The most serious abuse of authority is when officers use their legal power to use force against individuals without just cause. Abuse of authority involves officers’ misuse of the power and authority inherent in their positions.
Police officials sometimes don’t even know when the city settles because it is a decision made by city officials outside the police department. Police officers believe that city lawyers are too quick to settle “nuisance” claims, where the officer is not at fault; however, when such cases do go to trial, there is the risk of a much larger judgment.The important point to note though is that civil lawsuits seem to be independent from the department’s own discipline system and, rarely, is there the mechanism to take note of when officers become the target of lawsuits multiple times.
source
