Moral delemmas Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Moral delemmas - Research Paper Example al. March 2009). During intense police pursuit, some police officers mistakenly use their pistols instead of the taser gun. The facts of the case so states that BART Officer Johannes Mehserle killed Oscar Grant while trying to subdue Mr. Grant during an arrest. Officer Mehserle mistaken used his pistol instead of his taser to subdue the suspect and accidentally killed the suspect. Note that there are a number of moral dilemmas that often result from the use of taser guns. The people involved in the situation including the arresting officer, police department authorizing the use of taser guns and the suspect often have to deal with a number of moral issues resulting from the incident such as what happened between Officer Johannes Mehserle and Oscar Grant. In the police operation, both the arresting officer and the suspect are at risk. As it is, ethical dilemmas often happen arise in connection with the arrest. The first moral dilemma that we need to look into is whether or not the pol ice department should allow police officers to use tasers when subduing suspects. Note that unruly suspects can endanger the lives of the people around including the apprehending police officers. If the police officers are not allowed to use taser guns on suspects, the suspects may turn against the officers and hurt them on the process. Moreover, if police officers do not use taser guns, they will need to use other forms of deterring force to subdue the suspects. Without the taser gun, the apprehending police officers will need to have direct body contact with the suspect. Using deterring force such as manhandling the suspect who resists arrest can also cause harm on the suspect and may even result to lawsuits against the police force. Note that cases involving â€Å"police brutality† are very common and often brings headaches to the police department. We have to understand that when a police officer comes near the suspect and have direct bodily contact with him or her, any c an happen. A twist in the arm can have different effect on different people and because we cannot be sure what kind of damage a simple bodily contact can have and what will be the reaction of the person arrested, it is still better for the police officer to maintain distance from the suspect and use taser guns. Also in cases of pursuits when the suspect is running away from the arresting officer, the use of taser gun can be very handy. Come to think of it, if the police officer does not use a taser gun in apprehending an escaping suspect, the suspect may get away and may commit another crime. When the police officer fails to apprehend a known suspect who has committed a series of crimes, he/she gives permission to that suspect to commit yet another crime. Yes, the whole idea that an escaped suspect can cause more harm to innocent people is disturbing so it is very important for police officers to have the right tools to do their jobs. Also if the suspect gets away, the police depart ment will need to use more resources to hunt down and capture the suspect. The cost of hunting down and apprehending a suspect can be enormous and given the limited budget of the police force, the department does not have the luxury of letting a suspect escape. While allowing the police officers to use taser guns to apprehend suspects have many advantages, it also has some disadvantages. Using taser guns involve risk and it may cause harm on people. According to Grant et al. (March 2009),