If you are a police officer would you shoot to kill your own child in a shooting situation if your child had a firearm as in a school shooting or public place situation?
Well, I HOPE it wouldn’t be needed.I would HOPE that he would snap to and recognize me and give me a chance to stop him without killing him. But, he is still going to face the law for whatever he’s done.But, if he forced me to decide between him and the lives of a dozen others, he’s going down. Like anyone else, I hope it can be avoided. But, hope doesn’t always work. And, I would have to admit fault here. Clearly I didn’t notice he was a threat and I should, since I would be around him from birth. And, well, where did he get the firearm? Is it one of mine? Did he steal it? This opens a lot of questions that need answers.
How many teachers or police officers are willing to shoot an armed child?
When you consider that “armed child” is willing to kill THEM, their only choice would be to shoot the child. Now, if they practice shooting regularly, as they should, they should be able to shoot to disarm the child, so they don't have to kill the armed child.The point of being armed and trained in firearms use is for the ability to STOP a crazy/evil person from committing mass murder.
How do police officers shoot ?
In combat shooting you are taught to point and shoot with both eyes open. You can not shoot to wound, never fire a warning shot and do not try to aim for a limb, aim for center mass. Some children have been shot with toy guns that appear to be real guns.
How do we best protect our children in school from harm?
The problem lies deeper in how kids are treated and educated.
Would cop shoot a child who is holding a toy gun, even if he is certain that it is a toy? Is it a matter of policy?
Reading the answers to question is saddening. Several argue that the cop has a right (nearly a duty) to shoot the kid based on the fact that any toy gun could be a real weapon. Taking a look List of American police officers killed in the line of duty is educating. A short summary:About 1/3 deaths are cause by shootings, 1/4 by traffic accidents; the rest is a mix of illness, accidents and violence. All tragic and several more than need be; The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP) where I checked the circumstance of the Gunfire deaths provide a fitting memorial for these.However, checking the gunfire cause, I did not find a single office shot by a child (the check is certainly foolproof, but the conclusion is backed up by a thorough, but futile, google search). The only death cause by kids (or rather juveniles) was a cop who die falling from a wall while pursuing three juveniles for a car theft.The fear driven argument - "spot the fake.... too late... you are dead" - is not valid, and should not be used to approve the shooting of kids. Actually doing so will likely alienate large segments of population from the law enforcement. Kids are kids, playing with toys, especially slightly dangerous ones; don't shoot them - for obvious reason this is not an issue in the rest of the civilized world (sorry, USA). Rather take a look at the videos with cops how positively engage with kids. Having said all this, the question answers itself - no, a cop spotting with certainty a fake gun, will not shoot the kid waving the gun about.
Do you see the shooting of a 'good guy with a gun' by police on Thanksgiving night at an Alabama mall having any effect on the idea of arming teachers?
Can’t say, not knowing all the details but perhaps it should have an effect on police training. I have heard a number of officers say that when they show up to an incident, they are going to shoot anyone with a gun who is not a cop. This is probably just talk to intimidate lawful CCW holders but is not even appropriate then.For the most part, police should be under the same burden of reasonable fear as non-police.Again, I can’t apply this to the particular event as the facts are not widely known.