Police receive a call from a female stating that her child has been taken by the father who is possible intoxicated and armed, police initiate a pursuit with the vehicle and the driver. After the vehicle stops the officers attempt to talk the subject out of the vehicle. When the subject gets out of the vehicle he starts walking toward officers with a gun in his hand (the gun is facing the ground.) After officers tell him to put the weapon down multiple times the subject is shot and killed on scene. The mother rushes to the vehicle and removes the child. Investigators state that this is a case of suicide by cop. The mother of the suspect said that the officers should not have shot to kill but should have shot him in the arm, foot or used gas. Police specialist said that the officers did what they were trained to do.
Officers respond to calls that involve unknown circumstances every time they pick up their mic, its just part of their job no matter how good their dispatching team is. When an officer is involved in a case like this they have many key pieces of information that they need to process in a very little amount of time.
1. Are the lives of multiple people in danger because of this suspect?
In my opinion yes, this incident happened on a busy street in broad daylight with a reportedly intoxicated individual with a handgun walking towards officers in an (from my point of view) aggressive manner. If the suspect shot at officers and missed and hit a bystander not only would the suspect still be taken down, the department would most likely be asked why they did not take care of the threat before it happened.
2. Is the child at risk.
Yes, if the father gets back into the car he can then start the pursuit again and injure himself, the child and bystanders.
3. Is it worth the risk
No, the subject was walking towards officers with a gun in hand in an (in my opinion) aggressive manner. It is not known if the weapon in loaded and can be brought to bear against officers at anytime.
These questions need to be answered in the minds of the officers in a split second, and they were. The officers made a choice that so many have to make in this career. As a result the public is asking if they officers did all they could before having to take the final step. No officer wants to shoot someone, but it is part of the job description When you get into a situation like this one, it is a lose/ lose situation.
So why do I feel like this. As a dispatcher for a Law Enforcement agency and a striving student in criminal justice I feel that people need to realize what an officer has to do when he/she makes a decision like that. Either way it is a lose/lose situation and one that will haunt that officer for the rest of his/her life and career.
Like always this post if just my opinion. Remember that if you watch the video use caution in who you watch it with. This post is for my English course.
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