There are some really crappy white neighborhoods outside of Boston and in New Jersey where the white criminals there have a very adversarial relationship with the police too. Alot probably getting shot and killed too. But we don't hear about those.......
And the cop had no way of knowing that.
Again you mention the body armor. Why?
No, that's not what you said. You said 100% perfection 100% of the time is required when using deadly force.
This officer did act reasonably.
No he did not
Garbage. You can never know in a situation like this until it's too late. You can't know if the kid still has a gun until he's wheeled around and possibly leveled it at you, already starting to squeeze the trigger. You can't know the gun is even loaded until lead starts making its way in your general direction.
So what? Age doesn't stop a bullet. Training doesn't stop a bullet. Body armor only stops some bullets and getting shot while wearing it is still pretty much incapacitating.
It was several years, from perhaps 2002 for five years or so. It was a long shot, since there's a good chance that there's more than one Dave in Boston, and he used that name across more than one forum (and a brief Googling suggests he's still out there on other forums, based on those users' names, political inclinations, and style) and I don't see why he wouldn't keep it here also.
100% he did. Kid had a gun for the whole pursuit, refusing to drop it the whole way. When he did drop it, he did so out of view of the officer, who less that a second before could see the gun in his hand. The kid suddenly turns, and the officer has half a second to decide what to do. There was no reason to assume the kid had suddenly dropped the gun after a block-long chase where he had every opportunity to do so but didn't.
He knew no such thing at the time he pulled the trigger. He couldn't know.
There is absolutely a way for an officer to determine if it is a toy gun. Accurate threat assessment. This kid was killed within 20 seconds of the officer leaving his vehicle.
So that is your version of the story
Waiting more than 20 seconds to make the determination would be the first step. Not firing in the first instant you see the perceived criminal would be a good second step. Not firing at someone that has his hands raised without a weapon would be a good third step. Did I miss something?
Yep, it's the entire 'environment'. Cops are feeling embattled & endangered, and they are! The more lethally efficient modern class of weaponry ubiquitously in the hands of the general public is part of that environment. We've come a long way from 38 snubbies & bolt action rifles!
Yes. You missed the gun.
The toy?
Exactly. Accurate threat assessment. What would have happened if he had not fired? The child would be alive.
"The child" would have been alive if he wasn't shoooting at cars on the street at 2:30AM
Threat assessment.. someone is running from you in the dark with a gun in their hand. They stop and hide the gun behind their back before turning to face you with their gun hand. He doesn't have x-ray vision. A reasonable officer would shoot in the situation.