Hyperactive Delirium: Police Need EMS-Trained Physician-Led Team To Avert Crises

• In Event: Policing and Critical Incidents and Crises

Abstract

This paper examines Federal Appellate Circuit Court decisions related to hyperactive or excited delirium to demonstrate how the outcomes of these cases can be different if police treat subjects exhibiting signs of excited delirium as medical emergencies instead of using force to control them. While police officers are still able to justify their use of force by applying the Graham factors, there is much more to this condition than a convenient explanation to cover up police misconduct. Adequate training on this controversial condition is a must to effectively handle these situations and avoid police liability.

Author

• Vidisha Worley, Lamar University