One police officer for example referred to the chaos as a "holocaust," far removed from the real world (Shankman et al., 2010).

Alpert and Smith (2001, p. 483) note that a survey of the public showed a general perception that the police is frequently excessively violent in their contact with the public. According to the authors, the targets of reported abuse are generally lower class males, with a common factor being a display of disrespect by these citizens towards the police in question.

It is possible that this perception of "disrespect" could have been a factor in the use of excessive force in New Orleans. The police most likely place excessive emphasis on the role of preventing crime, whereas the desperation of the victims involved drove them to seek out food and water from unattended shops and homes. Hence, the two factors escalated each other, leading to excessive police force,...
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