Azelle Rodney Murder Charge

[Magog]

I expect this is going to go down like a lead balloon with serving firearms officers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28567569

[Magog]

rpguk said:

Why? If there was "no lawful justification" then of course it should be tried in court. Are you suggesting they should be above the law or something?

No, not at all, but I also don't believe a UK police officer would set out to shoot someone without genuinely fearing for their own or others lives. As I understand it all UK firearms officers are volunteers, some of them, on hearing this news, must be thinking 'there but for the grace of god go I' and seriously considering their positions.

[Magog]

Does anyone know what the operation in the 1980s when he killed two people was?

[Magog]

La Liga said:

Eclassy said:

La Liga said:

He was in firearms for 20 years and this was the first time he'd discharged in all that time, over many, many deployments. It only takes one bad decision.

Turns out not.

Indeed. He had discharged on three deployments which is exceptionally rare. But then the extreme is more probable to occur with a vast sample size. Once in 1985 where he injured a kidnapper (as reported) and once in 1987 where he shot two armed robbers (where an inquest jury found the killing to the lawful).

Eclassy said:

A criminal will sooner accept 2½ years for possession than 30 years for killing an officer.

The statutory minimum is 5 years (if 18 and over) unless there are exceptional circumstances for possession.

Interesting account of the 1987 shootings here;

http://gihs.gold.ac.uk/gihs34.html#abbatoir