In America, the Constitution upholds Civil Rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also protects those of various races from persecution or discrimination throughout the United States. The FBI is dedicated to protecting the freedoms of Americans, and investigates and prevents hate crime that violates the Civil Rights Act.
It is considered a federal crime for anyone to deprive or conspire to deprive a person of the right to be protected by the Constitution or by the U.S. law. The FBI writes that it is their duty to inspect any cases where government officials operate within or beyond the limits of their lawful authority, Off-duty conduct may be covered if the perpetrator asserts his or her official status.
In the year 2012, the FBI writes that about 42% of all of their cases involved a color of law issue. There were 380 color of law cases opened last year. Most of the cases involved crimes with allegations of excessive force, sexual assault, false arrest and fabrication of evidence, deprivation of property or a failure to keep from harm.
When maintaining order or performing an arrest, police officers have the right to use the force and means necessary. They need to make sure that these means are reasonably necessary in order to carry out the arrest at hand. Yet a police officer can be in violation of the federal law if it can be shown that the force used was willfully unreasonable or excessive.
Also, if a government official commits sexual abuse at a jail, during a traffic stop, or in another setting then this is a federal offense. In some cases, police officers will threaten a suspect saying that he or she will turn in that offender if the individual doesn't comply. This is a direct violation of the federal codes, and officers who behave in this way can be severely punished.
Also, police officers and other governmental authorities can be punished for false arrest or a fabrication of evidence. Sometimes a law enforcement official will complete a search and seizure without a warrant or a reason to do so. There are certain circumstances where immediate search and seizure may be necessary. Yet when a federal authority abuses that power, this can result in serious issues.
Also, a police officer may find it necessary to fabricate evidence in order to approve a suspect's guilt. This is also expressly illegal. If you have been targeted in this way you need to tell a criminal defense attorney immediately so that he can factor in these significant issues with your case.
It is also a color of law abuse for an individual to fail to keep a suspect from harm. For example, if law enforcement officials fail to protect local communities and it can be shown that the law enforcement officer failed in this duty willfully, then this can be a color of law violation.
If you believe that your arrest or charges are unfair and are simply correlations with a color of law violation by the officer that arrested you, then you need to seek compensation today! Contact a criminal defense attorney near you to start working through your case and make an effort to expose the color of law abuses that you believe you were subject to.
Chances are that if you can prove color of law abuse, your case will be dismissed and your charges will be erased. You will want to partner with an aggressive and hardworking attorney if you decide to embark on this legal journey!
