Policy Text
Policy
511 Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office
Custody Manual
4/28/2022 Use of Force - 1 Use of Force (Effective 8/23/2022)
511.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance and direction to staff in the use of force
during the lawful performance of their duties. This policy applies to all Office of the Sheriff
Custody Bureau ("Sheriff's Office") sworn staff in the use of force against any person,
which includes inmates and non-inmates.
511.2 DEFINITIONS
For the purpose s of this policy, the following term s are defined a s follows:
Appropriate Force - Force that i s objectivel y reasonable, necessary, proportional and
consistent with thi s policy.
Cooling Off Period - A period of at least ten minutes since the most recent interaction
with Custody Bureau staff during which Custody Bureau deputies will not verbally interact
with the person prior to a planned course of action and should back away from the
immediate presence of the person if consistent with safety and security.
Deadly Force - Any use of force that creates a substantial ri sk of causing death or serious
bodily injury. Deadly Force includes, but i s not limited to, the discharge of a firearm.
De-escalation - The process of using strategies and techniques intended to decrease the
intensity of the situation. The goal of De-escalation is to gain the voluntary compliance
of the person and thereby reduce or eliminate the necessity to use physical force.
De-escalation Techniques and Tactics - Actions used by deputies that minimize the
likelihood of the need to use force during an incident and increase the likelihood of gaining
voluntary compliance from the person.
De Minimis Force - De Minimis Force is a physical interaction meant to separate,
guide, and/ or control the person in a manner that does not cause more than momentary
discomfort, and is not reasonably likely to cause any pain, including: control holds or joint
manipulation techniques without pain, hands or equipment used to stop, push back,
separate, guide, or escort a person, handcuffing, holding or displaying a weapon without
pointing it at a person, or displaying pepper spray.
Force Options - Force Options are choices identified by deputies and agency policy to
overcome Resistance, effect an arrest, prevent an escape, or gain control of an incident.
Feasible - Means reasonably capable of being done or carried out under the
circumstances to successfully achieve the arrest or lawful objective without increasing
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Custody Manual
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Imminent Threat - A threat of death or serious bodily injury is "imminent" when, based
on the totality of the circumstances, a reasonable deputy in the same situation would
believe that a person has the present ability, opportunity, and apparent intent to immediately cause death or serious bodily injury to the peace officer or another person. An imminent harm is not merely a fear of future harm, no matter how great the fear and no matter how great the likelihood of the harm, but is one that, from appearances, must be instantly confronted and addressed.
Inappropriate Force - Force that is not objectively reasonable, necessary, or
proportionate or consistent with this policy. Intermediate Force - Force that is more than De Minimis Force and less than Deadly
Force. This includes force that causes temporary pain, a complaint of temporary pain, or
force likely to cause injuries less than a Serious Bodily Injury.
Objectively Reasonable Force - An objective standard viewed from the perspective of
a reasonable deputy on the scene, without the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, and within the
limitation of the Totality of the Circumstances presented at the time of incident.
Planned Response - A situation where time and circumstances allow staff the
opportunity to strategize an approach to an incident that might require force (e.g., to
remove a person from a confined space or to otherwise enter that confined space within
the jail).
Proportional Force - To be proportional, the level of force applied must reflect the Totality
of Circumstances surrounding the situation at hand, including the nature and immediacy
of any threats posed to staff and others. Deputies must rely on training, experience, and
assessment of the situation to decide an appropriate level of force to be applied.
Reasonable and sound judgment will dictate the Force Option to be employed. Proportional force does not require deputies to use the same type or amount of force as the subject. The more immediate the threat and the more likely that the threat will result in death or serious physical injury, the greater the level of force that may be proportional, objectively reasonable, and necessary to counter it.
Reactive Force - A situation that requires the immediate use of force because the person
is engaged in conduct that poses a threat to safety or security that necessitates an
immediate response.
Reportable Force – The following categories of force or circumstances as a result of the
use of force require mandatory reporting both verbally and in writing to a supervisor.
(a) The use of Intermediate Force or Deadly Force
(b) Force that results in complaints of sustained pain or injury that continues
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(c) Force that results in injury, Serious Bodily Injury, or death
(d) An event that is designated by a supervisor as reportable
Staff is not required to