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Police Training Tragedy
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Left unanswered is the question: Who taught these officers that blanks are safe to point at someone?
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True, , but the first question is where did he get the wadcutter. I can certainly believe that a young cop had never seen one and thought that since he didn't see a bullet it was a blank
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I suspect someone figured that blanks were a cheap substitute for Simunitions. What is lost in that assumption is that safety in FoF drills comes not from substitute ammunition, but from the safety protocols designed to create a sterile training environment. If you aren't using a limited access training environment, with a search protocol for everyone entering, and a zero tolerance for live weapons and ammo, it isn't safe.
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The officer, who was playing a bad guy in a shoot-don't shoot demo for a citizens police academy, was fired. (no surprise) and is facing felony manslaughter charges. The police chief has been charged with a misdemeanor culpable negligence charge and is on admin leave. The city has already agreed to a $2.1 million settlement with the family.
The officer seems to have somewhat of a rocky road in his fairly short career, but the details in the various news reports are sketchy (go figure).
This article actually has a photo of the former officer during the "training session", complete with hoodie and a J frame. The caption indicates the poor lady was on the other side of the car visible in the photo.
Nobody...and I mean NOBODY...has used live weapons in this type of training in YEARS. (well, except for the real high speed low drag guys. Certainly not average LEO's, and not teaching a civilian police academy.
Punta Gorda officer involved in training demo death fired - News - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Sarasota, FL
The officer seems to have somewhat of a rocky road in his fairly short career, but the details in the various news reports are sketchy (go figure).
This article actually has a photo of the former officer during the "training session", complete with hoodie and a J frame. The caption indicates the poor lady was on the other side of the car visible in the photo.
Nobody...and I mean NOBODY...has used live weapons in this type of training in YEARS. (well, except for the real high speed low drag guys. Certainly not average LEO's, and not teaching a civilian police academy.
Punta Gorda officer involved in training demo death fired - News - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - Sarasota, FL
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That's not nearly enough considering the circumstances. It will be interesting to see if the charge against the chief holds up.
One of the worst range shootings ever was the case of Marine LTC Bill McMillan. He was an Olympic Gold Medalist (rapid fire) and won Camp Perry at least once.
He was assisting at a PD range and was carrying targets to the line when somebody assumed it was a moving target drill and shot him multiple times. McMillan arrested several times but there were some EMTs at the range. Many units of blood and he survived but was never the same.
One of the worst range shootings ever was the case of Marine LTC Bill McMillan. He was an Olympic Gold Medalist (rapid fire) and won Camp Perry at least once.
He was assisting at a PD range and was carrying targets to the line when somebody assumed it was a moving target drill and shot him multiple times. McMillan arrested several times but there were some EMTs at the range. Many units of blood and he survived but was never the same.
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The former officer is facing 30 years according to the news report. I would be interested in finding out just who was in charge of the "Civilian Police Academy", it's training program and coordinator, and specifically this particular "lesson plan". If it involves more than the Chief and the former officer, they should certainly be at least investigated for any culpability. If it's a very small department, it might well be just the chief and the ex-cop.
Lt Col McMillan's shooting is another incident that is just tragic, and one I can't even begin to see in my mind how it happened. Not on a supervised PD range. Guess it just proves that familiarity can breed contempt, and that includes firearms and basic safety rules.
Lt Col McMillan's shooting is another incident that is just tragic, and one I can't even begin to see in my mind how it happened. Not on a supervised PD range. Guess it just proves that familiarity can breed contempt, and that includes firearms and basic safety rules.
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