Horrible pain that cop has to deal with for the rest of his life. The dad should be strung up.
Is it S.O.P. for Missouri cops in K.C. to respond to calls on the Kansas side of the state line? Do the MO cops have arrest powers in Kansas? Not saying they shouldn’t care or try to help, but shouldn’t the Kansas cops be running the crime scene?
Dogs, mothers holding infants, invalids in wheelchairs, old people awakened suddenly, and little girls...
MOTS!
Welcome to America of the last 30-years...
The mad, the sad and the bad.
We need phasers that can be set to stun
Nothing’s so bad that responding cops can’t make it worse. Sometimes...a lot worse.
Ask any cop. Domestic disturbances are the worst assignment.. You will always be on the wrong side.
“The toddler was killed by a single shot fired into the trailer by a Joplin police officer, according to state officials.”
Strange. The fellow killed his girlfriend and shot the place up, but cops didn’t return fire. More cops arrive and one of them fires. Had the fellow stopped shooting? Had he already killed himself? Was a swat cop aiming directly at him with the ‘single shot’ that killed the little girl??
Horribly tragic! What about the mother who was “gunned down”? Was she killed?
.....obviously we don’t know enough at this point to come to any informed decision. But, I will say 2 things:
1. The cops took 90 rounds incoming without firing downrange. That speaks well of the professionalism and bravery of the cops on the scene except for the 1 round from the Joplin cop.
2. It seems to me that cops should develop a new strategy for distraught fathers in disputes with wives or estranged wives or girlfriends most likely over a child.
This is just a suggestion but how about DON’T run up on the house with a bunch of cops and panic the father? Why not stay back as far as possible while keeping the house in sight and just observe and hopefully communicate and calm him down? Why can’t it be plain unlawful for a cop to shoot into a dwelling unless he is a SWAT officer with the cross hairs on the perps head and has the permission of the chief?
Just a few suggestions for intelligent discussion. But, “something” needs to change.
When you spray lead all bets are off.
When you really want to put the cherry on top of a fustercluck, call in SWAT!