Police Have No Duty To Protect Individuals

[mawguy]

I heard this phrase used in an interview on television and decided to look it up. There are numerous articles on the internet with reference to case law. Simply stated, the courts have stated that there is no constitutional provision for police to be compelled to protect individuals. If it were so, then it would be possible for you to sue the police for failing to protect you.

Interesting read.

http://www.firearmsandliberty.com/ka...rotection.html

[Steve in Vermont]

Simply put, Law Enforcement Officers "enforce (uphold) the law". People came to the conclusion they "protect" the public because of such shows as "Adam 12" and the slogan on the police cars "To protect and to serve". That said, police do have a "duty to act", that is if they are present when you are being threatened or assaulted they are required to "uphold the law" and, in the process, "protect" you. In that situation they would be "compelled" to do so.

[The Big D]

Don't know if you chose the word "compelled," to inflame folks, but it misleads. The law is well settled re: the fact that police cannot be held responsible for the well being of everyone. i.e. They can't be everywhere...all the time.

Steve in Vermont (above) states it very well. Police have a duty to act and must when they are present. They cannot if they are not there when harm is done.

Be safe.

Note: Your linky doesn't work.

Originally Posted by mawguy

I heard this phrase used in an interview on television and decided to look it up. There are numerous articles on the internet with reference to case law. Simply stated, the courts have stated that there is no constitutional provision for police to be compelled to protect individuals. If it were so, then it would be possible for you to sue the police for failing to protect you.

Interesting read.

http://www.firearmsandliberty.com/ka...rotection.html

[gdnagle]

And how about this from of all places The New York Times..
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/28/po...otus.html?_r=0

[andrewb70]

Police are a reactionary force. In many ways it is "security theater" much like airport TSA screening. We are led to believe that everything will be OK, but the reality is that we are on our own. Every individual is responsible for their own and their's well being. As soon as a person has handed over their right of self protection to the police, they have essentially become a ward of the state.

Andrew

[Steve in Vermont]

Originally Posted by andrewb70

Police are a reactionary force. In many ways it is "security theater" much like airport TSA screening. We are led to believe that everything will be OK, but the reality is that we are on our own. Every individual is responsible for their own and their's well being. As soon as a person has handed over their right of self protection to the police, they have essentially become a ward of the state.

Andrew

Or a "Subject", not a "Citizen".

[cololab]

The nonsense that the police are there to protect you and therefore you don't need to protect yourself is yet another myth that any responsible media outlet or credible politician should be actively attempting to dispel.

As others have well stated, and absent extraordinary circumstances, you are not going to win a lawsuit against the police because they were not there to prevent you from being the victim of some crime.

[Cordite]

Since the South V. Maryland case in 1855, the US Supreme Court has consistently ruled that the police have no affirmative duty to protect. Even when the police have a restraining order on file (Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 2005).

As a practical matter, the police can't protect the citizens they serve 24/7. Anyone who has been in any kind of firefight or violent situation can attest that these incidents happen and are over usually in a matter of seconds. Even with a response time to a 911 call of two minutes, the whole incident will likely be done and over with by the time the police arrive on scene.

Look at Sandy Hook; the police were on scene in two minutes to find 26 people dead.

The real "first responder" in any situation is YOU. Having a firearm makes all the difference between those who survive, and those who don't.