Posted on 06/25/2021 8:17:09 PM PDT by BenLurkin
A man who intervened in a shooting that killed a police officer near Denver was shot and killed by a responding officer while holding the suspect’s AR-15, police said Friday.
Johnny Hurley, who has been described by police as a hero who prevented further bloodshed, shot suspect Ronald Troyke on Monday after Troyke gunned down Arvada Officer Gordon Beesley with a 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun.
After shooting Beesley twice, Troyke shot out the windows of police cars in the city’s downtown district, returned to his truck to get an AR-15 and was confronted by Hurley, who shot him with a handgun. When an officer arrived, Hurley was holding Troyke’s AR-15 and the officer opened fire, police said.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
In this case what would have been the correct thing to do?
The cops converging on the scene see one of their own down.
They see a guy with an AR over another guy down.
Of course they’re going to shoot the guy with the gun.
They don’t know anything else about the situation.
The Civilian was a Hero until he was shot DRT.
“...what would have been the correct thing to do?”
“Hands up”; don’t shoot.
It is a sad commentary on the state of affairs but... As a private citizen you should regard your firearm as a means to protect yourself and loved ones from imminent death or significant harm. Because there are significant risks associated with using your firearm. Choosing to intervene in someone else’s problem, accepting those risks...that’s a tough call, one everyone who carries should consider before carrying in public. Just who or what are you willing to accept those risks for?
Every case is different. Not a good situation especially nowadays with so many dangerous dings and all the hate for cops. They're quick on the trigger for good reason.
The firearm is for personal defense.
It is when a person acting as though they are the police many time turns out very badly for them.
Trigger happy police. Then again we hear police are the only ones who need guns.
Sad...fog of war? Remind self...don’t get involved unless not getting involved will find you dead.
I recall one case which an armed citizen who tried to intervene and take out a shooter, but lost his life at the hands of an accomplice that he was not aware of.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQOHBSuY7TM
Cops need to work on their friendly fire policies. Well, the guy is a hero, even if he was killed by an idiot overedosing on adrenaline. I hope the cops make a decent settlement towards the guy’s family.
Thanks Ben for posting this. As others have noted, there is an important lesson to be learned here. If you are holding a gun when the police arrive at a shooting, then YOU might well be assumed to be the shooter. And so you yourself could be shot.
The same applies during a home invasion. You call 911 to report an intruder. The police respond. You meet them while holding a gun. You get shot.
It’s tough to behave perfectly when under stress. But folks, do everything you can to make the police understand that you are not the threat.
These stories you can pretty much figure out what happened.
There is no way the citizen was given warning and enough time to react. He wouldn’t have deliberately ignored a call to drop the gun. Cop runs to the scene and start blasting away.
In this situation, kick the bad guys gun away gun and stick the your own gun,on your gun in your belt or pocket, out if sight by available if you need it. Don’t let the cops rushing to the scene see a gun in your hand.
Ooops.
L
If the officer has had training at FBI, he probably thought it might be a baby or a dog the hero was holding... /s
IAC, the heat of the moment plays hell with critical thinking, even in cops...
Especially if there’s shooting going on.
I had forgotten about that incident.
He didn’t even look or glance at her.
Shoot first, issue stern instructions later?
How were they supposed to know that he wasn’t the shooter? A typical gun owner doesn’t carry an AR15 on his person, does he? If the AR15 was already reported as the possible weapon, the cops only had a split second if they were wrong. He made a tragic mistake, and the responding officers are going to have to live with his decision and theirs for the rest of their lives.
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