Can l take action against police for violating my rights?
Dear Mirror Lawyer, I trade at a market in Kumasi. A few weeks ago, after closing my stall for the day, I was walking to the bus station when a group of police officers stopped me.
They accused me of loitering and demanded to search my belongings. Despite my cooperation, the situation quickly escalated.
One of the officers became aggressive, pushing me against a wall and roughly searching my pockets. I felt humiliated and frightened.
The officers found nothing incriminating and let me go, but the experience left me deeply shaken.
I need your help understanding my rights in such situations. Are the police permitted to use violence on innocent citizens?
What are the legal boundaries for police conduct and what should I do if I face similar aggression in the future?
Kojo Briamah, Kumasi.
Dear Kojo, The use of violence by law enforcement is a serious matter governed by strict rules to prevent abuse and protect citizens' rights.
Under Section 31 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), police use of force is only justified in specific circumstances — such as executing lawful court orders, maintaining public order, arresting a person suspected of a felony or preventing or defending against an ongoing crime.
Force may also be justified to protect property, to overcome obstruction to the exercise of lawful rights, or to maintain order in certain settings.
Crucially, however, Section 32 of the same Act makes clear that force cannot be justified if it exceeds what the law permits or goes beyond what is reasonably necessary for the purpose at hand.
The force used must be proportionate to the situation. In your case, the officer's aggressive conduct — particularly in the absence of any incriminating evidence — appears to fall outside these legal boundaries and may well constitute excessive and unjustified force.
You have the right to ask officers for their names and badge numbers and you should document any such incident as thoroughly as possible, recording the date, time, location and details of any witnesses.
If you believe your rights have been violated, Section 23 of the Police Service Act, 1970 (Act 350) allows you to submit a written complaint to a superior authority within the police service for investigation.
You may also seek legal redress by instructing a lawyer to file a petition to the High Court for breach of your fundamental human rights.
What happened to you, Kojo, was not something you should simply accept. The law is on your side.
