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He's justifying shooting by the speed with which an assailant can shoot, but with zero data on the accuracy of the assailant when moving that fast. I'd want to know what is the estimated time to pull and shoot a gun with at least a roughly 10% chance of the officer being hit, not to mention being killed.

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Stray bullets and accidental shots are just as lethal as aimed ones. The point is that someone pulled over at a traffic stop can keep a gun hidden and take the first shot if they want to. Each and every traffic stop is a nervous bundle of potential danger for a cop, and they aren't paid to endanger themselves. That's why we go out of our way to make cops comfortable during a traffic stop. Keep your hands where they can be seen. No sudden movements. Polite interaction.

It's not healthy to be near nervous cops.

So it's OK to pull a gun and shoot at a cop if you don't hit him?

Nah, someone is just playing probabilities with someone else's life. But hey, you don't have to be a cop. Better to be a webdev and hangout on Hacker News all day.

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