The biggest part of our problem with police and civilian interactions stem from poor understanding of rights and responsibilities of both parties when interacting with each other. Many police officers don't follow consistent protocols, and many civilians don't understand their responsibilities when engaging with law enforcement. We need one OFFICIAL set of guidelines that we're all expected to follow to improve the quality of our interactions with law enforcement. Police are increasingly militarized in both appearance and behavior, and this creates fear in even the most law abiding citizens. Similarly, civilians are increasingly using widely available, non-authoritative sources of information to determine the right way to engage with law enforcement.



