Why can't we have old bill like this?

[R1Man]

"Some ' low life' in Polk County Florida who got pulled over in a routine traffic stop ended up killing the deputy who stopped him.
The deputy was shot eight times, including once behind his right ear at close range.
Another deputy was wounded and a police dog killed. A statewide manhunt ensued.
The low-life was found hiding in a wooded area with his gun. SWAT team officers fired and hit the guy 68 times. "

Naturally, the media asked why they shot him 68 times.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, told the Orlando Sentinel:

"That's all the bullets we had!"

[4GS]

In Bosnia we were told we could only use minimal force and only to use lethal force if there was no other option.

A Danish troop commander called in an airstrike to remove Serb militia who had laid anti tank and anti personnel mines on the track she wanted to take her take her vehicles on.

At her Courts Martial her defence was that if she went up the track, her soldiers, vehicles and her would be killed by the mines and there was no other way she could proceed.

She got off with it

[Gromit]

A bit more background on the case

http://www.snopes.com/crime/cops/judd.asp

[evedawn]

on a similar note...

when we lived in Africa9and each had a firearm) we had many friends who were coppers. There was at the time, alot of housebreaking (and subsequent rape and murder) ...

all our copperr friends said if that happened to us we must "shoot to kill" not just to wound and then bury the body ourselves...as....get this....

if we wounded the guy we'd get into far more serious trouble (jail etc) than he would for trying to enter our property in the first place....

Luckilly we never had to put that to the test.


madness!

[Gromit]

We do have Police like that.

Do you not remember the young Brazilian chap who was minding his own business one day only to have his head pumped full of bullets.

[evedawn]

yeah - good point grommit....

what a horrible saga that was! (is)

[4GS]

Gromit
Whatever the rights or wrongs in that particular case, I can tell you that he was shot eight times at close range in order to destroy the brain.
Without going into too much detail, I was taught to imagine a crosshair above the persons eyes in the middle of the fore head, then above each ear, back of the head and then imagine the head in four sections and shoot into each section, thus destroying any chance that the terrorist could detonate the bomb. This procedure was also carried out by the SAS in Gibraltar when they killed some IRA bombers in the 1980's
Thankfully I never had occasion to do this

[Gromit]

4GS

Remind me not to get on your bad side, mate.

[Stu in USA]

Be careful what you wish for. Do you really want to live in a country where they shoot first and ask questions later. I can never understand why if the authorities really have to shoot someone they can't aim for their legs, or if they're carrying a weapon, their arm/hand. I know that the head/torso is a bigger target, but even killing "some low life" should be avoided in my opinion.

[jno]

The taxpayers have had to pay for 67 unnecessary bullets. I'm not surprised if they complained.

No, Stu, I don't know what happened to non-lethal force either. The problem with Mr de Menezes wasn't the shooting so much as the non-existent intelligence.

[4GS]

Shooting someone in the arm or leg will not incapacitate them enough to stop them from killing you or someone else if they are determined to do so, lethal force is the only option open to the law enforcement agencies in order to prevent loss of innocent life.

I don't like telling 'war stories' but I have been in that situation myself in N.I, lethal was used which prevented further casualties

[jno]

I appreciate that, 4GS, but the sheriff's response clearly indicates that this was abotu revenge, not incapacitation.