Reasons not to shoot when you don't absolutely have to...

[JohnKSa]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/womans-death-stray-bullet-authorities-204509399.html

Guy shooting at people breaking into vehicles accidentally killed his neighbor. He has been charged with manslaughter.

https://apnews.com/article/shootings-texas-gun-politics-houston-6a3d5489d49e8702ea94783b6aff95b2

A guy shooting at a truck he believed held people escaping after robbing him at an ATM killed a 9 year old girl in the truck. He was mistaken, the truck held a family who had nothing to do with the robbery. He was charged but the grand jury chose not to indict.

 

[old lady new shooter]

Awful.

 

[CDW4ME]

Other than possible legal or civil ramifications, which are obvious...
It may interfere with having lunch and/or dinner on time and sleeping in one's own bed that night.

 

[sparkyv]

#4 is as important as the other 3:

The 4 universal rules of gun safety are:

1. Treat all guns as if they are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle point at anything that you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target and you have made the decision to shoot.
4. Be sure of your target and what is behind it.

 

[Armored farmer]

We all need to keep our cool and only shoot in a life/death situation. Even then the courts will try to ruin your life.

 

[e rex]

With a gun comes a world of responsibility! Before you pull the trigger you better be damn sure.

 

[AJC1]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/womans-death-stray-bullet-authorities-204509399.html

Guy shooting at people breaking into vehicles accidentally killed his neighbor. He has been charged with manslaughter.

https://apnews.com/article/shootings-texas-gun-politics-houston-6a3d5489d49e8702ea94783b6aff95b2

A guy shooting at a truck he believed held people escaping after robbing him at an ATM killed a 9 year old girl in the truck. He was mistaken, the truck held a family who had nothing to do with the robbery. He was charged but the grand jury chose not to indict.

When all lesser means have failed or cannot be reasonablly employed
*****NOT*******
Neighborhood range practice because you think your robocop.

 

[jdsingleshot]

It's never right to shoot a fleeing person who is not endangering you--even if they are carrying away something they have stolen, even if you are a LEO.

 

[Blue Jays]

If it is not me, my family, or my tiny inner-circle of dear lifelong friends in mortal danger…I am not getting involved. Make your personal decision NOW so that should something terrible happen, you are already on autopilot.

 

[Choctaw]

Don't shoot people over property. It is never, ever worth it.

 

[AJC1]

Don't shoot people over property. It is never, ever worth it.

You will spend 100x whatever their steeling unless it's a gun or weapon. Some states are trying to make you liable for stolen guns so screwed either way.

 

[Armored farmer]

Masaad Ayoob has thoughts on this. He has a youtube channel in association with Wilson Combat.
https://youtube.com/shorts/uROIFBm3_qs?feature=share
This may not be the exact one.....but you get the idea.

 

[The Night Rider]

Reasons not to shoot when you don't absolutely have to...

Isn't the fact that you don't absolutely have to reason enough?

 

[JohnKSa]

You'd think. If it were enough for everyone, we wouldn't see this kind of thing happening.

 

[The Night Rider]

You'd think. If it were enough for everyone, we wouldn't see this kind of thing happening.

Well, to be fair, what was the person's level of training? How well were his state laws explain to him?

 

[21H40]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-65539174

I'm struggling to understand how the previously mentioned incidents and this recent one from Louisiana even happened. Granted, I had the opportunity to serve in a war zone with some very limiting rules of engagement, so maybe my perspective is off. I don't understand shooting at "shadows" or people leaving the scene as a civilian.

If you don't know when to use force, then maybe you shouldn't use force.

 

[GRIZ22]

Well, to be fair, what was the person's level of training? How well were his state laws explain to him?

To be fair it's up to the responsible gun owner to seek out the training and knowledge of state laws.

 

[The Night Rider]

To be fair it's up to the responsible gun owner to seek out the training and knowledge of state laws.

You're not wrong

 

[TomJ]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-65539174

View attachment 1150884

I'm struggling to understand how the previously mentioned incidents and this recent one from Louisiana even happened. Granted, I had the opportunity to serve in a war zone with some very limiting rules of engagement, so maybe my perspective is off. I don't understand shooting at "shadows" or people leaving the scene as a civilian.

If you don't know when to use force, then maybe you shouldn't use force.

My neighbor runs a small child care business out of their house after school, and kids sometimes run on my lawn or around my house. It's never occurred to me that I should shoot them (sarcasm is intentional). Unless I'm missing something Mr. Doyle belongs in prison. Legal issues aside, from a moral standpoint I could never take a life unless absolutely necessary to save myself or someone else from death or great bodily harm, it was imminent and there was no other option available such as retreating. To shoot someone over property for me is unthinkable.

 

[21H40]

My neighbor runs a small child care business out of their house after school, and kids sometimes run on my lawn or around my house. It's never occurred to me that I should shoot them (sarcasm is intentional). Unless I'm missing something Mr. Doyle belongs in prison. Legal issues aside, from a moral standpoint I could never take a life unless absolutely necessary to save myself or someone else from death or great bodily harm, it was imminent and there was no other option available such as retreating. To shoot someone over property for me is unthinkable.

He's quoted saying that "he feared for his life." So that's obviously why he came outside and started shooting instead of calling the cops. I think he may have said that because the internet has recommended using that phrase immediately after a shooting.

If he seriously was afraid for his life because some children were running away from his house, then I sort of feel sorry for him. That is a LOT of fear, and it is a wonder more people haven't been shot by him.

 

[TomJ]

Deleted

 

[WrongHanded]

Lots of really good posts on this thread, which should all be common sense, but apparently are not.

 

[sparkyv]

You know what they say about common sense...it's not so common.

Lots of really good posts on this thread, which should all be common sense, but apparently are not.

 

[shafter]

To be fair it's up to the responsible gun owner to seek out the training and knowledge of state laws.

Sometimes it's a matter of not knowing what you don't know. If there is no mandated training and a person doesn't have a background in firearms they may be totally clueless about things that we understand in depth.

 

[JohnKSa]

Sometimes it's a matter of not knowing what you don't know.

True. Of course ignorance of the law doesn't provide any defense in court. One hopes that publicizing stories like the ones on this thread will get people thinking about decision making and perhaps about training and study on the topic.