The Brazilian guy shot in London

[mackthefork]

So we find out today that he ran because his visa had expired, yesterday Sir Ian Blair says this is likely to happen again.

ABC News Online

Comments.

Mack

clearly the british government/police force are in a tough spot. i believe they were staking out an apartment, this guy emerged, then ran when confronted. dude had brown skin/fled into the subway. In addition he was wearing a bulky coat in summer.(now we know he's used to the balmy brazilian climate)
Facts: your staking out an apartment in an investigation related to recent bombings. your looking for people with light brown skin. such a guy emerges. He runs when confronted. He's dressed in a fashion not condusive to the weather, but conducive to conceiling something. he flees into the subway.
point is, a significant percentage of the time, when all of these variables occur, the guy's a bomber. I can't imagine being in the london PD shoes. whats the acceptable level of collateral damage in preventing a terrorist attack?

Maybe there was a 20% chance the guy was going to kill 50 people with a bomb. the only way to 100% stop him was with 5 to the head. were the pot odds there?

[daveymck]

At this point I am 100% behind the police actions, its terrible and unfortunate but given the circumstances I dont see what else the police could have done.

[mackthefork]

[ QUOTE ]
At this point I am 100% behind the police actions, its terrible and unfortunate but given the circumstances I dont see what else the police could have done.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree but I am uncomfortable with innocent people or even petty criminals being blown away by the police who are supposed to protect them, they expect this to happen again, my point is how many times does it need to happen before its not alright?

Regards Mack

[mackthefork]

[ QUOTE ]
Facts: your staking out an apartment

[/ QUOTE ]

I heard it was a block of flats, slight difference.

[ QUOTE ]
Maybe there was a 20% chance the guy was going to kill 50 people with a bomb. the only way to 100% stop him was with 5 to the head. were the pot odds there?

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't know about you but I value my own life significantly higher than 50 other peoples, so do most people, a police force above being questioned is a very dangerous thing.

[ QUOTE ]
whats the acceptable level of collateral damage in preventing a terrorist attack?


[/ QUOTE ]

None in my opinion, collateral damage is what they are trying to prevent. I agree this is an unfortunate event, but I fear where it is we are likely to be heading if most people find it acceptable that you die if you run from the police, its just not the way we do things in the UK.

Regards Mack

[etgryphon]

I do love the fact that Blair comes out and says this will probably happen again. I can't seem to see Bush coming out and saying, "Hey, Y'all, we may end up shooting a few relatively innocent people...but Sh!t Happens..."

Blair is an amazing anomaly to me. He is like the incarnation of President Palmer from 24 except for white, Brit, and a heck of a lot smaller.

On the side note, I think that it sucks that the dude got shot, but hey don't run from the police.

I wonder if there is going to be a clammer for revised gun control in the UK because of these terrorist attacks?

As to when the public starts to get pissed about the whole thing. I give it 2 more times or one really blatant blunder.

-Gryph

[adios]

In the U.S. the guys decendents would likely bring a lawsuit claiming excessive force and I'm not kidding. Don't know what is likely to happen in Great Britain.

[superleeds]

[ QUOTE ]
In the U.S. the guys decendents would likely bring a lawsuit claiming excessive force and I'm not kidding.

[/ QUOTE ]

In the U.S. they would probably have a case

[ QUOTE ]
its just not the way we do things in the UK

[/ QUOTE ] clearly this isn't the way "things are done" in any civilized society. Imagine the stress the london police are under, the individuals on the london force. can you honestly say that in the shoes of the cops pursuing the guy that you wouldn't have done the same thing? What if you don't shoot the guy, and he detonates a bomb? I'm not trying to justify this event(well, maybe a little) the point is, in a situation like this, there are no right answers or happy endings. It's going to be ugly no matter how the situation is dealt with.
Secondly, correct me if i'm wrong, and i don't mean to be inflamitory, i'm just trying to put this in historical perspective: but relative to other western democracies, britain doesn't have a pristine record of maintaining civil liberties, IRA and whatnot. Not that 5 to the head can be considered merely a violation of the poor guys civil liberties, but...

[send_the_msg]

don't these cops have some non-violent way of taking down fleeing criminals?