So a punk pulls out what looks like a bona fide pistol and you are going to take the time to ask, “Excuse me Mr Criminal sir. Is that a real pistol or a BB gun?”.
Yeah. I can see that happening.
The only reason the hero shooter fled the scene is possibly because he had a criminal record and might have been prohibited from having a gun. Just a guess.
“Excuse me Mr Criminal sir. Is that a real pistol or a BB gun?”.
Threatening/robbing people with a fake pistol is considered the same as using a real pistol under the law. Waving said pistol around and pointing it at people is grounds to fire upon such a person. You don’t have to wait for someone to get shot.