Posted on 10/29/2013 9:59:16 AM PDT by Uncle Chip
SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) Sheriff's officials say the Northern California deputy who fatally shot a 13-year-old boy is a firearms instructor who has trained his law enforcement colleagues in the proper use of force for nearly two decades.
Sonoma County spokesman Assistant Sheriff Lorenzo Duenas said 48-year-old Erick Gelhaus has been an instructor and rangemaster for the county for 19 years.
He also teaches pistol, carbine, shotgun and rifle lessons for Gunsite, a private company in Arizona, according to the company's Web site.
Gelhaus, a 24-year sheriff's office veteran, is a frequent contributor to S.W.A.T. magazine, a monthly firearms publication.
Duenas confirmed that Gelhaus is one of 26 gun instructors for Sonoma County.
He has not only given shooting lessons but also has provided instruction on the proper use of force, Duenas said.
To do that job, "you've got to be good at instructing others," Duenas said, adding: "You have to be able to instruct others on policy and procedures and use-of-force policy issues."
Gelhaus shot and killed Andy Lopez last week in Santa Rosa.
Investigators say Gelhaus mistook the pellet gun Lopez was carrying for an assault rifle....
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Just finished my conceal carry classroom training here in IL. The instructor ran us through an exercise using the weapon involved in this case, basically asking us when we would shoot, I.e., when we would recognize sufficient threat we reasonably had to respond with lethal force. And we all responded at about the same time, when his right side was turned toward us and the threat was a fraction of a second from becoming too late to respond to. The weapon was indistinguishable from the real thing, at least as far as I could tell. The instructor also told us the youth was carrying a pistol in his waistband, and was not responding to commands to put the weapon down. For all intents and purposes, he looked a lot like the next mass killer. So yes it is tragic, but I understand how a well trained officer could respond as this one did.
What was the 13yo kid doing that he deserved to be "taken out"? Just wondering how your little ditty applies here. Was the kid in the deputy's backyard?
aimhigh ~ Hogwash. If someone points a gun at a cop, they should be shot. You are mistakenly assuming the perp will always miss their first shot.
You DO know that this is less restrictive than we require of our combat troops in Afghanistan don't you?
No only do they have a don't shoot unless fired upon ROE, they are also required to call in for permission to return fire.
Do American civilians deserve less protection than a muslim terrorist?
What is the purpose of that other barrel on that pellet gun???
Wow, that looks real enough to me. The orange tip could be easily missed, even in the daytime.
He’s a pro, He’s suppose to know the difference. No excuses.
It’s okay
I was mocking the training. And the training is a function of what is in the government employee/killer's mind, not what the civilian deserves.
Oh my God! He shot that boy SEVEN TIMES!!!!?????
There is NO EXCUSE for that!!
I say that because if a non-cop had shot that buy seven times the non-cop would be in jail!!!!
Damn these bastards holding themselves above the rest of us!!!
Within 6 to 10 seconds the deputy pulled his weapon, opened his door, got behind it, fired 8 shots hitting his target with 7.
Where in there was there time to tell him anything much less make sure he heard him and give him time to respond before taking his life.
Thanks for the link. One has a “battle sight” installed on the barrel, the other does not.
Sure looks like a real rifle to me.
If the perp actually points a gun at a cop, the cop should shoot. Everything else is a "what if" that doesn't fit this standard.
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I’m wondering if there are any recorded incidents of someone painting a REAL gun with a dayglo orange tip...
On a real AK that's where the gas piston is.
Looks like the kid cut off the barrel just ahead of the gas block.
To get rid of the orange tip.
This deputy needs to be assigned to the bow and arrow squad.We don't need people like him teaching others.
thank you for posting. It is nice to have an opinion, but even nice to know something about the subject matter.
The kid cut the tip off his toy gun, probably to make it look more real. Heck maybe even to make some unsuspecting citizen THINK it was real.
“Cops should never be allowed to shoot first.”
I know this guy, yet I tend to agree with you. He is supposedly an Iraq veteran. If so, he knows what it is to not fire unless fired upon. If the ROE are good enough for the screamnig Muslims, it is at least good enough for US.
Oh, I see.
It’s a tough situation. Reading more about the incident, apparently the kid was large for his age and had removed the orange tip from the pellet gun. Or obscured it. Also, the sheriff’s dept had created an ‘incident of a suspicious person’ report.
Did the kid make a move the deputy thought was threatening? Where they in a high crime area? Did the deputy over-react? I guess they will figure it out.
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