[SittinYonder]

I didn't say the cop was supposed to know that, did I?

The person I was posting to said this:

but what was the cop supposed to do... get close enough to see that it wasn’t a real gun and get shot?

My only point in my response was that the cop would not have been shot. It was not a real gun.

You won't find anyone more pro-law enforcement than me. My best friend is a sheriff. I've been with his deputies when they were shot at. I've spent many, many, many hours hanging out with them while they are working and while they are playing.

But in this situation, no crime was committed. Cops inserted themselves into a situation when they had not been called upon. The only danger that existed was in their heads.

I am not blaming the cop, though I suspect he is blaming himself all the time. But - again - the people here who immediately cast blame on the parents or the kids were off base, in my opinion.

[A_perfect_lady]

The only danger that existed was in their heads? They were on stake out to stop a string of ARMED ROBBERIES... presumably using real guns. Someone goes running through that same area yelling and waving a gun... Hello? Are they supposed to assume that all guns are fake until proven otherwise? And that people acting suspiciously right in the area they are investigating are probably just playing?

I mean, if you were a cop staking out an area, where, say, dead women bound in duct tape keep turning up, and one night a woman runs by screaming, followed by a guy waving duct tape, that... well... probably has nothing to do with it? Better stay out of it? Come on!

[A_perfect_lady]

I should add that the kid was definitely at fault because when the officer yelled STOP, he didn’t STOP. When the police tell you to STOP, you STOP.