Is Police Excessive Force Considered Battery?

When filing a lawsuit, depending on the case, an excessive force lawyer may also include a claim for battery. To better understand how these terms relate, let’s first look at their definitions.

What is Excessive Force?

Under federal law, a clear definition of excessive force in every case does not exist. Courts and juries have to decide whether the use of force by a police officer was excessive by comparing what a reasonable police officer in the same (or similar) circumstance would have done, and whether the type and amount of force could be the same.

Some factors juries are told to consider in deciding whether a police officer used excessive force are whether the person was:

• Engaged in a serious or minor crime;
• Resisting arrest;
• Trying to escape;
• Using physical force on officers;
• Presenting an immediate threat to officers or others;
• Placing officers or others at significant risk of serious injury or death.

Civil juries are also told to consider whether the officer had reasonable alternatives to the force that was used, and where deadly force was used, whether a warning that deadly force was about to be used was feasible and was given.

Considering these circumstances, a police officer may or may not be allowed to use force, and the type and amount of force permitted also depends entirely on the circumstances.  In order to be considered lawful, the type and amount of force that was used must have been objectively reasonable under all of the circumstances.  Excessive force is force that is objectively unreasonable under all of the circumstances.

What is Battery?

In California, battery by a police officer also occurs when an officer uses unreasonable force against a person.  Under California law, an officer may use reasonable force to arrest or detain a person, prevent their escape, or overcome the person’s resistance when the officer has reasonable cause to believe that that person has committed a crime. In deciding whether the officer used unreasonable force, California juries are told to consider the totality of the circumstances and determine what amount of force a reasonable officer in the defendant officer’s position would have used under the same or similar circumstances.

Is Excessive Force a Battery?

In California, the answer to that question, generally, is “yes.”  However, different rules, deadlines, and defenses may apply to a federal civil rights claim for excessive force and a California state law claim for battery.

An experienced excessive force lawyer should know the best way to file the case.

Haddad & Sherwin LLP have a long track record of winning civil rights cases with results that include large settlements and verdicts for their clients, groundbreaking legal rulings, and important reforms to prevent future harms.  Haddad & Sherwin LLP handle only a unique subset of Section 1983 cases: cases where a person was killed or permanently, catastrophically injured in California by law enforcement or county jail misconduct.  If you would like to consult with experienced civil rights lawyers because your loved one was killed by police or died in a California county jail, then contact the attorneys at Haddad & Sherwin LLP.  If your civil rights were seriously violated, but without death and without permanent, catastrophic injury, you could try the list of civil rights attorneys here.