SWAT Madness and the Militarization of the American Police

A National Dilemma

Jim Fisher

• Publisher: Praeger
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780313391927
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Violence in Society
• Index: Social Sciences

With the immediacy of a daily newspaper, this book reveals how the irresponsible use of SWAT teams, shock-and-awe policing, and the increasing militarization of American law enforcement is changing the face of "the land of the free." In the United States, military-style police enforcement is fast becoming the norm—even the smallest police departments now field costly SWAT units. While the fact that police forces have increased capabilities to deal with urgent or dangerous situations may seem positive, this type of aggressive response is problematic; court settlements regarding excessive SWAT raids cost law enforcement agencies millions of dollars every year, not to mention that these brute-force strategies often traumatize, injure, and kill innocent people. This book takes an unprecedented look into the realities of zero-tolerance, militaristic policing, the tactics and equipment used, the problematic "crime warrior" mindset at play, and the statistical evidence of its ineffectiveness. The author's professional experience in criminology and scholarly knowledge of the topic enables him to candidly address common concerns about utilizing paramilitary law enforcement and special weapons and tactics (SWAT) units in routine, low-risk police work, such as the general loss of freedom, the often tragic results of excessive force, and the effects on race relations.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• 1. The Nature and Scope of Militarized Policing
• Part One: Low-Risk Shock-and-Awe Policing
• 2. Strong-Arming Groups: Guilt-by-Association Raids
• 3. Boots in the House: Broken-Door Raids
• 4. Stomping on Sin: Prostitution, Pornography, and Gambling Raids
• 5. Part-Time Warriors: Small-Town SWAT
• Part Two: Drug-War Raids
• 6. Legal Pot: The War on Medical Marijuana
• 7. Collateral Damage: Nonfatal Wrong-House Drug Raids
• 8. Unjustifiable Homicide: Avoidable Drug-Raid Fatalities
• 9. Negligent Homicide: Fatal Wrong-House Raids
• 10. Officer Down: No Excuses, No Defenses
• Conclusion: No Easy Solution
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index