Tennessee
v. Garner - 471 U.S. 1 (1985)
Leslie
K. Penny
Research
Assignment #4.2
Chancellor
University
Abstract
The following essay
provides a brief summary of the cause of Tennessee v. Garner and the effect of
this case. This essay answers the
questions as to where the facts of the case took place and when; what was the
person doing when he was shot by the police officer and how old was he; did the
officer violate his own department's deadly force policy when he fired at the
fleeing person and what the holding of the case was by the U.S. Supreme
Court.
Tennessee
v. Garner - 471 U.S. 1 (1985)
The following essay will provide a summary over the U.S.
Supreme Court case, Tennessee v. Garner, that bear relevance to the use of
deadly force by police. The following
questions will be answered in hopes of providing the facts of this case and the
importance this case carries in regards to human life. Where did the facts of this case take place,
when did the facts take place (what year), what was the person doing when he
was shot by the police officer, did the officer violate his own department's
deadly force policy when he fired at the fleeing person, how old was the person
he shot, and a brief synopsis of the holding of case by the U.S. Supreme court.
The call that originated this case took place in Memphis,
Tennessee, on October 3rd, 1974 (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012), however, the case
wasn't decided until March 27, 1985 (Tennessee v. Garner - 471 U.S. 1
(1985)).
The facts surrounding this case involved Memphis Officers Elton Hymon and
Leslie Wright and the 15 year old suspected Burglar, Edward Garner. Garner was seen running from a residence to a
fence in a back yard by Officer Hymon and after being told to stop for police,
upon which he didn't comply, he tried to make his way up that fence but was
immediately shot in the back of the head by Officer Hymon in which he died from
his wound (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012).
Officer Hymon was following the Tennessee statute in his
use of deadly force to prevent Edward Garner's escape which states that
"'if, after notice of the intention to arrest the defendant, he either
flee or forcibly resist, the officer may use all the necessary means to effect
the arrest' Tenn. Code Ann (471 U.S. 1,5) 40-7-108 (1982)" (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012). The site previously referenced goes on to say
that the Memphis's department policy was a bit more restrictive than that of
the statute, but the use of deadly force was still allowable in cases of
burglary. According to that information (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012), Officer Hymon did
not violate department policy in regards to deadly force in this particular
instance. Nor was any action taken
against Officer Hymon upon review from the Memphis Police Firearm's Review
Board and the grand jury it was presented to (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012).
The outcome of this young man's death was the action that
his father brought to the Federal District Court for the Western District of
Tennessee where his intent was to seek damages under 42 U.S.C. 1983 claiming
that the shooting of his son violated his son's Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth,
and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012). Hymon was immune from any actions against him
as the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit found that he had acted in
good-faith while relying on the Tennessee statute (U.S. Supreme Court, 2012). The U.S. Supreme court,
"held that
the use of deadly force by the police to prevent the escape of a fleeing felon could
be justified only where the suspect could reasonably be thought to represent a significant threat of serious injury
or death to the public or to the officer and where deadly force is necessary to effect the arrest" (Schmalleger, 2011).
In conclusion, Tennessee v. Garner was a turning point in
regards to the Tennessee statute where the use of deadly force is
concerned. Now the statute has a more
clear definition of what constitutes the use of deadly force in situations
where a suspect is fleeing arrest. This
essay provides the information that was asked in reference to where the case took
place and in what year, what Edward Garner was doing when he was shot by
Officer Hymon, did Officer Hymon violate his departments deadly force policy,
how old Garner was and a summary of U.S. Supreme Court's holding of Tennessee
v. Garner.
Works Cited
Schmalleger, F. (2011). Criminal Justice Today: an
Introductory Text for the 21st Century. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Tennessee v. Garner - 471 U.S. 1 (1985). (n.d.). Retrieved 09 28, 2012, from Justia.com US Supreme
Court Center: http://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/471/1/
U.S. Supreme Court. (2012).
Retrieved 09 28, 2012, from FindLaw: for Legal Professionals:
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=471&invol=1
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