In making arrests, maintaining order, and defending life, law enforcement officers are allowed to utilize whatever force is "reasonably" necessary. The breath and scope of the use of force is vast. The spectrum begins with the physical presence of the official through the utilization of deadly force. While some types of force used by law enforcement may be violent by their very nature, they may be considered "reasonable," based upon the circumstances. However, violations of federal law occur where it can be shown that the force used was willfully "unreasonable" or "excessive" against individuals.

Sexual assaults by officials acting under "color of law" could happen in a variety of venues. They could occur in court scenarios, jails, and/or traffic stops to name just a few of the settings where an official might use their position of authority to coerce another individual into sexual compliance. The compliance is generally gained because of a threat of an official action against the other if they do not comply.

The Fourth Amendment of the United States

Constitution guarantees the right against unreasonable searches or seizures. A law enforcement official using his authority provided under the "color of law" is allowed to stop individuals and even if necessary to search them and retain their property under certain circumstances. It is in the abuse of that discretionary power that a violation of a person's civil rights might occur. An unlawful detention or an illegal confiscation of property would be examples of such an abuse of power.

An official would violate the color of law statute by fabricating evidence against or conducting a false arrest of an individual. That person's rights of due process and unreasonable seizure have been violated. In the case of deprivation of property, the official would violate the color of saw statute by unlawfully obtaining or maintaining the property of another. In that case, the official has overstepped or misapplied his authority.

The Fourteenth Amendment secures the right to due process and the Eighth Amendment also prohibits the use of cruel and unusual punishment. In an arrest or detention context, these rights would prohibit the use of force amounting to punishment (summary judgment). The idea being that a person accused of a crime is to be allowed the opportunity to have a trial and not be subjected to punishment without having been afforded the opportunity of the legal process.

The public entrusts its law enforcement officials with protecting the community. If it is shown that an official willfully failed to keep an individual from harm that official could be in violation of the color of law statute.

Filing a Complaint

In order to file a complaint alleging a violation of the criminal laws discussed above, you may contact your local FBI office by telephone, in writing, or in person. The following information should be provided:

· all identifying information for the victim(s);

·as much identifying information as possible for the subject(s), including position, rank, and agency employed;

·date and time of incident;

·location and time of incident;

·names, addresses, and telephone numbers of any witness(es);

·a complete chronology of events; and

·any report numbers and charges with respect to the incident.

You may also contact the United States Attorney's Office in your district, or send a written complaint to:

Criminal Section
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
P.O. Box 66018
Washington, D.C. 20035-6018

Investigations vary in length and although there are internal limitations, the investigation will proceed to its logical conclusion. The FBI is the investigative component of the Department of Justice. It is, therefore, not responsible for the prosecution of a case. That is the responsibility of the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., and the United States Attorney's Office within the local jurisdiction. After the FBI has completed its investigation, it forwards its findings to the United States Attorney's Office and to the Department of Justice. They then make the determination as to whether to proceed toward prosecution or not.

Civil Applications

Title 42, U.S.C., Section 14141, makes it unlawful for state or local law enforcement agencies to allow 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. This law is commonly referred to as the Police Misconduct Statute. This law gives DOJ the authority to seek civil remedies in cases where it is determined that law enforcement agencies have policies or practices which foster a pattern of misconduct by employees. This action is directed against an agency, not against individual officers. The types of issues which may initiate a Pattern and Practice investigation include:

·   Lack of supervision/monitoring of officers' actions.

·   Officers not providing justification or reporting incidents involving the use of force.

·   Lack of, or improper training of officers.

·   A department having a citizen complaint process which treats complainants as adversaries.

Under Title 42, U.S.C., Section 1997, DOJ has the ability to initiate civil actions against mental hospitals, retardation facilities, jails, prisons, nursing homes, and juvenile detention facilities, when there are allegations of systemic derivations of the constitutional rights of institutionalized persons.

The 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution states, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist in the United States. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation." These conditions, nevertheless, still exist in certain forms throughout the country. The majority of these cases typically involve migrant farm workers, immigrants, aliens or others who are forced to work under exploitative conditions and/or are held in involuntary servitude. Often these immigrants enter the country thinking that wonderful opportunities await them; however, once here, they are forced into involuntary servitude with little recourse for escape.

Researchers have suggested that immigrant populations are victimized by crime at rates similar to the general population but their rates of reporting crime are lower. Furthermore, because of differences in language, cultural expectations, etc., they have a more difficult time dealing with law enforcement and may, in fact, avoid law enforcement. Aliens encountered in these situations, who may be in the United States illegally and have therefore violated the law, are subject to deportation. The prospect of being forced to leave the United States, no matter how degrading the current living conditions, sometimes serves as a deterrent to reporting the situation to law enforcement.

The FBI's jurisdiction pertaining to color of law is primarily predicted on four federal statutes:

1) Title 18, United States Code (U.S.C.), Section 241 (Conspiracy Against Rights);

2) Title 18, U.S.C., Section 242 (Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law);

3) Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1001 (False Statements or Entries Generally); and

4) Title 42 U.S.C., Section 14141 (Pattern and Practice)

Top of page