Social Issues

Policing

For several decades, FRONTLINE has been chronicling policing in America and examining various aspects of police reform and accountability. Watch and explore documentaries, in-depth reporting and interactives.

Related Documentaries

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Families of Uvalde Shooting Victims Sue Texas DPS Officers for Waiting To Confront Gunman
In a separate settlement, the city of Uvalde will pay $2 million to the families, create a permanent memorial to the victims and provide enhanced training for police officers.
May 22, 2024
Risks of Handcuffing Someone Facedown Long Known; People Die When Police Training Fails To Keep Up
Police in the U.S. have been warned for decades that the common tactic of handcuffing someone facedown could turn deadly if officers pin them on the ground with too much pressure or for too long. What some officers are doing today conflicts with what has long been recognized as safe, a deadly disconnect that highlights ongoing failures in police training, an Associated Press investigation has found.
May 14, 2024
In Hundreds of Deadly Police Encounters, Officers Broke Multiple Safety Guidelines
In hundreds of deaths where police used force meant to stop someone without killing them, officers violated well-known guidelines for safely restraining and subduing people multiple times, an Associated Press investigation found.
May 14, 2024
Inside the Investigation into Police Use of Force
A new investigation reveals that over nearly a decade, more than 1,000 people died following encounters where police employed tactics known as "less-lethal force."
May 9, 2024
‘Documenting Police Use of Force’ Filmmakers & Reporters on Navigating Obstacles in Their Reporting
The filmmakers and reporters behind "Documenting Police Use of Force" spoke about how they built an extensive database and created a visual narrative that traces why and how people die in the wake of police using what is known as “less-lethal force.”
April 30, 2024
One Day After Elijah McClain, Another Young Man Was Sedated While Restrained by Police
The day after Elijah McClain’s ultimately fatal encounter with law enforcement and paramedics, another young man ​​— 24-year-old Taylor Ware — was forcibly sedated and later died. Ware’s story unfolds in the documentary, ‘Documenting Police Use of Force.’
April 30, 2024
Dozens of Deaths Reveal Risks of Injecting Sedatives Into People Restrained by Police
The practice of giving sedatives to people detained by police has spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on questionable science and backed by police-aligned experts, an investigation led by The Associated Press has found.
April 26, 2024
For Years She Thought Her Son Had Died of an Overdose. The Police Video Changed All That.
For six years, Karen Goodwin believed her son died of an overdose. But after she finally saw the police body-camera footage, her memories now conflict with stark images of restraint and force.
March 29, 2024
He Didn’t Trust Police but Sought Their Help Anyway. Two Days Later, He Was Dead.
Jameek Lowery, a 27-year-old Black man, was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
March 29, 2024