Warning shots. Sigh.

I've seen the approved use of "warning shots" by LE come, go and come back again. Dunno how many times that cycle will be repeated. I remember a few times having spoken with an attorney who specializes in consulting to LE agencies about this subject, among many others, that reflect the evolution of policies and procedures used by LE agencies to keep pace with evolving law coming out of court cases.

I know one major agency who brought back the ability to use warning shots, but the caveat was that a "warning shot" could only be used if the officer found him/herself in a situation where the use of deadly force was already reasonable and justifiable, but the officer thought he/she could take someone into custody via the use of a warning shot instead of shooting the suspect ... wait for it ...

AND, the warning shot could only be fired if it was able to be specifically directed into a backstop material that would contain it, and not allow it to be deflected off of, or penetrate through, the material and endanger anyone else. Choose wisely, or you're at least at risk of being found out-of-policy (which is never a good thing), and that certainly won't be helpful if you face either/or criminal and civil problems due to the warning shot hitting something that ought not have a hole in it.

That's kind of a hint, huh?

__________________
Ret LE Firearms inst & armorer