I was an enlisted Marine, I know about controlled fire on target. This is not in the open combat. It is a closed and small area and when the criminal opens fire and moves in a threatening manner you fire until the criminal is down. It is split second with little time to change what comes from automated muscle memory once the actions are started. They seem to have reacted appropriately. This isn’t a scripted TV show it’s real life. Three police firing an average of 10 rounds apiece in a two to three second period to neutralize a threat. Doesn’t sound like cowardice to me. In this case, go find another soapbox.
Soapbox? A completely innocent guy’s dead and it’s just tough luck because the cops involved had “muscle memory”? In your enthusiasm for our police protectors you seem to have lost some perspective. Allegedly, they are supposed to “protect and serve” not go all mad moment one one clown in a fast food restaurant.
Would you have accepted that kind of performance from a fellow Marine? I wouldn’t have. Combat takes courage, not just “muscle memory”.