Except this was Arizona, not Vietnam, or Viet Nam as we used to call it.
Yup. Attitude is sorta the same though, ain’t it?
This cop was entirely legally justified in shooting the poor distraught SOB. The Police, reacting to a guy with a pellet rifle like they were going to be the first responders at the next Mandaly Bay, scared him shitless and made him crawl like a dog, and when he screwed up and reached back because maybe his pants were coming off, or his junk was twisted in his undies while crawling, or maybe he was going to draw down on a crowd of loaded, aimed rifles.
Bang you’re dead and I didn’t murder you.
It may well be law, but it isn’t justice.
Ages ago I got out of a car at gunpoint, two county guys responding to a liquor store robbery, I’m driving the same make and model as the bad guy, apparently. I was as compliant as I could be, but I was pretty freaked out, and I’m sure they could have let me have it with those shotguns when I put my hand below my waist when they told me to get on the ground.
But that’s when cops were less militarized and neither of the two were looking for any legal reason to blow me away that day.
It’s kind of like the cops shooting dogs thing. They don’t know when the dog is a psycho hair trigger meat weapon or just the family servant acting wary around a stranger.
Because of guys like Mr. “you’re f**ked” that’s the way I feel when I’m approached by an officer.