Or something. Given his past statements he could have been reaching for a bag of surrender and they still would have had to shoot him.

If only here were armed! Then this never would have happened.

Seems to me that if you have a target who is not running you have plenty of time to shoot for a leg or something non-vital. Like I'm pretty sure you're trained for that stuff.

almost all training with firearms is center-mass oriented, which means a disabling shot is usually a happy accident

The police aren't Daredevil, I don't expect them to be trained to pull off trick shots. Especially under conditions where they feel their lives might be threatened and adrenaline is likely to mess with their fine motor skills.

Irrelevant note: my favorite gun trick in comics was this one by Dick Grayson, because of course Dick Grayson:

http://comicsalliance.com/files/2014/07/Grayson03.jpg

If they have a target who isn't running but is reaching for a gun, I don't assume that they're trained to shoot them in the thigh.

Also, that gun trick pales in comparison to Ambush Bug ducking a bullet by hiding behind the staple in the center pages of the comic.

Okay, probably so. But I still (inwardly) giggle and clap like an excited toddler every time Grayson picks up a gun and throws it like a batarang.

LaVoy was the cowboy, he's the one who should have shot the first lawman and killed the second off the ricochet. Frankly, his gunfighting skills left a lot to be desired. Given all the fetishizing over the tool in question and the bravado, you'd think he'd at least clipped one.

All the right wing fucks are saying the same thing. Why didn't the cops wait? Why didn't they try non-lethal means? These are all things that went out the window for them when black people get shot by police.
LaVoy was just a thug.

He was a thug, but he was also a human being. Like I've never fired a gun before but it seems like there would've been an alternative in that amount of time, whether it was aiming for non-vital parts or using a tazer. Batshit crazy or not, these people deserve jailtime, not death.

It looks like he's either indecisive about drawing his weapon or fumbling to get it from under his coat. Remember most gun nuts claim that their armed presence would end any active shooter's rampage. I think they overestimate their cool when shit goes down.

One star for oscar wildcat being a fucking dumbass.

Regurgitating rhetoric is not a substitute for having an actual point.

Bwahaha! I've been waiting for you, Gmork! I knew you'd have some strong opinions on the subject, why not take aim and fire away!

But seriously, I have a very pertinent point. The gun is a useless tool against government tyranny. Watch that clip again. He just falls down like a sack of potatoes. The gun was even worse than a ghost shirt, more like a bullet magnet. Like attracts like, my friend.

"He was a thug, but he was also a human being. Like I've never fired a gun before but it seems like there would've been an alternative in that amount of time, whether it was aiming for non-vital parts or using a tazer."

Bear in mind the person you're calling upon to dick around with "shoot the gun out of his hand" trick shots is ALSO also a human being, and is every bit as vulnerable to bullets. So no, I don't fault a police officer for shooting center mass when an armed suspect seems to be reaching for a gun and the officer isn't behind cover of some kind. Or if it's another officer who's threatened, same thing, I'm all for shooting the suspect.

I am also all for officers doing their best to maintain cover until they have talked the suspect into dropping weapons / lying on the ground / etc, so it doesn't become a shoot-or-be-shot situation. Police may have every right to protect themselves, but where possible they should protect themselves in ways that don't harm the suspect either.

OW - for whatever it's worth, I have decided that it's reasonable for me to carry protection in case of muggers or what have you. What am I packing? Pepper spray. I feel like most of the circumstances where I might need to protect myself are up-close enough where pepper spray should do the trick, and there's vastly less risk of killing the other person (to say nothing of mistakenly killing an innocent person).

It's not "girl" pepper spray, though. It's TACTICAL pepper spray. The difference is that it's tactical and therefore I'm not a pussy.

Seriously though, the availability of pepper spray for self defense underscores that "guns for protection" types aren't really in it for the protection, the appeal of packin' heat lies elsewhere.

(Side note, another safety project I'm going to work on is a light-sensing flashing light for when I go bicycling; it'll automatically turn on when it starts getting dark. Photoresistor and an op amp to switch it on and off, a timer chip to make the LEDs flash. And no, I don't have anyone else to tell about these things who would understand what I'm blathering about.)

sorry guys im a little drunk, on a serious note, i dont believe there is any less bitch way to go out than suicide by cop. it belies some underlying respect for authority to me, whether conscious or unconscious but mostly conscious

also were they holding some sort of vote inside the cab? electing or deposing heads of sovereign state? regardless, i bet that fucker stank of B.O. by the third minute if it hadn't been already...

4-way Thelma and Louise moment probably

I can think of no sadder moment for Tarp Man than realizing he was the only one not going quietly, and that his dreams of starting the revolution with his ranch mates was ending in people people peacefully surrendering.

You can't even figure out how to spell cue? Not surprised.

Like most Arizonians, LaVoy had no clue how to drive in the snow.

You can't. Not when it's that deep. Back in Alaska I was at a park in the winter time, and drove on something I thought was a snow covered road. It wasn't a road. It was just the ground covered in deep snow. I tried using my 4 wheel drive, but couldn't get out. Fortunately I was able to flag down a passing truck and they had a towing chain.

Should have been a Ford - would have brought a new meaning to Found Off Road Dead.