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When you have to discharge your weapon
Law enforcement has been placed under a microscope recently due to the false narrative that police are simply shooting at random without cause. In the past, we have writ-
ten about the false narrative that police
are just randomly discharging their fire-
arms. It is quite apparent by the statistics
we have published that this is simply not
true. The social justice warriors have com- mandeered the microphone and are trying to hijack that story. It would be easy to let them
howl at the rain and point them to the overwhelming statis- tics that disprove this fable.
The problem is that this story has emboldened the crim- inal element and placed more and more police officers in a position where they have to use deadly force. The purpose of this article is to talk about the things that you must do and should not do after you have had a deadly force incident.
Recently, our members have been placed in unbelievable situations requiring the use of deadly force. From the riots downtown, where roaming bands of looters have indiscrim- inately fired at officers, to individuals being pursued on foot or in a vehicle who fire at the officers in the hope it will pro- vide for a quick escape, our members have increasingly been fired upon, placing us in mortal danger. The bold and brazen
approach by the criminal element is clearly a result of a crim- inal justice system that refuses to prosecute the offenders and a false belief promulgated by the media and our elected officials that the police are in the wrong. As we all know, COPA believes that all shootings are bad. Based on the shootings for which we have provided statements over the last few months, one would come to the conclusion that they also must believe in mon- sters in the closet and the existence of unicorns. Howev- er, an officer must have a basic understanding of what to do
after the use of deadly force.
The first and most important part of any deadly force sce-
nario is to understand the use-of-force general order, which can be found at G03-02. The order tells us that the use of deadly force is a last resort that is permissible only when necessary to protect against an imminent threat to life or to prevent great bodily harm to the member or another person. Consistent with this requirement, a sworn Department mem- ber may use deadly force only when such force is necessary to prevent: a. death or great bodily harm from an imminent threat posed to the sworn member or to another person; b. an arrest from being defeated by resistance or escape, where the person to be arrested poses an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm to a sworn member or another person unless arrested without delay. Not only should you know this gen-
TIM GRACE
The Law Firm of Grace & Thompson Specializes in Representing Chicago Police Officers
James E. Thompson, Partner JThompson@ggtlegal.com
Timothy M. Grace, Partner connorgrace@aol.com
We pride ourselves in maintaining a small-firm feel by treating each case with care and consideration.
Seasoned trial attorneys representing Chicago Police Officers in matters before the Chicago Police Board, Internal Affairs, COPA, Inspector General, and Civil and Criminal Courts.
The Law Firm of Grace & Thompson also provides professional legal services in other areas:
• Personal Injury
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• Criminal and Civil Defense Litigation
Contact us today for a free consultation! 312-943-0600 • GGTlegal.com
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22 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ OCTOBER 2020