{"id":1365,"date":"2019-10-23T16:45:47","date_gmt":"2019-10-23T16:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/?p=1365"},"modified":"2025-12-16T18:42:56","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T18:42:56","slug":"the-police-misconduct-provision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/the-police-misconduct-provision\/","title":{"rendered":"The Police Misconduct Provision"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Federal Criminal Versus Civil Cases<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are federal laws in place that address police\nmisconduct on both the criminal and civil levels that protect all persons in\nthe United States. In a criminal case, the case filed with the U.S. Department\nof Justice (DOJ) is brought against the accused person, whereas in a civil\ncase, the case is brought against a governmental authority or law enforcement\nagency. In terms of resolution in a criminal case, the wrongdoer is often\npunished for their misconduct through imprisonment. In a civil case though, the\nlaw enforcement agency\u2019s policies or practices are sought to be corrected and\nmay also include individual relief for the victim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What is the Police Misconduct Provision?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/crt\/addressing-police-misconduct-laws-enforced-department-justice\">Police Misconduct Provision<\/a> is a civil statute that makes it unlawful for State or local law enforcement officers to engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives persons of rights protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States. The most common claims brought under this provision include excessive force, discriminatory harassment, false arrests, and unlawful stops or searches. In order for the \u201cPolice Misconduct Provision\u201d to be applicable, the misconduct must constitute a \u201cpattern or practice.\u201d In other words, the misconduct cannot just be an isolated incident.It's crucial to understand <a href=\"https:\/\/cochranfirmphiladelphia.com\/common-mistakes-avoid-interacting-police\/\">mistakes to avoid when interacting with police<\/a>, as these interactions can sometimes contribute to or exacerbate such patterns of misconduct. Solely under this law, there are no individual remedies available for the victim. Rather, the agency or entity will be ordered to change policies and\/or procedures that allowed the misconduct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Remedy Qualifying Civil Statutes <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Although the Police Misconduct Provision alone does not\nallow for individual remedies for the victim or victims, there are other civil\nstatutes that do qualify the victim(s) for monetary remedies. Those that\nprohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, and\nreligion may result in both the change of policies or procedures, and\nindividual remedial relief. The laws pertaining to such discrimination includes\nTitle VI of the Civil Rights Act and the OJP Program Statute. Also,\ndiscrimination against individuals with disabilities may result in a monetary\nremedy for the victim or victims. Laws concerning disability discrimination\ninclude Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the\nRehabilitation Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Filing a Police Misconduct Complaint<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Should you become a victim of police misconduct, either\nunder criminal or civil enforcement, you will need to file a complaint with the\nU.S. Department of Justice. Sometimes you will need to file additional reports\nto other groups as well, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). You\nwill need to include as much information as possible in your complaint,\nincluding a detailed description of the misconduct, names and contact\ninformation of any witnesses, the origins of the misconduct, and your own\ncontact information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Contact Us Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Navigating the correct <a href=\"https:\/\/cochranfirmphiladelphia.com\/the-importance-of-police-misconduct-lawsuits\/\">police misconduct claim<\/a> and to the\ncorrect party can be confusing. You deserve someone on your side who is both\nintimately familiar with state and federal laws, and fully devoted to helping\nyou get maximum compensation. At <a href=\"https:\/\/cochranfirmphiladelphia.com\/\">The\nCochran Firm Philadelphia<\/a>, we recognize the worth of each individual and\nare prepared to work personally with you to make sure you are fully protected\nand ultimately granted every penny you deserve. Call us today at 1-800-THE-FIRM\nfor a free case evaluation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Federal Criminal Versus Civil Cases There are federal laws in place that address police misconduct on both the criminal and civil levels that protect all persons in the United States. In a criminal case, the case filed with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is brought against the accused person, whereas in a civil case, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"The Police Misconduct Provision | The Cochran Firm","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1365"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1365\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cochranfirm.com\/philadelphia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}