What is the burden of proof against a police officer in a civil case?

Equally important, a police officer must have control over the manner and means of making an arrest or detention. The interests of the commonwealth happily coincide here with sound logic. Both dictate that "[t]he calculus of reasonableness must embody allowance for the fact that police officers are often forced to make split-second judgments--in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving--about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation." (Graham v. Connor, supra, 490 U.S. at pp. 396-397, 109 S.Ct. at p. 1872.) Placing the burden of proof on the plaintiff gives the police appropriate maneuvering room in which to make such judgments free from the need to justify every action in a court of law.