The Philadelphia Police Department Has A History Of Sexual Harassment
One type of police harassment involves sexual harassment. Unfortunately, the Philadelphia Police Department has a history of sexual harassment cases. Police harassment can include police officers sexually harassing suspects or defendants, but it can also include police officers harassing other police officers. In 2017, the city of Philadelphia paid out $1.25 million to settle sexual harassment claims against several of its officers.
One woman claims that a veteran police officer sexually assaulted her and engaged in pervasive sexual harassment. Over the past 10 years, the city of Philadelphia has paid $222,000 to resolve five different sexual harassment lawsuits involving police officers. Another woman had accused a veteran police officer of forcing her to engage in a sex act in his police car in 2006. The department says it is taking allegations of sexual harassment seriously. However, the Philadelphia Police Department has a history of not doing anything to combat rampant harassment by its officers.
Hiring A Civil Rights Attorney
Does Police Harassment Impact My Criminal Case
If you have been accused of a crime, you may have questions about whether or not allegations of police harassment will impact the outcome of that case. It is certainly true that your criminal defense attorney will spring into action as soon as possible to collect all possible defenses to any criminal allegations, and it includes situations in which the police have violated your rights or harassed you. This can help to bolster the defense of your case if the police harassment included illegal actions, such as illegal searches and seizures.
Given that this could influence your criminal case in a few ways, find an attorney who is experienced both in general defense for your criminal charges as well as someone who knows how to handle situations when officers have crossed the line into harassment.
The civil claim that could be filed against an officer or officers for harassment is separate from your criminal charge, however. If your lawyer believes that you have a claim for police harassment, make sure they have the right experience managing both types of claims so that you have the best chance of success on the civil and criminal side.
Recommended Reading: Can I Be A Police Officer At 18
Collecting Evidence: Information To Investigate And Document
Ask the complainant about, and query all relevant databases for, information on the suspect. Search under known aliases as well. Databases queried should include Canadian Police Information Centre , Canadian Firearms Registration Online ,Footnote 99 Special Interest Police , Firearms Interest Police , local and provincial information systems, and available probation information sources /Level II). Where applicable, immigration and refugee authorities may have relevant information. In some cases, consider contacting prison institutions for further information on the conduct of the suspect, or relevant information relating to the complainant. These queries should include searches for criminal records, prior contact with police and contact with police in communities where the suspect may have previously lived. If the criminal record indicates similar charges, determine the identity of the victims in those cases and the nature of their relationship with the accused.Footnote 100 These queries should cover the following:
In cases of former intimates involving children, include any history of involvement with child protection authorities.
Determine possession of or interest in weapons or access to weapons . Determine the following, for example:
Police Compensation Payouts In The Uk
If you had sufficient evidence to make a successful claim against the police, compensation could fall under two heads of claim. The payment that is calculated and awarded to you for psychological and physical harm falls under the head of claim known as general damages. Legal professionals are responsible for calculating an amount that is deemed appropriate for the level of pain and suffering your injuries have caused you.
The severity of your injuries is just one of the factors that needs to be considered before accurate calculations can be made. There are a few different resources that can be used to assist those making the relevant calculations. One of these resources is a helpful publication that contains figures relating to various injuries. Its called the Judicial College Guidelines . It was updated last in April of 2022. The figures within are based on amounts awarded in past court cases.
However, if you were to claim for police malpractice, you may receive different than the amounts shown. Your own unique circumstances will affect the value of your claim. Get in touch today for a bespoke valuation of your settlement.
| Reason for Compensation |
|---|
You May Like: How To Go To Police Academy For Free
The National Flagging System For High
Officers who have been investigating an offender who they believe is at high risk of committing serious violent or sexually violent crimes should consider contacting their provincial or territorial NFS Coordinator in order to obtain information about the offender and/or to suggest the offender be added to the National Flagging System for High-Risk Offenders. This system identifies the highest risk violent and sexually violent offenders nationally who are considered prime candidates for Dangerous and Long-term Offender applications. In addition, the system provides for a flag on CPIC, facilitating broad sharing of information about these offenders nationally among police and Crowns, regardless of which provincial or territorial jurisdiction made the identification. Each province and territory has a National Flagging System Coordinator who identifies individuals that should be flagged, and who coordinates the collection of information about the offenders. The coordinators also facilitate the transfer of this information to police and Crown prosecutors upon request.
The NFS alerts police to the fact that they are dealing with a high risk violent offender immediately upon the officer or member performing a CPIC check, and alerts Crowns to potential dangerousness. This assists in the proper handling of the individual from his or her encounter with police through to sentencing.
Advice To The Complainant
Remind complainants that the potential threat remains, even if they have reported the incident to police and/or obtained a restraining order. Advise them that they have a primary role to play in ensuring their own safety. Recognize that, although it is not fair, victims may be required to alter their lifestyle and usual routines, schedules, transportation routes and places regularly frequented. Emphasize the importance of self-care in order to avoid extreme stress and exhaustion, which may decrease their ability to stay alert or follow a safety plan.Footnote 93
Advise the complainant not to initiate contact with the suspect or agree to such contact.
Advise complainants to tell the stalker to leave them alone only once and not to respond to the stalker’s subsequent communications, regardless of whether they are threatening or polite. Victims should also avoid trying to bargain or reason with the stalker, as such actions may be perceived by the stalker as encouragement or a sign of weakness, and thus increase the potential risk of harm to the victims.Footnote 94
Advise the complainant to maintain a log of all contact with the suspect, including drive-bys and all unusual events, no matter how trivial they seem or whether they can be definitively attributed to the suspect. Advise the complainant that this includes keeping records of any indirect contact the suspect initiates by having the suspect’s friends and relatives contact the complainant on the suspect’s behalf.
Don’t Miss: Can Police Tell If You Have Car Insurance
Help From State Agencies With Workplace Harassment
In addition to federal oversight, each state has an agency tasked with enforcing employment law, which is a great resource for victims of harassment in the workplace. Click on the link for your state below to learn more about state resources and local U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission offices.
Deterring And Penalizing Police Misconduct
Potential remedies for police misconduct can take many forms: exclusion of illegally obtained evidence, criminal charges, civil lawsuits, disciplinary actions, policy reforms, and community action. A brief overview of these remedies follows.
The goals of these remedies are to deter police misconduct, impose accountability when misconduct happens, compensate and make victims whole, adopt policies to improve police training and supervision, and improve community-police relations.
Don’t Miss: How To File A Complaint Against A Police Department
Police Report To Crown Counsel
Forms used for the purpose of reporting to Crown Counsel must clearly address and document the key elements of the offence . Practices vary among jurisdictions. Some jurisdictions have tailored a specific investigation report form for the collection of pertinent facts. Police agencies and prosecution services that work together should use an agreed-upon format or checklist of information that will provide Crown counsel with the information needed to deal with various stages of court proceedings, including the following details:
Information on the prohibited conduct
Reasons why the victim reasonably fears for his or her physical, emotional or psychological safety
Details of changes the victim has made in response to the fear, such as whether the victim has:
- moved to a new location or obtained a new phone number
- recorded all telephone conversations and messages
- told friends, family, co-workers or building security of the harassment, and given photos of the accused to these persons
- arranged escorts to his or her car and work site
- changed his or her work schedule or route to work
- stopped visiting places previously frequented
- taken a self-defence course
- received counselling or other psychotherapy
- altered his or her behaviour in any other way
Evidence that the accused knew their actions harassed the victim or was reckless as to whether the victim was harassed, such as the fact that:
Information on factors related to those problems, such as:
Sure Ways To Stop Police Harassment & Abuse In 2022
1. Understand your rights
If you dont understand your rights as a civilian, you will be forced to believe that many wrongdoings by the police are right. And in that case, you wont even know that you are being victimized. You can visit the nearest police department or contact a well-known police officer to make enquiry about citizens rights. Most officers are happy to let you know your rights as a civilian.
Alternatively, contact an attorney to make enquiry or get a copy of the constitution or criminal law code for your state or country and learn what your rights are. Equipping yourself with knowledge of what a police officer can do and cannot do to you is your first line of defense against subsequent episodes of police harassment and abuse.
2. Get yourself bailed if you were detained
If you have been a victim of police harassment and you were subsequently arrested during the proceedings, the first thing you have to do before going ahead to prove your case is to get yourself released on bail. This part may require you to just sign an agreement that you would be available for all your court sittings. This type of bail generally free especially if you are a first offender.
Recommended Reading: How To Get A Police Report Phoenix
How To Report Harassment The Easiest Way With Donotpay
Harassment can happen to anyone, anywhere. It could happen in the workplace, on the street, over the phone, and on the often conveniently anonymous internet. You could be harassed by anyone, including former lovers, your neighbors, or your landlord. The official statistics on different types of harassment in the U.S. are concerningly high across the board, which probably means that the real picture is even grimmer.
So, what does it mean when somebody is harassing you? Sadly, there is more than one answer to this question. Harassment is an umbrella term that can cover a multitude of different types of abuse. Under U.S. laws, harassment is described as any repeated or uninvited contact that serves no useful purpose beyond creating alarm, annoyance, or emotional distress.
As a society, we are at risk of getting desensitized to harassment and bullying. This is all the more reason to educate ourselves, speak up, and stand up against the abuse.
Cost Of Police Misconduct
| This section possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( |
| $30.5 million |
In 2015, the Wall Street Journal reported that during a five-year period the 10 United States cities with the largest police departments had spent over $1.4 billion on police misconduct settlements. In between the years of 2010 and 2014 the total annual cost of police misconduct settlements increased, declining only in 2012, and then followed by the highest total in 2014 of $248.7 million.
Largest police misconduct settlements
With the rise of body worn cameras by police departments, settlements have also increased in both the size of the settlement and frequency of settlements. In 2015, Eric Garner‘s family settled with New York City, and was awarded $5.9 million in a wrongful death suit at the hands of a New York City Police Department officer. While Garner’s case was more recent, and perhaps more known to the general public, it was not New York City’s most expensive individual settlement due to police misconduct. Abner Louima was abused by NYPD personnel while in custody in 1997 and settled in 2001 with the city of New York for $8.75 million.
Other notable police misconduct settlements
Settling for Misconduct
Also Check: Can I Look Up A Police Case Number
The Due Process Of Law
An example of a due process violation is when the police arbitrarily stop, detain, or demand information from a citizen when no crime is being committed, and with no apparent evidence that a crime may be committed. In these situations, if a citizen is stopped by police but not detained or arrested for a crime, they are not required to answer officer questions and are lawfully free to leave an interrogation.
Further, Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act made illegal use of public funds to discriminate based on race, color, and national origin. So, when an American citizen has been unlawfully stopped or detained by police whose salaries are paid by citizens tax dollars, its referred to as racial profiling and is a violation of Title VI.
This type of conduct by police also violates a citizens Constitutional due process rights and is considered harassment. In addition to the above types of conduct, police harassment includes illegal detention racial and ethnic profiling making racist, sexist, and homophobic remarks illegal surveillance and spying and illegal search and seizure of property.
All United States people, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, have rights should they be stopped or detained by police, that include the following protections by the U.S. Constitutions 4th, 5th, and 6th Amendments:
How To File Charges Against The Police
This step cannot begin until all criminal charges and civil actions have been resolved. As have been previously said, prematurely filing a police misconduct report will hurt your chances in court by revealing too much information to the police. But if you were not charged with a crime, you can go ahead and file the charge.
14. Find out which right the officer contravened
Under the law, police officers have a defense known as qualified immunity. If you cant overcome this defense, you arent even entitled to sue the officer. Showing that the police officer violated one of your Constitutional rights is the first part of overcoming this defense.
Many police misconduct cases are based on the 4th Amendment, which protects you from unreasonable search and seizure. You should be able to prove that your case falls within this jurisdiction so you can be eligible to go to court.
15. File a lawsuit
If you think your complaints have yielded no results, then contact a qualified lawyer. Start by asking if there are further options that you can adopt in order to seek redress. If there are no other options, then pressing formal charges should be your next step.
On a final note, always keep in mind that the police are not immune to the law, and they must abide by both the laws that bind their profession and those that protect civilians. You should always stand up to hold them accountable whenever they exceed their boundaries by harassing or abusing you.
Don’t Miss: Where To Buy Police Cars
Reporting Harassment With The Help Of Donotpay
Being harassed can be a terrifying and lonely experience, so you may feel reluctant to reach out for help. Still, now is the time to find your strength and stand up against the harasser. Taking charge may be easier than you think, and DoNotPay can help you with that.
To let us help you with reporting your harasser, do the following: