Gun-mounted flashlight blamed in fatal shooting

[silvercorvette]

silvercorvette...
... I've never been thrilled with giving them the light to shoot at, either.

BilltheDJGuy, the light involved was not operated by the trigger finger, but by the middle finger, below the trigger guard. So.... your point doesn't apply.

The main thing is, his finger should not have been on the trigger, if he didn't perceive a direct threat. The possibility of a threat may justify the draw, and in some cases (arrests being one) the aim; but his finger shouldn't have been on the trigger at that point.

I mentioned that in post #128 on this thread

 

[Double Naught Spy]

It does not matter where the switch is, everyone (cops and non-cops) are responsible for every round fired from there gun.

While the cop is responsible for every round fired, the position of the switch (as designed) may matter if the design is flawed and hence a portion of the blame may go to the light's manufacturer.

Cops should be held to a higher standard and then this mess would have never happened if
1) he became familiar with his equipment

You know, it isn't enought to be familiar with one's gear, but to be proficient with it.

3) spent some money on a good hand held light

#3 seems to be contradictory to the claim that it does not matter where the switch is. If it doesn't matter where the switch is, being handheld would not have prevented the discharge.

I have always been against gun mounted lights for a few reasons and one is it violates the rule of not pointing a gun at anything you don't intend to destroy.

I take it that you are not familiar with modern weapon lights. Even the smaller handgun lights have enough brightness to light up a large volume of space including nearby people without actually pointing the gun at those people. Hence, use of a weapon mounted light need not violate and safety rules.

 

[silvercorvette]

I take it that you are not familiar with modern weapon lights. Even the smaller handgun lights have enough brightness to light up a large volume of space including nearby people without actually pointing the gun at those people. Hence, use of a weapon mounted light need not violate and safety rules.

I don't want to take this thread and hijack it to a different topic and debate hand held vs gun mounted lights, my main point is he pulled the trigger when he shouldn't have. Regardless of where the light switch is located the trigger is in the same location it has always been and he pulled it.

PS I still have the same hand held light that I bought when I graduated from the police academy January of 1971

 

[Double Naught Spy]

I don't want to take this thread and hijack it to a different topic and debate hand held vs gun mounted lights, my main point is he pulled the trigger when he shouldn't have. Regardless of where the light switch is located the trigger is in the same location it has always been and he pulled it.

Right, so your claim that the officer should have better spent his money on a good handheld light would not have changed things one iota. So while you seem to really be promoting the whole hand-held light as being better in a discussion on an ND by an officer, you can't say that there would have been any benefit in necessarily preventing this ND. The officer screwed up, plain and simple. His gun was pointed at the suspect and his finger was on the trigger. A handheld light would not have prevented either of these transgressions.

 

[silvercorvette]

Right, so your claim that the officer should have better spent his money on a good handheld light would not have changed things one iota. So while you seem to really be promoting the whole hand-held light as being better in a discussion on an ND by an officer, you can't say that there would have been any benefit in necessarily preventing this ND. The officer screwed up, plain and simple. His gun was pointed at the suspect and his finger was on the trigger. A handheld light would not have prevented either of these transgressions.

Sorry about the late reply but I have been real sick for the past few days and haven't spent much time on line.

There are a lot of reasons I prefer a hand held light. If we get into a debate about hand held vs gun mounted lights it will just hijack this thread off topic.

I don't personally like them but there is a big enough demand for them to have made gun manufactures include rails on their guns.

There are a lot of gadgets being sold that I personally have no use for but if anyone feels that they need or want the latest gadget then go for it. But for God sake don't just slap one on your gun without being able to operate it under stress without making a mistake.

My opinion is the light switch location is being used as a contributing factor to redirect attention from the shooter failure to operate his equipment in a safe manner. Anytime someone pulls the trigger they are responsible for every bullet that leaves the gun. The shooter messed up and he and his lawyer are trying to shift the blame to the equipment. If you carry any gun related equipment you should be darn sure you have practiced with it enough to not have any accidents due to equipment operator error