Assignment: Michael Brown Case
According to media reports, police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown on August 9, 2014, in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. The disputed circumstances of the shooting of an unarmed man, the resultant protests, and the civil unrest due to racial undertones of the case have received considerable attention in the United States and abroad. In this case study, you will explore how police psychology impacts the future outcome of this case and the likelihood of criminal charges being brought against the officer.
Review the following articles regarding the Michael Brown case:
o "Timeline of events in shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson".
o "Michael Brown shooting: Legal questions loom".
Write a 3 to 5 pages paper in which you:
o Determine whether or not after the resolution of this event, the officer in question will need an additional psychological assessment to ensure that his future conduct if he returns to active duty, is befitting of an officer. Provide a rationale for your response.
o Explain the fundamental distinction between deductive analytic techniques and inductive analytic techniques. Analyze if the officer in question made his decision to act based on deductive analytic techniques or inductive analytic techniques. Provide a rationale for your response.
o Argue for or against the theory that a well-prepared officer should possess the following characteristics - agreeableness, empathy, listening comprehension, and sociability - in order to perform well as a law enforcement officer. Next, determine if any of these characteristics were present when Officer Wilson encountered Michael Brown. Provide a rationale to support your response.
o Given the circumstances surrounding this event, consider the following options the officer in question may have had in this case:
a) Wait for back up before engaging the suspect
b) Engage the suspect without a weapon
c) Follow the suspect without engaging him
d) Resolve to allow the suspect to proceed to his destination
Select the option that you believe would have best served the purpose of protecting the officer, the suspect, and the general public in this case. Provide a rationale for your response.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
o The answer should be typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides.
o The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
o Also include a reference page. The Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.