Indiana Deputy Shoots Teen During Vocational Class On Law Enforcement

[Cow Poke]

Aw, there he goes getting all emotional again.

Sometimes I wonder if you realize that other people actually read these posts and see you for what you are.

[Gondwanaland]

Sometimes I wonder if you realize that other people actually read these posts and see you for what you are.

Calm down.

[Cow Poke]

Calm down.

So, what's next in the Gondy Playbook - yet another attempt to tie me to H_A?

You can play your little games, Gondy, I'll go back to actually discussing the topic at hand.
I can always address you respectfully in civil conversation - you have proven an inability to do so in return.

[Cow Poke]

He should never have taken a loaded gun into a training situation where firearms would be used.

There are so many training opportunities missed in this situation - such as very purposely and visibly setting his active duty weapon aside in a portable biometric gun vault.
It is still immediately accessible to him as an active duty police officer, yet removes the possibility of accidental discharge.

Then use the brightly colored obviously fake gun for all of the training. In a classroom, there is no reason to do otherwise.

[Mountain Man]

Any training we do that is not actually "live fire" must be done with one of those bright red or blue plastic (or rubber) pistols that are so clearly NOT a gun that they can't be mistaken for one.

training pistol.jpeg

Even if the training weapon was a bright color, I wonder if the deputy's training worked against him, because anybody trained in firearm use will focus on their target instead of the weapon, and he was probably so used to looking down the barrel of a real gun anyway that it likely never occurred to him that there was anything amiss until he fired. I just can't imagine what he was feeling when he realized his mistake.

But this only brings us back to the one question of why he had a live weapon in a training session!

[Diogenes]

Even if the training weapon was a bright color, I wonder if the deputy's training worked against him, because anybody trained in firearm use will focus on their target instead of the weapon, and he was probably so used to looking down the barrel of a real gun anyway that it likely never occurred to him that there was anything amiss until he fired. I just can't imagine what he was feeling when he realized his mistake.

But this only brings us back to the one question of why he had a live weapon in a training session!

Presumably he would still be on duty as a SRO despite what was essentially a lecture. Why even pull any weapon during a seminar on what a cop would do in a situation? Was the cop incapable of using his fingers?

Easy rule, don't point a weapon at someone (training, nonlethal, unloaded, loaded, etc.) unless you're prepared to pull the trigger.

[Cow Poke]

Even if the training weapon was a bright color, I wonder if the deputy's training worked against him, because anybody trained in firearm use will focus on their target instead of the weapon, and he was probably so used to looking down the barrel of a real gun anyway that it likely never occurred to him that there was anything amiss until he fired. I just can't imagine what he was feeling when he realized his mistake.

But this only brings us back to the one question of why he had a live weapon in a training session!

Yes, this goes back to locking his duty weapon in a lock box at the very beginning of class as part of the lesson on safety, as well as the protection from such accidents.

[Cow Poke]

Presumably he would still be on duty as a SRO despite what was essentially a lecture. Why even pull any weapon during a seminar on what a cop would do in a situation? Was the cop incapable of using his fingers?

Easy rule, don't point a weapon at someone (training, nonlethal, unloaded, loaded, etc.) unless you're prepared to pull the trigger.

It sounds a bit silly, but when a cop is "re-enacting" a shoot scene, and needs to "aim" at another person, he will generally use his hand as a pretend gun like you suggest, so as not to risk an accidental discharge.

There was a situation many years ago where a Cleveland, Ohio police officer was explaining his recent "officer involved shooting" to other officers in the locker room, and he actually pulled his duty weapon and shot and killed one of his best friends.