News
CHARLOTTE, N.C.—A new national consensus policy by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (and 10 other law enforcement organizations) aims to help law enforcement departments manage the use of force.
Womble Carlyle attorney Scott MacLatchie recently joined WSOC-TV News to discuss the policy, which is intended as a list of best practices, including how to de-escalate tense situations.
“I think the language is really just articulating what a lot of officers and myself have been trained,” MacLatchie told WSOC-TV News. “It gives the public the same measuring stick that the department itself will be using if an officer's conduct is called into question.”
MacLatchie has extensive experience defending law enforcement officers in police shooting cases. He also has served as an adjunct faculty member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the Southeastern Center for Police Law and Liability Management, with an emphasis on police use of force. In addition, he has a personal background in law enforcement, having served as a Reserve Deputy Sheriff in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department since 1979.
Scott MacLatchie’s practice has been primarily devoted to the defense of law enforcement officers and municipalities in police misconduct and related civil rights litigation in both state and federal courts. He has substantial trial experience with successful verdicts in a wide variety of cases including police shootings, deployment of police dogs, use of force (deadly and non-deadly), asset forfeiture and miscellaneous search and seizure matters ranging from false arrest to execution of high risk search warrants. He practices in Womble Carlyle’s Charlotte office.
