Police fired 109 shots at man in W. Philly, a possible case of 'contagious gunfi

[J P Sousa]

I'm a supporter of police but ...........

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/real-time/Ross-Police-fired-109-shots-at-man-in-fatal-W-Philly-shooting-possible-case-of-contagious-gunfire.html

  Sowell was fatally shot by police outside a home on Cobbs Creek Parkway, near Webster Street, shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday, after he had slashed, stabbed or punched four people in a "violent rampage," Ross has said. 

Sowell lived on the 6200 block of Hazel Avenue. Shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday, police have said, he choked his 12-year-old daughter in their home, cut his 8-year-old son's throat and stabbed him in the chest, then stabbed his son's 13-year-old friend several times in the chest. The girl suffered no major injuries; the boys were taken to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in critical condition. 

Shortly afterward, Sowell ran to a family friend's home on Cobbs Creek Parkway, a few blocks away. Two women inside, ages 41 and 70, allowed him in to have something to eat, police have said. Inside, Sowell took a steak knife and cut the older woman's throat, then repeatedly punched the younger woman in the face, police said. 

[tuolumnejim]

"Clearly, 109 rounds is a significant cause of concern, regardless of what the circumstances are," Ross told reporters gathered at Police Headquarters. "It is not an indictment of the police officers, but it may be a significant training issue we need to address."

Ya think? 

[Mr Mannn]

This is a case of stabbing while black.
Seriously. If anyone deserves to go down in a hail of lead, it is this guy.

[SVPete]

From the article, there were 9 officers on-scene, so 109 shots might be about a magazine apiece. Better training seems indicated, but the shooting was clearly justified. The thug "not having a chance" (I'm just quoting a trite phrase, not anyone here) doesn't bother me.

[Ken8521]

This is a case of stabbing while black.
Seriously. If anyone deserves to go down in a hail of lead, it is this guy.

Exactly.  Zero shits given, I don't care if it was 300x

[Ken8521]

From the article, there were 9 officers on-scene, so 109 shots might be about a magazine apiece. Better training seems indicated, but the shooting was clearly justified. The thug "not having a chance" (I'm just quoting a trite phrase, not anyone here) doesn't bother me.

Agreed.. when you break it down in shots per officer, it's really not a whole lot.. A sign of a real problem would be if 1 officer dumped 3 mags and the other 8 dumped the other 40 or so.

[Adam Wood]

When asked by reporters why the police had fired 110 rounds at the suspect (who had shot and injured one deputy, shot and killed a K9 officer, and was actively shooting at police who had surrounded the suspect in the woods), Polk County, Florida Sheriff Grady Judd replied "I suspect that the reason that 110 rounds were fired is that's all the ammunition that they had."



It does not matter if the police fire one round or a million rounds: if they're opening fire on someone, then their goal is to eliminate the threat, a/k/a kill the ****er.  If you don't want to get shot 109 times, then I would suggest that you try to refrain from slashing the throats of old women with steak knives.  This is one of the many ways to not get shot a whole bunch of times by the police.