Nice shootin', Tex!

[pfloyd]

Wild times in Miami.
In case you've been hiding under a bridge the past day or so, here's the skinny: a guy on a plane from Columbia decides to have some sort of mental attack as the plane is on the ground at Miami International Airport. He runs off the plane and onto the bridgeway toward the terminal, making threats to detonate an explosive device in his backpack.
Sky marshals, being quick on the ball, draw down on the suspect and order him to stand down and kiss the floor.
He makes the brilliant move of reaching for and into the bag.
Result? Shots fired. None miss their mark. Suspect down, incapacitated, and expired.

Now comes all the hooha.
Turns out the suspect was bipolar and off his medication, according to his wife who was on the plane with him. Where was she when all this went down? Why didn't she make sure he was on his meds?
And now the uproar against the marshals comes into play, saying that what they did was a hasty kneejerk reaction against someone who has a mental disorder.
Okay, Monday Morning Quarterbacks. Let's put you in the shoes of the marshals for a moment. You're on a plane or in an airport when someone starts screaming and running, threatening to detonate a device. You draw down on him, ordering him to hug the floor. Instead, he reaches into the bag. What's your reaction going to be? Wait and see if what he pulls out is a grenade pin or a lollypop? I think not. You're trained to protect the lives of everyone in that airplane and airport. You're trained to take the subject down. No warning shots. No misses. Center mass. If he lives, he lives. If he dies, then that's what happens. You're not trained to second-guess yourself or the suspect.
The marshals did what they were trained to do. It was a justified shooting. It's unfortunate that the suspect died, but that's how it turned out. In this day and age, we can't tiptoe around this sort of stuff.
Personally, I feel better knowing that they did their jobs.

Comments

WOW!

[silent-iniquity.livejournal.com]

at first, when I saw the title, and the topic of your post, I thought this was going to be a 180 degree turn from what it was.

I agree with you 100%, and I think the Air Marshall did the only thing he could have done. They are ordered to shoot to kill.

Re: WOW!

[pfloyd.livejournal.com]

Who am I to protest a LEO (Law Enforcement Officer) who does his job the way he is supposed to do it?
They're not ordered to kill the perp, but to shoot for center mass. If the perp dies, then that's how it goes down. I saw a news story on their training this morning. These guys don't fuck around.

[ladyinareddress.livejournal.com]

Here Here (or is it hear, hear?) Anywhoo, I agree totally. These asshats going on about how they killed this poor poor man who was "only" bipolar, pfft. Puhlease, these guys did what they are trained to do- Job Well Done to them! Is it unfortunate that this dude was just crazy and not crazy with an actual bomb, of course yes. But blaming the marshals for shooting him is obscene, and like they were going to shoot him in the knee, just in case he was a real bomber so he could still set his bomb off- gee wouldn't that have beeen a better idea-NOT.

[zonereyrie.livejournal.com]

Violent agreement. If someone is making threats and refuses to obey the orders of law enforcement, they have to act. He claimed to have a bomb, he was reaching into the bag - that made him a clear and immediate threat to the marshalls and the public in the area. It was justified shoot, period.