Third shot okay in SD shooting?

[Texas Star]

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NZYR2wVRlk[/ame]

Watch this episode of a cop show set in Victoria, Australia. Sr. Detective P.J. Hasham has shot a woman charging him with a machete. In a prior episode, the gun was seen better, a Model 10 snub S&W, I think. Fired three shots. The uniformed constables carry M-10's with four-inch heavy barrels.

Pete in Perth told us a few weeks ago that the issue police load there then was a Winchester 125 grain JHP. Not the most effective load, and not one that I'd have a lot of confidence in. I'd probably have shot her that third time, if only because I wouldn't trust that ammo from a two-inch bbl. to be a good stopper. One whack from that bolo machete, which was seen being honed the day before in a prior ep would have left the detective seriously wounded, maybe dead. At least , he might lose an arm.

Look at the neighbor's video seen in court. Was Hasham justified in firing a third shot as she fell, hitting her in the back, the fatal hit, according to the pathologist? I think he was already pulling the trigger as she turned and the gun fired after she turned, but the trigger was being pulled as she faced the cop and he was still in fear for his life, trying to stop that wild charge with a deadly weapon.

Would you, in a self defense situation as seen, shoot that third time? I think I would. And unlike Hasham, I'd tell the judge that I'd already been pulling the trigger as she turned.

This is one of the better episodes of a superior police drama. The blonde who played Constable Maggie Doyle has won several Gold Logie awards for her work in several series, like our Emmy, and the entire cast are excellent actors. The show deserved its 12 year run.

If you may need to kill an attacker, this show will let you see what an aggressive prosecutor can do with what I'd regard as a lawful shooting. Hasham was lucky that he had mates to help and that the verdict went as it did. He could cite his training, as was seen in another episode: of shooting as long as a threat continued.

Note that the judge is addressed as Your Worship, not as Your Honor. I think that's also the case in the UK and in South Africa. (I saw some of the Oscar Pistorious case in Johannesburg.)

Anyway, look at this and tell us if you feel that third shot was warranted, considering his fear and the stress of the situation. I think the law too often plays Monday Morning Quarterback in shooting cases, where a person firing to save their life may shoot more than some prosecutor thinks is enough.

And, yes, Maggie Doyle has feelings for Hasham. They've been trying to suppress that, but I think they'll get together in future episodes.

WARNING: Viewing episodes from this TV series may prove addicting.

 

[TX-Dennis]

What? Oh, a TV show. Don't watch 'em. Not anymore.

 

[Texas Star]

What? Oh, a TV show. Don't watch 'em. Not anymore.

Got cataracts?

 

[RobertJ.]

Got cataracts?

No, I drive a Lincoln!

 

[erics]

Don't you mean Rincoln

 

[7shooter]

I too used to drive cataracts but now have gone politically incorrect .... a Cherokee.

 

[akviper]

You didn't mention it was in a foreign language.

Seriously, the event portrayed happens often in real life. The dynamics of a body in motion can cause the person being hit to rotate so a burst of rounds might strike other than the front torso area. When a machete wielding maniac is charging, the tendency is to start pulling the trigger until the bad guy is on the ground. Three rounds in this case did the trick but most real people in his situation probably would have fired more.

I'm not familiar with Australian courts but defense attorneys in the U.S. sometimes recreate simulated knife / club attacks in court so the judge and jury can see the reality and speed an event happens.

Luckily for the officer depicted in the above episode had his firearm in the ready position. If he had to draw from his holster she probably would win the encounter and he would be dead or in the hospital.

 

[moralem]

They should have used the 21 foot rule demonstration........

 

[Texas Star]

You didn't mention it was in a foreign language.

Seriously, the event portrayed happens often in real life. The dynamics of a body in motion can cause the person being hit to rotate so a burst of rounds might strike other than the front torso area. When a machete wielding maniac is charging, the tendency is to start pulling the trigger until the bad guy is on the ground. Three rounds in this case did the trick but most real people in his situation probably would have fired more.

I'm not familiar with Australian courts but defense attorneys in the U.S. sometimes recreate simulated knife / club attacks in court so the judge and jury can see the reality and speed an event happens.

Luckily for the officer depicted in the above episode had his firearm in the ready position. If he had to draw from his holster she probably would win the encounter and he would be dead or in the hospital.

This subject took up several episodes, and the detective stated that he drew from an ankle holster. But there was a tussle going on beween his mates and some other crims, and he may have seen that attack coming.

Ironically, the dead woman had been abused by both men in her home, an estranged husband and her son. Yet. to prevent them being arrested, she grabbed that machete and attacked. That 's why "domestics" are such dangerous encounters. There's sometimes no logic to them.

A nosy neighbor got it all on video, but a journalist had the film altered so that the court initially saw an edited version, making the cop look bad. Fortunately, this was discovered and he was released.

In the ep where the shooting actually ocurred,the cop stood in horror, instead of automatically reloading. I felt he was too affected by the need to shoot someone. Maggie came over and took the gun and comforted him.

Yeah, it's in a foreign language. You need to savvy words like tucker, fair dinkum, too right, digger, etc.

But I'm amazed at how often they refer to US celebs and films, etc. They drink things like Sprite and Fanta as well as coffee and tea.

Two constables are 21 and 19. I was thinking how young that was until I remembered that I was doing police work in the USAF by the time I turned 19. But I think I always managed to be more mature than those two sometimes are. But they're good people, and it's a good show. I wish it'd been on US TV, but too many people would reject it for being in a foreign language...and too many Americans won't watch shows without American actors and settings.

 

[Tom S.]

A few years ago, well decades actually, the double tap was instituted as the proper way to go. I never bought into it, subscribing to the tried and true 'shoot til the threat is stopped'. I'm not going to argue if a bullet was fired in a split second when a subject turned around, as most people do not posses the reflexes to stop firing that quickly in a stressful situation.

 

[Texas Star]

A few years ago, well decades actually, the double tap was instituted as the proper way to go. I never bought into it, subscribing to the tried and true 'shoot til the threat is stopped'. I'm not going to argue if a bullet was fired in a split second when a subject turned around, as most people do not posses the reflexes to stop firing that quickly in a stressful situation.

An excellent point. And I think many panic and shoot as long as they feel threatened. Look at those NYPD shootings where 40 shots may be fired.

 

[BAM-BAM]

It's early.....but.....IIRC getting off 5 shots in under a second is not that hard.........rate of fire 300rpm.


Couldn't he have just shot it out of her hand............Roy could do that week after week........... no not "Mr. Rogers" LOL