Thanks for the reply, but your analysis was based on slightly in-exact facts.
1. In the Sterling Costco shooting - They did NOT taze her. One officer fired a taser which did not work. I.e. the article infers that the tasing was ineffective, but the TRUTH is the taser malfunctioned. The second officer did nothing, he didn't pull HIS taser, he didn't shoot, the first officer tried his taser which did not work, and then HE SAYS she lunged at him with a knife and (allegedly) scissors. But the proof is in the specific details. The lady allegedly was upset, was waving her hands around, waving her scissors around and then went to another station and got a knife. We don't know the size of the knife, but she was waving it around. It's not corroborated that she 'lunged' at anyone.
The cops did NOT clear the store, they did not set up any kind of perimeter (after all if this is a dangerous perp, one who they might be FORCED to shoot, they should be standing back 10 feet, the store should be cleared). Yes, it's clear that you can't know how out of control it might get.
The officer(s) had two tasers, I would presume nightsticks, batons or PR-24s, pepper spray, and radios. Are YOU TELLING ME that shooting someone five times with a .40 or .45 caliber is the ONLY option for a 105lb, 5'2" Filipino woman an employee of COSTCO? If I'm a 6' 220lb cop wearing a vest and carrying two tasers, spray and a baton, I think I could take out a little 50 yo Filipino woman with one hand (a poke with a PR-24), while watching a video on my cell phone and yawning. COME ON. No hostage, no rampaging formidable perp. An upset grannie waving around tools from the job.
2. The kid was yelled at and may have had the weapon under his armpit, we don't know. He turned around and the barrel was oriented in the direction of the officers. That's a BIG DIFFERENCE than 'pointing' meaning sighting, at officers who were behind the door of their squads, and 25 feet away, and TEN SECONDS later they shot him six times. (probably one officer fired and they all joined in).
3. The last one, a guy was at his aunts and went out to her car to get something, a cell phone. The cops came up behind and called for him to turn around and he had something in his hand. He was on private property, it was a book or a cell phone, and was not pointed at them, they had gone to the wrong address. They shot at him six times and hit him once in the leg. They had no right being there, went to the wrong address, on private property and someone bending over getting something out of the car is not RAS for a burglary and orders to get prone. If you did this for everyone getting their stuff out of a car, no one would be safe. The cops should have backed off and called in and verified. Instead they went onto this property like stormtroopers. They realized that just turning around with a small item in hand was not enough so they added 'lunged at them'. The guy didn't lunge at them with a cell phone - COME ON. They clearly lied to cover up their mistake.
I all of these it was daylight, not raining, no distractions, plenty of TIME to back off and try to resolve or de-escalate. They ESCALATED as quickly as possible to a hail of bullets. This is what I'm saying is wrong.
