police Arrest and Self-defence Skills.” Anxiety, Stress, & Coping 27: 100–112. doi:10.1080/10615806.2013.810213. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ?], [Google Scholar]

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