Free Republic

Just before 4 p.m., Hector Alaniz’s mother called police to “report that her son was suffering from mental illness and may be a danger to others,” Officers saw that he had what appeared to be a black pistol, and as he entered a driveway, he pointed the gun at officers, prompting the use of a 40 mm less-lethal launcher and at least one officer to open fire, police said. “Despite the suspect being struck by both gunfire and 40mm [less-lethal] projectiles, he again continued to flee until an officer discharged a TASER, incapacitating Alaniz, allowing officers to take him into...

The Minneapolis City Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee wanted to discuss the use of less-lethal weapons by the Minneapolis Police Department, but the city attorney’s office advised against discussing the issue publicly because the city is facing several lawsuits related to the use of less-lethal munitions. Less-lethal weapons include projectiles such as rubber bullets, beanbags and tear gas canisters. Despite the concerns of the city attorney’s office, several City Council members discussed a recent University of Minnesota study of the use of less-lethal weapons during the civil unrest following the murder of George Floyd last year. The U of...

U.S. Army soldiers have used "excessive" and "unauthorized deadly force" in Iraq to defend supply convoys because they did not have the proper weapons, according to a commander's secret internal memorandum. The memo says soldiers need precision-guided pistols, in addition to heavy-fire machine guns, to ensure that innocent people are not killed. The memo was written by Brig. Gen. Joseph J. Chaves, who commands an Army National Guard brigade that performs the perilous job of guarding convoys that move in and out of Camp Anaconda, a sprawling logistics base near Balad, north of Baghdad... ...In the March 15 memo, Gen....