1. Purpose and guiding principles
DPS officers shall preserve life, protect the public, and enforce the law professionally. Force may only be used to achieve a legitimate law-enforcement objective and must be objectively reasonable in light of the circumstances known to the officer at the time. The department expects officers to apply the following principles:- Preservation of life: Protect civilians, suspects, fellow officers, and other persons.
- Necessity and lawful purpose: Use force only when justified by the situation.
- Objective reasonableness: Evaluate actual conduct and threats, not frustration or hindsight.
- Proportionality: Match the response to the resistance, threat, and surrounding risks.
- De-escalation: Use communication and tactical alternatives whenever reasonably safe and feasible.
- Reassessment: Reduce or stop force when its justification changes or ends.
- Accountability: Intervene when necessary, document reportable force, and cooperate with review.
2. Objective reasonableness
Force is judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer facing the same rapidly evolving circumstances, not with the benefit of hindsight. Graham v. Connor (1989) is used as a real-world training reference for this principle. Relevant factors include:- The seriousness of the suspected offense and whether the detention or arrest is lawful.
- The subject’s actions, degree of resistance, and immediacy of any threat.
- Attempted escape, access to weapons, and known threats or prior relevant information.
- Number of subjects and officers; their physical capabilities and condition.
- Distance, cover, visibility, terrain, crowds, and risks to bystanders.
- Available backup, alternative tactics, and how quickly events are unfolding.
3. De-escalation and tactical decision-making
When safe and feasible, officers should attempt to reduce the need for force through calm communication, clear commands, reasonable time to comply, active listening, cover, distance, containment, and coordination. Officers should consider assigning one primary communicator, avoiding contradictory orders, requesting additional units or a supervisor, and involving EMS or specialized personnel when appropriate. De-escalation is not a requirement to delay an urgent response to an imminent threat. Officers are not expected to expose themselves or others to unnecessary danger merely to attempt a lower-force option first. When circumstances change, officers must reassess their available options and adjust or stop the use of force accordingly.Coordination and force coverage
For armed or high-risk encounters, officers should communicate their roles when practical. An officer equipped with a Taser or less-lethal launcher should generally have another officer positioned to provide appropriate lethal-force coverage when the subject presents a credible deadly threat. Having coverage does not independently authorize a firearm discharge.4. Subject behavior and force levels
Subject behavior classifications
These categories describe behavior; they are not automatic permissions to deploy a particular tool.
Five-level force framework
- Level 1 — Officer presence: Visible police authority, positioning, and professional conduct.
- Level 2 — Verbal direction: Lawful commands, dialogue, warnings, and de-escalation.
- Level 3 — Physical control: Reasonable escorts, holds, restraints, takedowns, or defensive control.
- Level 4 — Less-lethal force: Approved OC spray, Tasers, batons, impact munitions, or other approved options when their individual conditions are met.
- Level 5 — Deadly force: Force creating a substantial risk of death or great bodily harm, justified only under the deadly-force standard.
5. Non-deadly force and restraints
Physical control
Officers may employ reasonable grabbing, escort holds, control holds, ground control, and takedowns to conduct a lawful arrest or detention, prevent escape, or protect people. Defensive strikes require their own justification. Once a subject is under control, continued strikes or unnecessary force are prohibited.OC spray
OC spray may be used against active resistance or assaultive conduct when objectively reasonable. It shall not be used solely for passive resistance, verbal defiance, intimidation, or punishment, or against a fully controlled person. Warn before use when practical, provide an opportunity for relief or decontamination, and obtain medical assistance when indicated.Electronic Control Devices (Tasers)
Department-approved Tasers may be used by trained and authorized officers when reasonably necessary to address assaultive behavior, an articulable physical threat, significant active resistance when lesser options are unsafe or ineffective, or serious danger to the subject or another person.- Running alone is not enough. Additional articulable circumstances must justify deployment; a foot pursuit is not itself a Taser authorization.
- Do not use against passive resistance, for punishment, intimidation, escorting, prodding, or waking someone.
- Avoid deployment against a handcuffed and controlled person, a vehicle operator, a person at significant risk of falling, visibly vulnerable persons, or someone exposed to flammable material unless extraordinary circumstances justify the risk.
- Do not deploy from a moving vehicle except under exceptional circumstances specifically justified by policy and training.
- Avoid intentionally targeting the head, face, neck, or groin. Repeated or extended applications require a fresh, articulable justification.
- A Taser is not a substitute for appropriate deadly-force coverage when confronting a credible deadly threat.
Batons and impact weapons
Approved batons may be used against significant active resistance or assaultive behavior when reasonable. Avoid intentional strikes to the head, neck, or spine; strikes to vulnerable areas may constitute deadly force. Flashlights, radios, and firearms are not routine impact weapons. Emergency self-defense does not remove the objective-reasonableness requirement.Less-lethal impact munitions
Only trained and authorized personnel may use approved impact projectiles. Their use must address an articulable threat, assaultive behavior, or circumstances making closer control unreasonably dangerous. Avoid intentionally targeting the head, face, or neck unless deadly force would otherwise be justified. Arrange medical evaluation after a projectile strike. Less-lethal launchers do not replace deadly-force coverage where that coverage is justified.Other specialized tools
- Remote restraints: Only approved devices operated by trained personnel; apply comparable cautions regarding vulnerable subjects, dangerous falls, moving vehicles, and already-controlled persons. Document deployment and preserve applicable evidence.
- Chemical delivery systems: High-volume sprays, chemical projectiles, and chemical canisters require specific approval, training, and compliance with an active crowd-control or tactical SOP. This page alone does not authorize their operational deployment.
- Canines: Deploy only under the K9 SOP. Never use a canine for punishment or intimidation. Document apprehensions or bites and obtain appropriate medical care.
- Spit hoods and specialized restraints: Use only approved equipment when a genuine safety hazard makes it necessary. Monitor breathing and distress; document hazard-related deployment.
Handcuffing and custody
Handcuffs may be used for a lawful arrest or detention, officer safety, preventing escape, or preventing harm. Fit restraints appropriately and reassess the person’s behavior. A handcuffed person is not automatically fully controlled, but restraint substantially changes the justification for additional force. Never deliberately restrict breathing, and continuously monitor anyone showing distress.6. Deadly force
Deadly force is force creating a substantial risk of death or great bodily harm. It may be used only when objectively reasonable and necessary to:- Protect the officer or another person from an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm; or
- Stop a dangerous fleeing suspect when officers have probable cause to believe the suspect committed or attempted a felony involving the use or threatened use of deadly force and the suspect presents a continuing, imminent threat of death or great bodily harm if not immediately apprehended.
Warnings
When reasonably safe and feasible, identify as law enforcement and give a clear warning, such as “Police! Drop the weapon!” A warning is not required if delay would create an unreasonable danger.Vehicles and firearms
- Never shoot at an occupant merely because the vehicle is fleeing.
- When practical, move out of a vehicle’s path rather than firing at it.
- Shooting at a moving vehicle may only be justified by an independent deadly threat from an occupant, or deliberate use of the vehicle as a deadly weapon when officers cannot reasonably escape the danger.
- Firing from a moving police vehicle is strongly discouraged and requires independently justified deadly force; officers must consider the danger created by doing so.
- Intentional vehicle contact, including a tactical vehicle intervention, is a use of force subject to objective reasonableness and relevant pursuit policies. It is deadly force when likely to create a substantial risk of death or great bodily harm. No particular speed automatically makes an intervention safe or authorized.
Prohibited deadly force
Deadly force shall not be used as punishment, as a warning shot, solely to prevent escape, solely in response to verbal noncompliance, solely because a person is armed without an imminent threat, or when it creates an unreasonable risk to innocent people.Prohibited techniques
Except where deadly force would otherwise be justified, officers shall not intentionally apply throat or windpipe pressure, prolonged carotid restraints, conduct targeted throat strikes, interfere with breathing, or continue force against a fully controlled person. Retaliatory force is prohibited in all circumstances.7. Medical aftercare
Once the scene is reasonably secure, officers shall promptly request or provide medical care consistent with their training when the person is injured, requests treatment, loses consciousness, has breathing difficulty, experiences an adverse reaction, or has received force requiring evaluation under department training. Reportable force should include an affirmative offer of medical care when the subject is conscious and circumstances permit. Monitor restrained persons and notify EMS of the type of force used, known injuries, and changes in condition. Being under arrest does not end the officer’s duty of care.8. Reporting and supervisory review
What requires a Use of Force Report?
A report is required for:- Firearm discharges and firearm presentations directed at a person when the circumstances require documentation.
- Taser, OC spray, chemical agent, less-lethal projectile, baton, or remote-restraint deployment.
- Canine apprehensions or bites.
- Physical strikes, significant takedowns, or significant ground control.
- Specialized restraints or spit hoods used in response to resistance or a safety hazard.
- Force causing injury, or any additional incident a supervisor directs to be documented.
Articulating the decision
Reports must explain why force was necessary, not merely name the force option used. Insufficient: “The suspect resisted, so I tased him.” Better: “The suspect repeatedly pulled away during a lawful arrest, ignored clear commands to present his hands, and attempted to punch the arresting officer. I deployed my Taser because the subject continued to pose an immediate physical threat and physical control had become unsafe. The deployment stopped when officers gained control.” Document the subject’s specific behavior, threats and resistance, commands and warnings, available alternatives, selected force, changes in circumstances, when force ended, injuries, and medical assistance offered or provided. Include relevant witnesses and available bodycam or other evidence according to department reporting procedures. Officers must notify a supervisor as required by the reporting process. Supervisors review reportable force for reasonableness, policy compliance, articulation, medical care, and further training or investigation needs. Alleged excessive force may be referred to Professional Standards/Internal Affairs.9. Duty to intervene
Officers who observe clearly excessive, unlawful, or prohibited force shall intervene when reasonably safe and practical, regardless of rank, friendship, or assignment. Appropriate intervention can include verbal direction, stopping the conduct, removing an officer from the contact, or immediately calling for supervisory assistance. Report suspected excessive force to an uninvolved supervisor as soon as practicable. Retaliation for a good-faith intervention or report is prohibited.10. Practical field-training scenarios
These examples illustrate the standard; they are not substitutes for evaluating the full circumstances of an actual encounter.Roleplay application
- Roleplay the observable facts. Base decisions on the character’s actions, not OOC knowledge, voice-chat frustration, or assumptions about what an animation means.
- Respect server mechanics and rules. A game animation, desync, accidental input, or unresponsive mechanic is not automatically an in-character threat; use available context and clarify when appropriate.
- Allow realistic reactions. When safe and consistent with server rules, give players a reasonable opportunity to understand and respond to lawful instructions.
- Avoid force escalation to “win” a scene. Officers should preserve believable encounters rather than unnecessarily forcing incapacitation or immediate compliance.
- Complete the follow-through. Roleplay securing the scene, custody, injury assessment, EMS involvement, evidence, and relevant MDT documentation.