Cop was wrong to shoot the guy! Not illegal to have a weapon in hand, at home. These cops have gotten way too jumpy. Cop needs to answer for this. At least never work in law enforcement again. What is the difference, if I shot the cop for having a gun in his hand at my door. They are out of control about this. If they are that jumpy on the trigger, they need to find some other line work.

Yes, it is a tragic situation and the outcome will depend on many variables, such as what call the officer was responding to, has the SO ever responded to that apartment before, what kind of work record the deputy has, and a lot of other things such as witness statements from the manager and the lady in the parking lot. I didn't notice the first time and don't care to watch it again, but did the door have a peephole? The lesson on that is if you have any doubt when a LEO identifies themself, verify it by looking through a peephole or if there isn't one, tell them that you are verifying it by calling 911. They'll wait, but if it might be one, don't answer the door with a gun in your hand. As in this case your intentions might be misinterpreted.

I'll agree with this.

I understand how old he is and in the Air Force...he was a couple years younger than my son so he was a dang kid. There was absolutely no reason shots should've been fired unless that cop was threatened. He did not have his gun pointed at the cop and as for the deputy announcing he was a deputy...look at how many people in the world today like to impersonate cops.

I am going to defer comments until all rhe facts come out but right now I am hurting for both parties. This is bad.

All of this. While it might not be the safest thing to do it damn sure isn't illegal and a citizen exercising their rights should not result in any inconvenience to the citizen and absolutely shouldn't result in death.

I look at this way , legal has nothing to do with it . If I answer the door with a gun I expect the guy on the other side to believe I'm going to use it and i will .

A cop comes to my door ill do one of two things . I won't answer the door with a gun in my hand or ill shot him through the door .

Common since has to be used some times. You play stupid games you win stupid prizes.


As for the doors . Evet apartment I've ever entered as a maintenance man they had a peep hole and they were easily heard through . Just thin metal with foam in the middle. People could hear me knock if they were in the shower.. I could hear them yell back , give me a minute.

Suicide by cop?? Nobody is that dumb. Guy works in the military, on a military base. He’s used to obeying orders from people with guns. He passes through a gate every morning and I promise you if he gets out of his car with a gun in his hand, he’s getting ventilated by at least 2 MPs and most likely 4 or 6. Both Eglin and Hurlburt are on high threat protocol since May 1 and there’s no playing around and everyone on the bases knows it. I personally think the guy decided he wanted to get shot. Reports said he’d just beaten his girlfriend really bad and the cops were at the door. He knew he was going to jail and his military career was over. Cop just drew the short straw by being the unlucky random guy having to respond.

Red Fox,
You did say “ The reality is that if the cop hesitates then he may not go home at the end of the day.” This appears to infer that you are already siding with the officer or at least offering up an excuse for the officer’s actions, maybe I interpreted it wrong. However, if the officer is that gung ho, trigger happy, jumpy, scared, etc. then maybe he needs to be a mall cop armed only with a radio.

This is really bad.

I wish the officer would have had the instinct to dip to the side of the door frame immediately after noticing the weapon. I also wish the deceased would have had the common sense to look through the peep hole before opening the door. Who knows, maybe he was taking a nap and heard commotion and opened the door without thinking.

Super sad.

You bang on my door repeatedly in the early morning hours, I’m bringing a gun. I know you’re LEO and have experience with these situations but you are doing some mental gymnastics here.

Just watched the video.

Shooting is BS.

This was murder.

The attached article from the air force times is what I based that statement off of. However, there was apparently no one else in the apartment, he was on FaceTime with his girlfriend, so whom would he have been in an altercation with?
article

^^^^^^^that AFT article there is no where close to what the initial local reporting was saying the day it happened. The two stories are in direct conflict with each other as to what the situation was. Facts will come out eventually.

He was on a military base. Do they allow private gun ownership on base. I thought some bases were gun free zones.

Read through the comments here as well as listen to the media reports and there are a bunch of theories with out facts to prove them. Give it a day or two and allow FDLE to do their investigation this should bring some clarity
The showboating attorneys make me sick. Two wrongs don't make a right

I'm not going to watch the video.

But how does the Air Force guy know there is a sheriff at the door rather than someone else claiming to be a sheriff?

Someone is banging on my door that I'm not expecting, claiming to be someone, doesn't mean it's true.

I'm sure we will find out the truth, and things will become clearer as to the whys.
Sad situation regardless.


God Bless,
David B.

Only thing I say about this is what if it was during the night, and the police came into my house and I was the one that started shooting?
Or a plain clothes officer with a gun. Do I have the same right to shoot on sight when I see a gun?

Same thing happened in Hazel Green last year. Madison County deputies went to wrong address, homeowner walks out with pistol and gets killed. No charges filed due to qualified immunity protection.