What happens when a police officer shoots someone in the line of duty?
In the US, it is common that the officer will be placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. It is considered good policy that the shooting be investigated by another agency (such as a State Police investigation for a local agency shooting), but it may vary by agency. For instance, my agency belongs to a multi-agency Use of Force Task Force which investigates all serious use-of-force incidents in the area (and no, the agency involved in the shooting incident will not investigate its own incident). The officer's firearm and magazines (or speed loaders, for revolvers) should be taken as evidence and for testing (ballistics and proper function). The officer should have another weapon issued, but this varies, again, by agency. The officer will probably be taken to a hospital for blood and urine testing to verify that alcohol or other drugs are not present. The investigation will proceed according to the investigating agency's policy. This might include an initial interview of the officer, followed up by an in-depth interview a day or two later. During the investigation, the officer will remain on administrative leave, but will be required to be available, as needed, for interviews or other investigation-related activities. If the investigation reveals the use of force was appropriate, the officer will be allowed to come back to active duty. The return date may depend on when the officer is ready to return to duty, since shootings can be very traumatic events. The officer will probably be required to see a psychologist or psychiatrist to assess the officer's emotional status before being released to active duty. Statistically, an officer involved in a shooting is more likely to be involved in another serious use-of-force incident within a year or two, so special attention should be paid to ensure the officer is adjusting well. If there are problems revealed through the investigation, the officer may be disciplined, face a re-training period to address deficiencies, or could face criminal charges. The officer should expect to be sued by the other person (or that person's relatives) no matter whether the shooting is determined to be within policy and / or law.
How does a police officer cope after killing an innocent person?
I'm not sure how you can seriously ask this question. Was the officer a psychopath or someone wacked out on drugs? Of course not. They fucked up and made a beeg boo boo that cost this man his life. There are plenty of reasonable arguments that the dead man did a poor job of sitting still with his hands up and still etc., but the long and short of it is the officer pulled the trigger without processing all the information he was getting. Call it nerves or new guy syndrome but your question is not in the least bit grounded by anything except something in your mind that most of us cannot comprehend.Normal police or citizens do not get off on killing other people. When normal people are forced to shoot someone they usually get over it but they never forget it. I haven't.When it happens it's bad enough that the dead person earned it. If/when you made this kind of error you will carry it with you forever not to mention pay the price for negligent homicide in the court system.
What would happen if a Police officer shot the President while protecting him?
They would get him medical attention.If it is an accident it is an accident (albeit an unfortunate one.)Sometime police shoot an innocent person trying to stop crime.This is however very unlikely to happen to the President since the Secret Service tightly controls the inner protection rings.At least one of the Secret Service agents is tasked with “covering” the President (or other protectee) with his own body — and they’ll ‘hurt’ him if necessary to do this.At least one is tasked with taking down the attacker(s) if feasible (e.g., close enough.)The ones who would be shooting are HIGHLY trained at NOT shooting the protectee (and if possible not shooting anyone else than the attackers.)Mistakes happen, but they are unlikely to happen this way — mostly because this is something the Secret Service agents actively train to prevent.
What happens to police officers who are fired then go to prison?
You have posted a lot of falsehoods in your question. This was a road rage incident involving an off duty Officer who beat the student. The other convicted Officers were convicted of obstruction of justice type crimes, a fifth plead guilty, and a sixth was acquitted (found not guilty). This was not some big time crime spree by these Officers. It was a one time incident. There was no old man or pregnant woman...............get your facts straight. http://michiganmessenger.com/15691/appea... http://www.toledoonthemove.com/news/news... Once you have been convicted of crimes like this you are not going to get hired as a Police Officer again. The acquitted one probably either got his job back or will get hired somewhere else. EDIT: Getting thumbs down for pointing out the obvious.........nice.
As a police officer, what do you do if someone shoots at you in a heavily dense public space where there is a fair chance that returning fire will harm bystanders?
It’s kind of like hunting.Sight your target, aim EXTREMELY well, know what is behind your target, and fire only when you have a clear target and “know” you will hit it without endangering anyone else.Sadly, these conditions rarely exist perfectly. The civilians around may be running in your line of fire, the threat may be using hostages, you may have obscured vision due to walls or objects that your round may penetrate, and so on.We were responsible for every round we fired. One of the worries expressed in going from the six shot revolvers to the 15+ round automatics was that more officers would “spray and pray” endangering bystanders. I don’t think we have the massive casualties that they expected 30 years later. But, we only hear of the people shot intentionally, not the bystanders. Either marksmanship has improved drastically, or the officers involved miss everyone if they miss.I have heard of one person, shot by accident, when an officer engaged a threat and the round penetrated into a barbershop. Not sure how that happened, but it shows it can happen.The officer is in a tough place. If he fires, he might hit someone other than the threat. Even if he doesn't fire, the threat may keep shooting at him, endangering bystanders. What do you do? You make a judgement call at the time, with what information you have, hoping to stop the threat and prevent injuries to bystanders. Praying doesn’t hurt.I was truly blessed in that I never had to deal with this type of situation. I pray that others are equally as blessed.
Why do Police officers get away with killing innocent people?
Use of force is a complicated business. I think the reason to you believe your question is because the media leads you to believe it. Other than watching the news, have you ever done anything to expand your knowledge of this subject? Many police departments and Sheriff's offices offer citizens academies which have use of force scenarios. They are a real eye opener for many. If you are really interested in the subject, check out Force Science. It provides real science on use of force vs. some media person giving you a fraction of the truth. Putting small holes in people is actually a very ineffective way to stop an immediate threat. Threats are stopped by hydraulic failure (bleeding out) or central nervous system shut down. Option one can require a significant amount of time, up to 10 minutes. The second option require hitting very small targets which is difficult under pressure and with movement. I have seen cases where a man was shot 11 times and still managed to kill a couple federal agents. It is not like on TV. Once lethal force is justified the amount of bullets is irrelevant. Accidental shootings are extremely rare given the amount of daily police contacts. Shooting a "non-minority" just isn't exciting enough to make money for the news networks. I am always fascinated by what people fear. You are a million times more likely to die in a car crash, yet no one fears driving.
If police start shooting at an innocent person but they miss, and that person pulls out their own legal gun, and shoots and kills the police, do they get charged or is it self-defence?
Despite what you may have heard it is extremely rare for a police officer to just open fire on an ‘innocent person’ perhaps top of the list of things you do not want to do in the situation is to draw a weapon of your own. The competition for the stupidest thing to do in the presence of a police officer who already has his gun out and pointed in your direction is to fire it. Never mind if you will be charged or be able to plead self-defense.Short answer; hell yes you will be charged, quite likely with first-degree murder and with aggravating circumstances. You might be able to plead self-defense but if the police officer Identified himself before the first shot was fired you will have a damned tough time in court
What happens when a cop shoots someone?
Yes, the officer is taken off the street during the investigation. His firearm is also impounded. Some department's refer their officers for counseling. Getting involved in an on-duty shooting is very stressful. The police department conducts an investigation to determine if the shooting was within policy and to see if any criminal violations occurred. The case is also referred to the prosecutor's office. The DA or State's Attorney also conducts an investigation to see if any criminal charges are warranted. Some police agencies also have a civilian review board, though I'm not familiar enough with that process to explain what they do. Some jurisdictions also hold a coroner's inquest. The police department investigates these matters immediately. Detectives and investigators will work 24 hours straight if necessary. But each case is unique. Complex cases may take several days to resolve.
Police officers: Do you shoot to kill or shoot to stop?
If it helps at all, I teach my Officers to shoot center mass of the body. This is done for several reasons. First, it gives the largest target area. You are aiming at a general area 18 inches wide and 3 feet tall. Even a "miss" will still hit the body. Secondly, shooting center mass ( not "mast" as claimed above me), neutralizes the threat. We are taught to neutralize, NOT KILL. If it happens that the offender dies from gunshot wounds in the body, I can legally go into court with full documentation and prove that we are attempting to immobilize, not kill. Even when an Officer is cleared of all legal wrongdoing in a shooting scenario, they are still open to civil charges of "wrongful death" by members of the family. And unlike shooting at a qualifying range, there is actual stress and the "pucker factor" of a real situation. You are not thinking at this point but using what is called muscle memory. The body will do what it is has been taught to do and trained to do by repetition. Again, another reason to shoot center mass. Neutralize the threat. Stop them from shooting back. By the way, and this is for Adam, whom I suspect has NO weapons experience. I am also a competitive shooter and I have represented my Department for the last 19 years in the Police Olympics in rifle and pistol competition. Our pistol competition is using 4 inch barrels and is shot at 50 yards ( yes, yards,,,,,that means 150 feet) and is done for points, which means the main item you are aiming at is a circle 3 inches in diameter. Picture standing half a football field away and shooting at something slightly larger than a silver dollar. Over the years, I have earned 330 medals and trophies for my shooting abilities. Pistols are extremely accurate. When you coordinate trigger control, aiming and breathing control together, the shot will go in the same place each time. This is the muscle memory I work at teaching my people during requalifications. I hope this helps and you can find it useful Source(s): Firearms Instructor, Arsenal Officer, Armorer, Use of Force Instructor, Chemical Munitions Instructor, NRA rated competitive shooter and lifetime NRA member.