The Pendulum Is Still Swinging, and it scares me.

The reality is that officers in high crime ridden cities probably suffer from PTSD or similar. Anyone who has to deal with that chit all day, every day would. That can lead to bad judgement. Instead of throwing officers to the wolves, the mayors should be helping them be better officers and deal with the ton of chit they have to. I hate the current war on police.
 
Instead of throwing officers to the wolves, the mayors should be helping them be better officers and deal with the ton of chit they have to. I hate the current war on police.
I think the majority of us on here would agree with what you said.

When I had my shooting the Chief didn't like me any more than I liked him because I wasn't a butt kisser.

The City Manager phoned me at home that afternoon, expressed his joy that I was OK and said that if there was anything I needed, just to call him 24/7. I was about to make a comment about getting a new Chief but uncharacteristically, I bit my tongue.
 
Many years ago when I was a cop I responded to a call of a man inside an apartment shooting people. This was in a very nice area of apartments that bordered the golf course.

The guy inside shot his shotgun twice while I was outside waiting for backup. We didn't know if he'd shot more people or was just shooting up the apartment.

When the backup arrived he saw the cop car pull into the area. He came out on the small back porch to look for them (he wasn't aware I was already there watching him) and when he did, I challenged him to drop the shotgun.

He didn't know where the command had come from and was looking around the find the source of the voice. I repeated the command and he located me. Now, me being a firearms instructor and officer survival instructor, I was well aware of the difference between cover and concealment. I had good cover.

He fired a shot directly at me from a distance of 41'. His shot hit the brick wall I was behind then sprayed into the parking lot.

He turned to come down off the porch. Had he done that I would have lost my cover so my only recourse was to shoot him. He went down like a bag of rocks, paralyzed but not dead.

As I reflect back on that, one of my first thoughts was to analyze the shooting to determine if it was a "good" shooting. It was.

My next thought was to wonder how that whole thing would play out in the press. Fortunately neighbors had heard his shots in the apartment, my commands to drop his shotgun, then his shot, then my shot that ended the fun.

Not much the press could do with that one so it quietly went away after a few days.

I was lucky.
Wow GFC! Thank you so much for sharing that. As a civilian I’m grateful for you LEO’s and thank you for your service.
 
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<<Gawrsh, I'm blushing>>

You're most welcome. It still amazes me how, when the proverbial feathers hit the fan, that your training kicks in and you respond by rote.

After that whole thing died down I did some research on how a person is able to hear 1) a shotgun being fired; 2) the shot hitting the brick wall I was using for cover; and 3) the shot ricocheting into the asphalt parking lot.

Under normal circumstances that would not be possible. I heard those 3 as 3 separate and distinct occurrences so did the research to find out how that is possible.

It's interesting but too lengthy to include here.
 
After that whole thing died down I did some research on how a person is able to hear 1) a shotgun being fired; 2) the shot hitting the brick wall I was using for cover; and 3) the shot ricocheting into the asphalt parking lot.

Under normal circumstances that would not be possible. I heard those 3 as 3 separate and distinct occurrences so did the research to find out how that is possible.

It's interesting but too lengthy to include here.

GFC = it is probably similar to when I was a skydiver. After exiting the airplane I would see, react and remember many details of things I would not pickup on normally. A 30 second freefall would seem to take minutes and my fellow jumpers and I could dissect the jump for hours...

Adrenaline is very powerful stuff.
 
Steve, I figure anyone nuts enough to jump out of a perfectly good airplane must be too nuts to be a boater. I hereby revoke your boating permit.
Sorry.

You're on the right track with "adrenaline", but there is a LOT more too it. It's the mechanics of what the brain does when the sh!t hits the fan that allows you to see and be aware of much more than normal.
 
863 jumps GFC. I also held a Jumpmaster and an Instructor certificates.
 
863 jumps GFC. I also held a Jumpmaster and an Instructor certificates.

You’re a brave man!
I don’t have the stones to jump out of a perfectly functioning airplane.
I don’t even like climbing ladders.
 
You’re a brave man!
I don’t have the stones to jump out of a perfectly functioning airplane.
I don’t even like climbing ladders.
JVM225 - not sure the planes I jumped out of were perfectly functioning....
 
. A 30 second freefall would seem to take minutes...

Adrenaline is very powerful stuff.

I only jumped out of an airplane once - in a Martin-Baker ejection seat - and all I got was one swing in the chute - no time to think about anything!!! Seemed like I was in the water right after I pulled the handle - I guess because I was!
 
I only jumped out of an airplane once - in a Martin-Baker ejection seat - and all I got was one swing in the chute - no time to think about anything!!! Seemed like I was in the water right after I pulled the handle - I guess because I was!
One of my cousins had two ejection seat rides, one ended up in the water and the other on land behind enemy lines, Vietnam.
 

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