These are only ours opinions. There is no reason to be angry.
We have the Law which decide what was wrong there.
I already recalled another incident which is close to this one.
Imagine 88 old man driving the intersection and passing it on green light. He was hit by fire truck running on emergency light. Old man died because of the impact.
So - whose fault it was? All the parties got good intentions but somebody was killed.
Like I said: A series of unfortunate events.
Not angry.
The law is not always right, yet, police get the benefit of the doubt, when a civilian is expected to know.
apples and oranges, Jerzy.
@Elza1,
Like @Jerzees stated these are only opinions we should not argue and stop being friends over this. Also you have to understand that all police departments are not the same, they have different procedures and patrol guides to abide by. I try not to take things personal when it comes to these discussions and that was the reason I created the topic just for opinions and discussions and also to learn from one another. No one was wrong here. I look at it as a tragic misunderstanding.
I only take it personally when Iâm attacked.
I disagree with your assessment. The police are supposed to be highly trained. You donât go into a building and not know the way back or out. USCCA teaches us to know our surroundings and the exits of building we go into⊠so much more that a trained officer should know and follow.
Keep in mind, the training that the USCCA offers is for civilians. While it may cross over to law enforcement, they are difficult to compare.
I would push back and say she knew her surroundings far better than we give her credit for. She knew the staircase had a banister and had she gone down the stairs, he would have been able to easily shoot at her from above. Staying on the same level and retreating to try and wait for help looked like the best option. Unfortunately, backup was not able to get there in time and she was left with no other choice.
It definitely is a sad situation and I think discussing ways things that could have been done better, is a far more productive discussion than blaming the outcome on the police officer.
So a better discussion is to blame the HOMEOWNER?
And YES, she had choices⊠t
USCCA training and Law Enforcement training are 2 different things. Police are trained to go towards the gun fire, USCCA trains you in how to avoid situations like the above by utilizing situational awareness. When you are a LEO and have to answer these radio calls you canât avoid these situations because you have to respond. Wouldnât it be nice if LEOâs can pick and choose which calls to answer. Try to look at it both ways, can an 88 year old man with a loaded firearm kill an officer? YES. Could the officer have run away and avoid it? YES. But thatâs not what officers do. A simple wellness check turned into an officer dealing with an EDP now due to non-compliance.
Should she have entered the home? I can see that being a discussion, but not relevant to these circumstances, as she was there as requested. You state that departments have different rules regarding âwelfare checksâ. So, obviously, there are a multitude of opinions. Which one is the ârightâ one? It would seem to be a matter of opinion.
As to what this officer did when she entered, she seemed to make it quite clear who she was. As she was there for a virtuous reason, I have no issue with her being there. I would have an entirely different opinion if it were an illegal entry, or even a âno knockâ warrant as I am totally against that.
You believe the officer may have made an error in judgment by not backing down the stairs and leaving the home, but I disagree. Back-peddling down stairs is dangerous. Back-peddling down stairs into a kill zone is even more so.
The man clearly heard her, and responded. If he was unsure of who she was, he did not voice that concern. If he was unsure if she was a real LEO, he could have asked for ID or called 911 himself. He heard her calling for back-up, at least several, times. Would a criminal do that?
To me, it was a very tragic incident. I cannot blame the officer for her actions. The manâs actions put her into an untenable position, with only one viable solution.
I live in this county and i can tell you the real story. She did nothing out of standard procedure. The twisted side is trying to make it look like it was avoidable because itâs what they do!
there is a Lt. on a Florida dept. who host a fakebook site called LEO Roundtable⊠he said he and other officers would just tell dispatch to show the call resolved and never go out.
The officer was still in the 88 year old manâs home uninvited⊠the 88 year old did nothing wrong in HIS home. When (and if) the body cam footage is released I will have more to sayâbut I donât think I am wrong.
Iâm not implying that it was the homeownerâs fault either. I believe this was a situation that there was no fault on anyoneâs part. Itâs simply a tragic event that we can all learn from.
I will never get over the fact that she was is HIS home uninvitedâŠ
And thatâs a reasonable argument. There have been recent cases of self-defense against officers where the homeowners were found not guilty in court.
What things can be done to prevent this from happening again, but also not stop the ability to do welfare checks on someone?
Actually, that was she did was a prove she was highly trained within her duties.
What do you expect from LEO in such situation? Dropping the gun and saying âHello, how are you sir?â It will never happen. LEOs are trained the way she acted.
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Have you ever tried this? Theory is far away from everyday life.
You can spend hundreds rounds hitting dead center in paper and you will still miss center mass while shooting at live person.
So donât expect LEO to remember the way out once she was threatened with a weapon.
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Everybody has a choice⊠all the time. Actually she chose wisely, the way how she was trained.
Good for her.
Perhaps next time she will run away, hoping not to be shot in the back?
And what next?
Are we gonna read article âCounty Sheriffâs Office Deputy did not help citizen after being called to do a welfare check on an elderly person.â? Letâs fire her or charge her, she shouldnât represent Sheriffâs Office anymoreâŠand all bleble bs? 
Send 2 officers so at least one can be IDâs in safe way. Talk the person out and let him/her call 911 for verification.
All these are easy to write⊠but is it possible to be applied in such situations? 
Years ago, I had two LEOâs beating on my front door. They were not knocking. After about 5 minutes they finally identified themselves. If they had knocked down my door there would have been a full-blown shoot out from my recliner with my S & W M & P 40 cal. This was around 9 PM and they were at the wrong house. But we were within seconds of having a shoot out. Yes, I did go to the Chief about it.
Thereâs some body cam footage in my initial post in the Tampa carry video if you are interested.
I watched it⊠I saw a door she could have shut and barricaded. I posted body cam in one of my earlier posts also.
you totally miss the point! And you are being insulting and condescending.
A concerned NEIGHBOR called in for the welfare check, so police responded. Isnât that the âSO TO SPEAKâ INVITATION that you KEEP REFERING TO AS UNINVITED???!!! Should the NEIGHBOR be held ACCOUTABLE as well???