Excessive Force Research Articles

Political trust in the age of coronavirus: experiences in Mukuru, Nairobi, Kenya

This paper examines declining political trust at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in the informal settlements of Mukuru Kayaba, Mukuru kwa Njenga, and Mukuru kwa Ruben; part of the Mukuru Informal Settlement located in Nairobi, Kenya. The average resident lives on $1.90–$3.50/day with no financial security net. During the COVID-19 pandemic governmental restrictions on movement and business operations, residents of Mukuru living at the extreme poverty level were unable to meet their basic needs. Trust in government was diminished, made worse by excessive force from armed officers of the Provincial Administration. Using qualitative and quantitative data, this research concludes that the lack of state support during the pandemic has led to further decline of political trust from residents of Mukuru.

Bodies of evidence: The ‘Excited Delirium Syndrome’ and the epistemology of cause-of-death inquiry

“Excited Delirium Syndrome” (ExDS) is a controversial diagnosis. The supposed syndrome is sometimes considered to be a potential cause of death. However, it has been argued that its sole purpose is to cover up excessive police violence because it is mainly used to explain deaths of individuals in custody. In this paper, we examine the epistemic conditions giving rise to the controversial diagnosis by discussing the relation between causal hypotheses, evidence, and data in forensic medicine. We argue that the practitioners’ social context affects causal inquiry through background assumptions that enter inquiry at multiple stages. This analysis serves to better understand the wide usage of the controversial diagnosis of ExDS.

An Examination of Nigeria and United States Relations: A Theoretical Perspective

The diplomatic relations between Nigeria and the United States over the years have been marred by ups and down, progressive and regressive character. This paper examined the diplomatic relations between both countries under the Goodluck Jonathan and General Buhari’s administration (2011-2021). The paper focused on both countries diplomatic relations specifically on pandemic response and health, bilateral economic engagement, educational and cultural exchanges and peace and security engagement. Anchoring the paper’s theoretical review on trait theory of the leadership, the paper reviewed the collected historical data and conducted a comparative analysis of Goodluck’s administrations’ foreign relations with the United States (2011-2015) and that of his successor, President Muhammadu Buhari (2015-2021). The review revealed that Goodluck and Buhari shuttle diplomacy is yet to achieve a convincing impact on the international community in terms of establishing a strong foreign relation with the U.S and the challenges of Nigeria's foreign relations is how to overcome its integrity crisis, and thereby securing the desired respect for its citizens internationally. This paper further revealed that Buhari's foreign relation with the United States has more impact on Nigeria's economy than that of Goodluck administration, even though the challenges are still present in the Buhari administration such as the Boko-Haram insurgency, unemployment, farmers-headmen crises, kidnapping, police brutality, and so on. The paper recommended that for Nigeria to promote a viable national interest it must pursue and promote a dynamic and assertive foreign relation with the United States and other big nations of the world.

Design and study of a new QPQ combined with ultrasonic roller pressing method for gear surface strengthening

This study investigates a hybrid surface enhancement technique that combines Quench Polish Quench (QPQ) with ultrasonic rolling to augment the durability of 42CrMo gears against wear and fatigue. Analysis reveals that post-treatment, the composite nitride layer on the gear surface maintains its original phase composition, evidenced by the absence of new diffraction peaks in X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. Nevertheless, a noticeable broadening in these peaks suggests grain refinement and the presence of microstrain due to the rolling process. Incremental static pressures improve the mechanical characteristics of the surface, with the layer treated at 0.6 MPa exhibiting the lowest wear rate (3.15 × 10−8 mm3N−1 m−1). Oxidative wear increases at elevated temperatures (100 °C), yet under lubricated conditions, Coefficient Of Friction (COF) of the treated layer significantly reduces. The predominant wear mechanisms include mild abrasive wear, oxidative wear, and adhesion. Excessive impact force, particularly at 0.6 MPa, risks surface cracking and subsequent degradation in fatigue resistance. Optimal fatigue performance is achieved with a static pressure of 0.4 MPa, corresponding to a surface strength of 2300 MPa and a fatigue life of 3.23 × 106 cycles.

Psychometric properties of the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire-short form among law enforcement officers.

Repeatedly capturing national headlines, excessive law enforcement officer (LEO) use of force in critical incident encounters is one of the most divisive human rights issues in the United States. Valid and reliable measures of potential precursors to LEO excessive use of force, such as aggression, are needed. The Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire-short form (BPAQ-SF) is a validated measure of aggression across various populations; however, evaluation of this easily administered measure in high-stress, frontline populations such as LEOs is limited. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the validity, reliability, and sensitivity to change the BPAQ-SF in a sample of LEOs. A confirmatory factor analysis suggested that the hierarchical solution provides a mixed fit to the data:SBχ²(25.84) = 62.50, p = .0001; comparative fit index = .94, non-normed fit index = .92, root mean square error of approximation = .19 (90% confidence interval = .17-.21), standardized root mean squared residual = .08. The BPAQ-SF demonstrated good internal consistency (α = .84) and test-retest reliability (r = .86), correlations in the expected direction with predictors of and buffers against aggression, and sensitivity to change among LEOs who participated in an intervention targeting aggression. Results support and extend previous findings suggesting that the BPAQ-SF is a valid and reliable measure of aggression among LEOs.

Detroit under Fire: Police Violence, Crime Politics, and the Struggle for Racial Justice in the Civil Rights Era

Detroit under Fire: Police Violence, Crime Politics, and the Struggle for Racial Justice in the Civil Rights Era

Research and application on intelligent monitoring and early warning system for Inner-Suspended gin poles

The pressure of the inner suspension pole body is one of the key control indicators that need to be focused on in the design and use of the pole. A real-time intelligent monitoring and early warning system for the working status of the internal suspension pole tower is developed to address safety issues such as excessive inclination, excessive force on the stay wire or support rope during the construction process, including pole body pressure monitoring. The system monitors the axial pressure and inclination angle of the pole body using an integrated sensor for the axial pressure and inclination angle of the pole body. The tension sensor monitors the tension of the lifting, pulling, and supporting ropes, and the anemometer monitors the environmental wind speed. The monitoring data is fed back to the monitoring system through a wireless transmission module, and the safety of the pole state is determined in real-time through an embedded algorithm. When the preset threshold is exceeded, an audible and visual warning is issued. A comparison was made between the actual lifting test and theoretical calculation values, and engineering applications were completed.

Book Review: America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s by Elizabeth Hinton

Book Review: <i>America on Fire: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s</i> by Elizabeth Hinton

Expandable cages that expand both height and lordosis provide improved immediate effect on sagittal alignment and short-term clinical outcomes following minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS TLIF).

Failure to restore lordotic alignment is not an uncommon problem following minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS TLIF), even with expandable cages that increase disc height. This study aims to investigate the effect of the expandable cage that is specifically designed to expand both height and lordosis. We evaluated the outcomes of MIS TLIF in restoring immediate postoperative sagittal alignment by comparing two different types of expandable cages. One cage is designed to solely increase disc height (Group H), while the other can expand both height and lordosis (Group HL). Patients undergoing MIS TLIF using expandable cages were retrospectively reviewed, including 40 cases in Group H and 109 cases in Group HL. Visual analog scores of back and leg pain, and Oswestry disability index were collected. Disc height, disc angle, and sagittal alignment were measured. Complications were recorded, including early subsidence which was evaluated with computed tomography. Clinical and radiographic outcomes significantly improved in both groups postoperatively. Group HL showed superior improvement in segmental lordosis (4.4°±3.5° vs. 2.1°±4.8°, P=0.01) and disc angle (6.3°±3.8 vs. 2.2°±4.3°, P<0.001) compared to Group H. Overall incidence of early subsidence was 23.3%, predominantly observed during initial cases as part of the learning curve, but decreased to 18% after completion of the first 20 cases. Expandable cages with a design specifically aimed at increasing lordotic angle can provide favorable outcomes and effectively improve immediate sagittal alignment following MIS TLIF, compared to conventional cages that only increase in height. However, regardless of the type of expandable cage used, it is crucial to avoid applying excessive force to achieve greater disc height or lordosis, as this may contribute to subsidence and a possible reduction in lordotic alignment restoration. Long-term results are needed to evaluate the clinical outcome, fusion rate, and maintenance of the sagittal alignment.

International Political Contexts, Digital Technologies, and Political Outcomes in Nigeria’s #EndSARS Movement

Abstract When do social movements achieve political outcomes? Extant literature has identified two broad factors that can explain the political outcomes of social movements: movements’ infrastructure, and political opportunities. Focusing on the 2020 #EndSARS protest in Nigeria, I build on this literature to understand how and why social movements may achieve policy outcomes when social movements’ infrastructure and domestic political opportunities are relatively absent. I analyzed the Twitter activities of protesters during the 2020 #EndSARS Movement in Nigeria. I argue that the #EndSARS Movement transformed from online campaigns to offline demonstrations against police brutality because of favourable international political contexts (Black Lives Matter or blm protests in the US, covid-19 induced economic hardships). Further analysis shows that the protest achieved significant political outcomes and responses from both federal and state governments in Nigeria because the protesters were able to successfully leverage digital technologies (like social media, blockchain technology), international media and global personalities to their advantage.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Speed Cameras on Philadelphia’s Roosevelt Boulevard

This paper employs Bayesian negative binomial and Poisson models to examine the effectiveness of speed cameras at reducing crashes, injuries, and fatalities on and immediately around Roosevelt Boulevard, a particularly dangerous urban arterial in Philadelphia, PA. Camera installation also coincided with rapidly changing traffic safety outcomes throughout the summer after COVID-19 lockdowns and protests against police violence. To find the most appropriate control segments for our analysis, we use k-means clustering to identify the five most similar roadways. Compared with these roadways and other geographic controls, the treated sections of Roosevelt Boulevard experienced decreased crashes, injuries, and fatalities after camera installation. These decreases are on the high end of what is found in the academic literature on speed cameras. The findings for total crashes, traffic injuries, fatalities, and pedestrian injuries are statistically different from zero with a high degree of confidence. Differences in pedestrian fatalities are statistically different from zero with 90% confidence. Based on our findings, we recommend that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and City of Philadelphia extend and expand the automated speed enforcement pilot. Estimates of the economic benefits of reduced crashes substantially exceed the total fines paid by violators. Despite this positive safety effect, additional treatments will be required to make Roosevelt Boulevard substantially safer. The roadway still accounts for around 8% of all traffic fatalities in Philadelphia.

Research on the wear trend analysis model and application method of diffraction grating ruling tools.

Tool wear is one of the main causes of failure during diffraction grating ruling. However, no theoretical model for tool wear analysis has been available to date. A mathematical model is established here to solve for the friction coefficient at the tool contact position for the first time. Based on the ruling principles for diffraction gratings, four parameters comprising the tool cutting edge radius, knife angle, pitch angle, and tool ruling depth, are introduced into the model. The positive pressure and shear stress acting on the tool contact surface element during plastic deformation of the metal film layer are given, and an integral is performed over the area where the tool meets the metal film layer. Equations describing the friction coefficients at different positions on the tip point and the main edge are derived. The friction coefficients at the tip point and main edge positions are then calculated using the model. The cutting edge radius, tool tip angle, and pitch angle are used as variables. The maximum value distribution of the friction coefficients of the anti-wear ruling tool is analyzed, and the principle that parameter selection for the anti-wear ruling tool should meet requirements for a large cutting edge radius, small pitch angle, and large tool tip angle is proposed for the first time. This principle provides the key to solving the technical problem where tool wear occurs easily during ruling of large-area echelle gratings, which has puzzled researchers for many years. Finally, a ruling experiment is performed using a 79 gr/mm echelle grating. Under the large pitch angle condition, the tool jumping phenomenon occurs because of excessive friction force, which results in ruling failure. The numerical analysis results are verified. The research results in this paper can provide a theoretical basis for anti-wear tool design and ruling process optimization.

Radicalizing safety: A critical narrative analysis to abolish the police

AbstractThe dominant narrative in much of the world is that public safety is provided by policing, evidenced by supportive rhetoric from institutional forces including politicians, media, and large budget allocations in all levels of government. Alongside a long history of police violence, especially against Black, Brown, poor, and other marginalized people, many social movements reject the idea that policing provides safety and seek other methods for community wellness. The present study utilizes critical narrative analysis (CNA) to describe how marginalized residents of a small city in Iowa construct their understanding of personal and community safety. Their stories and the dialectic exchange during interviews illustrated several counternarratives and moments of conscientization for participants and researchers where safety was deconstructed and understood outside the power of recycled institutional narratives. Participants rejected popular notions of safety such as police, and instead embraced safety through robust relationships, community resources, and forms of self‐knowledge such as mental health. We analyzed their interviews as efforts to be humanly recognized within violent white supremacist structures, and their stories help to radicalize popular messages about safety. We highlight their world‐making abilities as they craft their own networks of community and safety outside of the state and police.

Alarming Increase Death in Custodial Death in India: Legal Analysis

Custodial death is not a new concept, especially in India, where it has become a phenomenon since India's rule at the hands of the British. Police brutality and violence has increased exponentially in the last four to five years. This situation shows that there is no law in our country's judicial system to punish officials by "fulfilling their duties" for committing acts of violence and torture. Police violence often results in serious injury to defendants, and police must be informed to use appropriate force to prevent such incidents. The media's perception of the defendants is also a factor in monitoring the violence. The death of George Floyd due to police brutality in the USA sparked a new "Black Lives Matter" movement. The custodial deaths of Jayaraj and Bennix in Tamil Nadu have outraged the public, with calls for adequate measures to prevent police brutality. These incidents highlighted the lack of anti-torture laws in India and called for action to prevent such incidents.

Nigerian Radicalism: Towards a New Definition via a Historical Survey

Abstract Recent military coups in West Africa have put the continent’s democratisation itself into question. In some places, for the moment, these coups appear to have popular backing. Nigeria, where radicalism is firmly rooted in democratic values and a human-rights framework, the radical grassroots opposition to the Buhari government’s creeping authoritarianism lies drenched in blood. The roots of this development go back to the history of Nigeria’s radicalism in the twentieth century. Much has appeared on the global 1968 recently, including that of Africa. 1970s/1980s-style radicalism is reappearing today with Omoyele Sowore’s 2018 presidential candidacy, with the African Action Congress party, the #EndSARS protests and the tragic Lekki Toll Gate massacre (2020) in Nigeria. The shift towards radicalism is palpable with protest music such as Falz’s This is Nigeria, and Burna Boy’s Monsters you Made, both explicitly targeting neocolonialism and police brutality. Contrary to Achille Mbembe’s sweeping dismissal of African radicalism, the movement with very deep roots under study is meaningful once again, and is gathering momentum in West Africa’s giant polity. This article applies Walter Benjamin’s and also Nigerian radical thinkers’ conceptualisation of political, social and artistic radicalism, while it frames the Nigerian version via the movement’s history, in which marxisant theory and praxis, feminism, human rights and pro-democracy movements interact with emancipatory strands of Islam, Christianity, Igbo Judaism, and animism. In the context of Nigerian radicalism, even expressly pro-capitalist art theory performs a radical social function by stressing the African’s right to make universal statements (Olu Oguibe) in its de facto defiance of the neo-colony. As these different strands of protest meet, ethnic uprisings (amongst them IPOB) find ways to establish common cause with social radicalism, posing a composite threat to the prebendalist oligarchy that rules and oppresses the country via a militarised neoliberalism.

On and In Their Bodies

In this article, I place in conversation multiple forms of violence against those who occupy the category of poor black woman in Trinidad: the abuse and premature death of these women at the hands of their partners or strangers, the physical and discursive violence against black women by the state, the theft of their children due to inter/intra-community and police violence, and the grief black women are often forced to carry. I show how these different forms of violence converge on and in black women’s bodies and, rather than being distinct in causation and effect, constitute multiple iterations of the ongoing colonialist extraction of black women’s lives for the creation of different forms of masculinist state and economic power. Ultimately, I show how masculine and feminine subjectivities are produced in tandem with racialized positionings through violence and comprehensively document what is gendered violence and how it is embodied.

The impact of police violence on migration: evidence from Venezuela

The impact of police violence on migration: evidence from Venezuela

A case of iridoschisis with partial lens dislocation in both eyes

BackgroundIridoschisis is a rare condition that primarily affects individuals aged 60–70 years. The predominant characteristics of iridoschisis involve the tissue splitting and separation of the iris stromal layers, often resulting in two distinct layers and the presence of floating fibers in the anterior chamber. This article reports the case of a 48-year-old male with iridoschisis with partial lens dislocation in both eyes.Case presentationTrauma is the leading factor in the development of iridoschisis. However, there is no documented case of ocular trauma in the patient’s medical history. Visible white atrophic fibers were observed bilaterally in the anterior iris stroma of both eyes of the individual, accompanied by a small quantity of iris tissue within the anterior chamber. In this instance, the magnitude of the iridoschisis corresponded with the degree of lens dislocation. We were apprised that the patient had regularly used a cervical massager for a prolonged period of time, positioning it upon the ocular region. Frequent stimulation of both eyes with excessive force resulted in the development of iridoschisis and the partial dislocation of the lens.During the initial surgical procedure, phacoemulsification (Phaco) was carried out on the left eye without the placement of an intraocular lens (IOL). Following a two-month interval, we proceeded with the IOL suspension. Subsequently, the right eye underwent Phaco, accompanied by the implantation of an IOL. After closely monitoring the patient’s progress for two months, it was evident that their vision had significantly improved, substantiating the success of the surgical interventions.ConclusionsThis finding posits that the recurrent friction applied to both eyes may induce iridoschisis and various ocular complications. In the event of ocular intricacies manifesting, expeditious medical intervention becomes imperative.

Roll reduction non-linear controller based on rudder and fin joint for ship

ABSTRACT This study focuses on mitigating ship roll, which significantly impacts navigation. The research investigates a design method for a rudder and fin joint roll reduction controller based on non-linear feedback. A comprehensive 4-DOF motion model of the ship is developed. The controller aims to enhance roll stability by effectively regulating the anti-rolling forces generated by the rudder and fin. Employing a PID controller with time-varying gains enhances the system’s dynamic response and enables it to withstand diverse wave conditions. Non-linear feedback techniques are implemented to minimise control variable outputs, thereby preventing excessive roll reduction forces that might lead to reverse roll. Simulation experiments are conducted to evaluate the roll suppression capability of the proposed controller. The obtained results demonstrate that the non-linear feedback-based roll reduction controller achieves outstanding roll stabilisation efficiency, reduced fin angle and rudder angle outputs, and improved heading stability when compared to conventional PID controllers.

(Re)setting the racial narrative: Antiblackness and educational censorship

Antiblackness is a persistent feature of American society with continued implications for the experiences, outcomes, and well-being of Black communities. In the wake of widespread protests against antiblack police brutality and heightened awareness of racial injustices in 2020, federal, state, and local political actors swiftly began a concerted effort to maintain the illusion of racial progress within the United States. These efforts, which we identify as manifestations of what Carol Anderson (2016) describes as White rage, have taken the form of educational censorship policies that have been successfully enacted in at least 18 states. This study interrogates the policy development process of two such censorship policies in Texas and North Dakota. Drawing on Black critical theory and insights from critical policy analysis, we demonstrate the ways that antiblackness was made legible in the policy development process and conclude with recommendations for combatting the further spread of antiblack educational censorship.