Given that the cop was investigating the incident and hadn’t gathered all facts beyond a reasonable doubt yet (that’s the job of the courts, cop is just trying to figure out WTH is going on and apprehend _suspects_), that “put the car into gear” was on top of the strong likelihood of a DUI in progress involving several additional violations & suspicious behavior turning into a DUI while fleeing police in a residential/educational area.
You’d rather a drunk be racing around at high speeds with lots of pedestrians & other vehicles in the area?
Again, not “beyond a reasonable doubt” proof in court, but the cop did stop what could reasonably have turned into a drunk killing several people.
“Again, not “beyond a reasonable doubt” proof in court, but the cop did stop what could reasonably have turned into a drunk killing several people.”
I’m sorry, but “could reasonably have turned into” is not—and should not be—the standard for the use of deadly force by a police officer (or anyone else, for that matter). The standard is whether the officer reasonably believed there was an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm to the officer or others. Imminent is the key word. Not “could have turned into” a threat.