Do you think some cops are trigger happy?

Question

With people & dogs?

Answer 1

take away the unifrom....they ppl just like anybody else.

Answer 2

I do not think that some cops are trigger happy. There are too many restrictions placed on them today. Today, people that are getting arrested have more rights than the cops do.

If a cop shoots a man that pulls a gun on the cop, there are major investigations done on the shooting. Even if it is all caught on tape and the civilian even pops a few rounds at the officer before the officer hits him.

After the internal investigation is done on it and the officer is cleared, the officer and department still gets sued. What's sad is that some of those cases have actually been won!!!! Like one that I remember reading about in a law enforcement magazine. The officer was lead on a high speed pursuit. The suspect wrecked out, climbed out of the vehicle, and pulled out a weapon. He started firing at the officer. So of course the officer fired back at the suspect. The suspect was hit twice and was pronounced dead on the scene.

All of this was captured on the officers dash mounted camera, however the family of the dead man sued the department on the grounds that the officer killed an MHMR (Mental Health Mental Retardation) patient. Now we have this big idea in our heads that officers can not protect themselves against violence.

Believe it or not, cops don't want to have to go through with all the official investigations and everything after a shooting.

Answer 3

Police train extensively in scenarios to learn how to determine whether the situation calls for them to even pull out their gun, and when to shoot on top of that.

I don't know how the laws are in The States, but in Canada, municipal police need to file paperwork just for (and each and every time they) take out their gun. Canada's federal police, the RCMP, can take out their gun without paperwork, but they will need to be able to justify it in court. I don't know what the rules are for provincial police forces.

Despite what the movies will have you believe, the police don't start wildly firing if a criminal tries to make an escape, as many civilians could be hurt or killed in the process (bullets don't bounce harmlessly off car doors and house sidings, they go right through.)

The police are trained that their gun is only to be used as a last resort if their lives, the lives of their fellow officers, or the lives of the civilians (or even the other criminals) are at risk. That's why the police have so many non-lethal (but painful) means of subduing a resistant or possibly dangerous target (nightsticks, batons, tear gas, tazers / stun guns, etc.)

Police who do use their guns when it isn't appropriate, have to answer for it in court, especially if it costs the lives of civilians or needlessly those of the criminals.

Dogs still fall under similar rules, but they may (I don't know any statistics here) having a higher chance of being shot. Dogs are loyal to a fault, very territorial, defensive of their masters, and most importantly, they cannot be reasoned with.

If a dog thinks you are a threat to his master, he's going to attack you, and he's going to go for the throat. This is part of the reason why humanity adopted and bred dogs in the first place. If a dog is coming for your throat, it's a kill or be killed situation, and most people would take the former option.

Answer 4

I work for a police service in a medium sized city in Canada. I have been a police officer for eleven years and I can remember 4-5 instances where officers discharged their firearms against people (none of which died). No one has been killed by a police officer during my career so far (touch wood), but two officers were killed by bad guys. Is this trigger happy?

The dog this is rare, we get more bears killed here than anything else.

Answer 5

Yes. I do. It is a pwer thing. Too often, I have encountered police officers with attitudes.I have no criminal record and have often bumped heads with cops as I do not have any respect for them whatsoever and I always make sure I let them know. Then they really get attitudes. They think the public should kiss their butts. They think that just because they have a badge that they are automatically entitled to respect. They will defend themselves by saying that they put their life on the line for 'us' but I say, I didn;t ask you to and you knew what you were getting into before you became a cop so if you can't take the heat then get out of the kitchen. Too often they hassle the very people who pay their salaries. Isn't that irony for you?

Answer 6

I think there are plenty of cops who were brained while in the military or in a frat house, so yes I do think some of them are trigger happy. My favorite cops are the young punks that get hired in a hick town and act like they are the biggest badasses on the planet. I just want to see one of those guys try to pull that with my uncle who was a cop in East Cleveland for 22 years. He would make them eat their own head.

Answer 7

definitely, just watch cops on TV, not so much in the northeast, but just look at the ones in the south and west,(example, one cop in Jersey City , Buffalo or Boston will go into the projects or down an alley and come out with the suspect)
where as in Florida, Az, Nevada, there are always about 25 cops with guns drawn and dogs just to search an auto or arrest an old lady.JMO from watching cops.

Answer 8

Absolutely not. Shooting someone is a last resort and changes and is a life changing event for the cop and the offender who was shot.

Answer 9

I wouln't want to be a cop....I can't imagine being in a position where you become numb, due to all the stuff you see...that a split second decision can take someones life, or your life.....I think the job, makes some cops turn ugly....just like lawyers.....we aren't individuals, just a statistic or case number.....

Answer 10

Of course they are. Cops are people just like anyone else. There is bound to be a few bad ones!!!

Answer 11

If there are some, they are definitely not in my area. We have a great police department that works very well for the community.