I mean the take training for gun handling don’t they?
Just in case, there’s no “safe” place to get shot.
A gunshot injury to the leg is always a medical emergency and can be fatal in as little as five minutes if the bullet hits a major artery, causing traumatic blood loss.
An injury to the aorta, femoral or carotid artery can be especially dangerous because these are the main blood vessels responsible for pulling oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the rest of the body. The brachial artery (which runs through the arms) is another major concern. If one of these arteries is punctured, the trauma can result in an immediate blood pressure drop and extremely rapid blood loss.
Bleeding can quickly become life-threatening. The average time to bleed out is only 2 to 5 minutes.
Yes, a taser may also cause lethal cases, unfortunately…
Although all in-custody deaths after ECD shocks are not likely a direct result of the shock, a number probably are. Taser International addressed that probability by revising their warnings from “aim at target: center of mass or legs” and “aiming at open front of unzipped jacket” before September 2009 to “when possible, avoiding chest shots…” after that date. More recently, they noted that “heart rate, rhythm, capture” can occur and that “capture” and “cardiac arrest” can contribute to arrest-related death in physiologically or metabolically compromised persons.
I’ve been in USA for 2 month only accumulated, mostly residing in Europe and Asia, and from my experience, in common civilian life, it’s rare to see an actual lethal weapon being aimed at someone in public unless it’s at zones/movements of Bank or foreign politics, including ambassadorial or consular general residences. In other words, a taser-like solution is much more frequent in civilian life from my experience.
southsamurai@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
You never, ever, shoot like that. Cop or not, if use of a firearm is justified, you aim to end the threat immediately. That means a kill shot. Center of mass is what cops are trained to do, and for many good reasons.
But, even if you did want to try and use a firearm as a less lethal weapon, you switch ammo, not shoot extremities. For one, arms and legs are plenty lethal, though not necessarily 100% (hell, center of mass isn’t a guaranteed lethality). But, more important, they’re not as sure a target at all. You don’t want bullets going anywhere other than the intended target. Center of mass is much easier to accurately aim for when you’re scared and high on adrenaline. A leg? Good fucking luck unless you’re point blank, and even that’s not a sure thing.
For real, even at a shooting range while relaxed and with all the time in the world, a leg would be harder. A lot of people can barely keep a 6 inch group past 15 feet. Cops tend to shoot more often than the general populace, what with having their own ranges and at least some of the ammo provided for them, but it’s range shooting, target shooting. So even if they’re nailing shit perfectly during their qualification tests, that doesn’t automatically translate to the kind of accuracy needed to pick what part of the leg to hit.
Even on a very muscular dude, you’ve got really small targets that would potentially stop them from continuing whatever you wanted to stop doing. A few inches at most.
Now, staying ready with a taser and using it at the first sign of trouble? Could work, I guess. But that’s got its own risks and liabilities.
But, nah man, if you think pulling a gun and shooting someone in the leg is a good thing, it is best you not carry. Any situation in which you would try that is not a situation in which the use of a firearm is a good idea.