Replies

"....I am saying that I would never want the thankless job of being a police officer. They can do it right for years, and make a bad split second judgement call and get it horribly wrong. The same things happen in war too. It's called the fog of war. War is happening in our streets, as well as, in other countries. Having the luxury of hindsight makes our indignation seen justified, but is it really??"

I would never want to be in law enforcement either. But my brother was for 33 years, caught a lot of bad guys during that time and never drew his gun; not once. He still had to go out and qualify with his sidearm every month, but never used it in those 33 years.

It's very basic doctrine to enter a dangerous situation like this from a defensive position: cracking the door and maintaining a defensive position until you understand what is happening. You never use deadly force until you ascertain who the bad guys are and explore other options first. You don't shoot first and ask questions later.

Law enforcement is not war and IT IS DANGEROUS TO THE COMMUNITY TO ASSUME IT IS.

Restoring peace and safety to the people of the community is your first and highest priority. Yes, you arrest the bad guys after you talk it through, but you do not enter a situation with guns blazing; innocent people are at risk.

Social skills matter but seem to take a back seat to assault tactics I think? There was a joke in our family that my big brother could strike up a conversation with a fence post. He had a gift for gab and could talk a violent situation down without shooting everyone in sight. Those communication skills must be taught to be sure that the safety of the citizenry is the highest priority.

Hats off to his service in law enforcement. I consider him lucky that he had never entered a situation where split decision reaction was necessary. Some locales are worse than others, and the times and situations are becoming more prevalent. Another factor is training. Sounds like he got good training. Don't know if or what may have played a role here, but obviously something is different.

The only thing we know is that in hindsight a tragic end to this story is the reality. I feel for all involved. There is no action that can change the results. I'll also add, that I'm glad I am not sitting on the jury for this case too. No doubt it is going to be a tough call, and no one will probably be happy with the outcome if a trial is held, which is most likely what will happen.

I don’t mean to take issue with you, but I would guess your brother never FIRED his weapon in the 33 years he was in law enforcement. I would bet he DREW his weapon quite a few times.

We all did.

I went 20+ years and only was involved in one shooting incident. I can tell you it was the most surrealistic experience I’ve ever had. I might as well have pulled up a chair and watched it go down. You develop tunnel vision and your situational awareness is limited to a very tight area immediately in front of you.

On the contrary, I’ve been in positions to be shot at several times and fortunately, was spared becoming a statistic.

Until we know more about what actually happened during this incident, everything is speculation. However, if it occurred like the initial reports indicate, it is a tragedy on many levels. First and foremost for the victim and his family. The officer and his family, and the department he worked for. It will take a long time to reestablish trust between the department and the community going forward. If it ever can be .