It's not how these things are supposed to end.
The standoff started at mid-morning off Center Road near Butler Mill Road. The sheriff says an agitated 63-year-old Thomas Adams ran his wife out of the house. She ran to a neighbor's house and called police while he holed up inside with at least one gun.
Steve Ludlum tried to talk his brother-in-law out to no avail. Police continued to gather and tighten the perimeter.
The State Bureau of Investigation Special Response Team moved in. Ludlam says police made him leave; "They said once they got the perimeter secured they'd come back and get me to get the negotiators in to negotiate with him. The next I heard about ten minutes later, everything broke loose. They shot him down like a dog."
Bladen County Sheriff Stephen Bunn says officers had no choice but to open fire on Thomas Adams. "Around five o'clock he came out of the house with a gun. Officers in the woods tried to negotiate with him but instead he shot in the direction and they returned fire, striking him. He was transported to southeastern general hospital."
Family members were understandably upset with the fatal outcome. Ludlam says it could have been prevented. "He's not been on his medication for about a week. They just went overboard today. All this was unnecessary."
Its handling will be investigated. Crime scene techs started working the area shortly after the standoff had ended.
You Know.. maybe they should
You Know.. maybe they should release the 911 tape and THAT WAY.. EVERYONE can shut their pie holes!
standoff
I WANT TO SAY TO THE FAMILY; I AM TRUELY SORRY FOR YOUR LOSE. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT KIND OF MAN HE WAS, EXCEPT FOR A FATHER, BROTHER, HUSBAND, SON OF SOMEONE. FOR A UNKNOWN REASON THAT ALL CHANGED. WE WILL PROBABLY NEVER KNOW. JUST KNOW IN YOUR HEART THE MAN HE WAS BEFORE THIS INCIDENT. LOOK DEEP INSIDE AND TRY TO KEEP THE HATE OF YOUR BODY AND MIND AGAINST THE PEOPLE WHO THINK THIS WAS OK. THERE ARE SO MANY REASONS FOR THIS KIND OF ACTION, BUT WE WILL NEVER KNOW. ONLY THE GODS KNOW THE TRUTH.
ALL MY LOVE, HOPES AND PRAYERS TO YOU.
sad
These situations always end badly if the cops are called. Why cant the cops around here learn to take down a person w/o killing him?? Can that be done?
Apparently cops need to learn from mistakes but I guess they have to right to shoot w/o being worried about the consequence.
Sorry to read about this type of situation again.
Das
What exactly do you suggest an officer do when he is being shot at???
WilmMan
You sound like you know it all and have it all figured out. You have the answer to everything, don't you? BRAVO,*round of applause* on such a great job! May God continue to bless you and keep you and your family safe. And pray that you're never put in a situation similiar to this where you, have people like you, that just don't know when to shut their mouth. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!! You obviously love the attention. And we are stooping to your level by responding to your remarks, which is exactly what you want!
WM
Take down the subject w/o killing him, like hit the elbow, foot, hand. Gotta be something else.
No one shoots to wound
It totally undermines the legal justification to use deadly force and invites an indictment. "How much could you have really felt threatened if you took the time to aim and shoot him in the leg?"
Most departments now subscribe to the age-old FBI policy: You do not draw your weapon unless you intend to use it, and you never fire it unless you intend to kill someone.
It is ludicrous to fault the officers for applying deadly force when they felt that their life was in danger. Everyone, whether a sworn LEO or a civilian, has a legal (and God-given)right to defend their life.
common
Still, it is a human being and not knowing the mans background would make me think twice before i fatally shot him. It is too common that people in these situations have some mental problem and unless they aim & fire directly at the cops I do not think it is right to kill them. I guess I would make a bad cop, or maybe not.
The family called for HELP not to have their loved one killed. I guess like me they think that the cops have some sort of training to talk to someone in this situation and help control it. Is there not some sort of gun that fires darts to sedate the subject? It just seems the easy way is to kill them anymore, like its too much work to bother...Its just sad.
Das, his "background" has nothing to do with it
When you are confronted with an armed suspect who raises a weapon at you, one moment's hesitation can mean that you're not going home that night. I don't care if it's a nun or a twelve year-old boy holding that weapon, you return fire. While it's not an example from domestic law enforcement, it's interesting to note that the Rangers who made it out of Mogadishu alive were the ones who didn't hesitate to shoot the young boys who were firing AK-47s at them.
Now, there are several non-lethal alternatives to deadly force, but they require being in fairly close proximity to the suspect. (Rubber bullets, for example, will not travel as far as traditional rounds because of decreased mass and a necessarily poor ballistic coefficient.) But you NEVER use non-lethal force to meet lethal force - that's an invitation to getting officers killed.
In the case at hand, the suspect exited the home and fired at the officers. Were they completely set up and in position? Were they ready to start negotiating...or were they still establishing the perimeter and discussing their next steps? In other words, did they return fire from a purely reflexive and reactive situation because the suspect pressed the issue?
They may have had every intention of talking that man out, but when the suspect takes action that forces your hand, there's little you can do but protect your own life and end the confrontation immediately.
Thank for your compassion
Thank for your compassion and sincereness. That is all we wanted was HELP. The unfortunate thing about this,{aside from Tommy's death is that I will now think twice for calling for help for myself or anyone. Where did it all go wrong?!? There was absolutely no negotiating done by the LEO, only a family member who was made to leave, thinking the LEO had someone to talk to him to help him. I know they have a job to do and the right to protect themselves. We just can't understand why they didn't back off a little, since they were obviously adgetating him, until he tired out or they had means to subdue or apprehend him by means of the armored vehicle that was on the way. He was not shooting at anyone, why not wait it out as long as he was on his own property and not shooting at anyone. This was a cry for help!!!! Who do you turn to now to get that. This has caused people to doubt the men and women who are there to protect and serve in these situations. I appreciate the job that they do until you experience something like this. My thoughts and prayers are with the entire family and community that this has affected. I also forgive those who took this drastic action, because as a Christian that is what I am supposed to do. I just hope no one EVER has to go through anything like this. However, if something like this happens again, I hope many lessons have been learned. We are all only human, but there are people out there who love and care for us, he was not a mad animal on the loose, only a human being needing help. Please pray for us all and understand that we are all hurting.
help and leo
Your welcome. I am sorry for your family and I HOPE that LEO's will try and come up with better ways of handling this type of situation in the future. I thought they were all trained for this but I guess not.
I understand your point Common BUT it seems that every time this type of thing happens the person that needed the help dies. We as the public rely on the police for help... that is how we are raised, to trust that they will do the right thing and in some cases they just fail.
Sometimes they are in a no
Sometimes they are in a no win situation...we do rely on LEO for protection among other things, but sometimes people have to take responsibility for their own actions and understand that police do not always have a choice
Yes, sometimes they fail...
Sergeant Joe Friday said it best in an old episode of Dragnet. "Our problem is that we have to recruit from the human race, and until humans beings are perfect, police officers won't be."
A Mark VII
Production
Officers cannot do
Officers cannot do that....officer are only to use their weapon for life and death situations. The use of their weapons means shoot to kill. Otherwise officers will be using their weapons instead of pepper spray or tasers.
Exactly, this was not a life
Exactly, this was not a life or death situation, it was a call for help from someone with no criminal background or previous mental health problems. Other means should have and could have been used. He did not shoot AT LEO, only into the air. If they feared their lives why did they keep moving in closer to irritate him more so, nobody else was in danger he was alone on his own property. Is there a time limit on these situations? Why not stay back while keeping a visual on subject, wait for other means to apprehend him, as long as no ones life was in danger.
The truth WILL come out. I
The truth WILL come out. I just pray that my family will find the strength to hold their heads high and not stoop to the disgusting lows that the citizens of this community have done by the hurtful remarks that have been made about Tommy and my family! RIP Tommy, I love you and I will miss you greatly!!
FACTS OF STANDOFF
FACTS OF STANDOFF:
HIS WIFE CALLED 911
HIS WIFE HAD TO RUN FROM HER HOUSE SO SHE COULD SAFELY CALL 911
HIS WIFE WAS SHOT AT BY HER HUSBAND
HE STOPPED TAKING MEDS FOR A WEEK(SIGN FOR HELP)
HE SHOT A LAW ENFORCEMENT SEVERAL TIMES
LAW ENFORCEMENT GAVE HIM SEVERAL TIMES TO GIVE UP BETWEEN THE GUN FIRE AT THEM
FAMILY TRIED TO TALK TO HIM(DIDN'T HELP)
SBI TRIED TALKING TO HIM (DIDN'T HELP)
HE HAD SEVEN HOURS TO CALM DOWN AND TURN HIM SELF OVER(DIDN'T HAPPEN)
HE SHOT AT LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR THE LAST TIME THEN THEY RETURNED FIRE
YOU TALK ABOUT SOMEONE THAT HAD ALL THE FAVORS IN HIS HAND
IT'S CALLED SUICIDE BY COP, HAPPENS EVERYDAY
MR. LUDLUM RAN OVER TO GIVE AN INTERVIEW WITH THE NEWS INSTEAD OF BEING WITH HIS FAMILY DURING THE TIME OF SADNESS( WHERE WAS HIS CONCERN)
IF THERE IS ANY WRONG DOING IT WILL BE BROUGHT OUT IN THE INVESTIGATION
THE END........................
Listen here, My uncle was
Listen here,
My uncle was brutally murder by people who "so called" tried to help him.
You dont know the facts, you know nothing about this. Dont tell me the facts because you know nothing. He never shot at his wife, he had no reason to. It was her choice to go over to the neighbors to call for help. He never shot at a law enforcement, he shot in the air now to me I dont think the law enforcement would be in the air. And yes the family did talk to him, he was calmed down but the law enforcement were to worried about their own selfish needs to even care about giving him help. My uncle just needed help and they promised my grandpa that they would get a negotiator to talk to him. The SBI did NOT talk to him, only his brother-in-law and he did not feel threatned at any time while he was with him. 4 1/2 hours he spent talking about the bible,huning, and fishing. This man had no attention to hurt or kill no one. Hes not that kind of person, and the law is nothing but murderers, and my grandfather was appraoched by the news cast about the situation HE DID NOT approach them. He wanted the public to know my uncle was murdered and he was lied to by the SBI. By this time, my uncle was dead and being transported the SERMC. It wasnt suicide by cop. It was murder, if he wanted to die, he would have done it himself. So dont talk to me about facts, you know nothing yourself. Get your story straight, this is what really happened...
THE END!
signed by: Tommy Adams Loving Family
Facts Of Standoff
Please do a little more research on your, "Facts Of Standoff"there are several of your "Facts" that are absolutely not Factual.
WIFE WAS NOT SHOT AT BY HUSBAND, (He would have hit her if that was factual, he was a very good shot. He fired into the air, that was witnessed.)
I DONT KNOW OF MANY PEOPLE WHO DO NOT SKIP MEDS FROM TIME TO TIME. (You can not force anyone to take anything that they don't want to.)
HE DID NOT SHOOT ANYONE, (Perhaps you should proofread your statement.)
THE FAMILY MEMBER HAD MANAGED TO CALM MR. ADAMS DOWN QUITE A BIT. (Until he was tricked into leaving briefly.)
HOW MUCH TALKING DID THE SBI DO? (Apparently, you think you know a lot more information than those who are close to this do.)
SUICIDE OR MURDER? (I wonder how you are qualified to make that call?)
MR. LUDLUM WAS APPROACHED FOR THE INTERVIEW AT A VERY EMOTIONAL, (and understandably so) MOMENT.(The rest of the family had not even been allowed to all go to the scene at that point, how could he have been with them?)
At this point, I ask of you to please reconsider your FACTS.
Bladenboro's Tragic Loss
I strongly disagree with alot of the negative and childish remarks that have been made. It was a tragic loss but an avoidable one..The officers and their superiors went about it the wrong way. When they knew that backing off would help they should have removed some of the officers instead of further irritating him. While he was walking around his own yard not bothering anyone,why didn't they use tranqulizers on him? If they can tranqulize a bear at several hundred yards, why not Tommy? or why not let Steve,his brother in law keep talking to him until the tactical vehicle arrived which was less than an hour away,a vehicle that would have allowed them to drive up to the home and safely talk to Tommy,
taser him or use concussion grenades to take him safely,(that is what they were made for,
why not use them!)No!they would not wait and
lied to Steve and told him they were going to bring him back and not harm Tommy, how convienent NO Steve means no Witness. While Steve was talking with him he was calm and outside for different intervals not threatening anyone. They (the Cops) sent their only asset in getting this man help.. away. Not letting his son speak with him was a mistake also.. They used unnecessary force, treating him like someone who had been out on a killing spree all over the county. Maybe they (the SBI) were impatient, or tired or just plain did not care..as long as they could go home to their families, if waiting it out took days I would have waited it out to save his life or yours or anyones like any caring loving person or officer should want to do. Tommy was having a hard day just like we all have had but 4 officers didn't shoot us to death!!
My deepest love and sympathy goes out to the family and all involved in this tragic loss of a friend, husband, father,and brother..May God Bless You All...
if you can do a better job
if you think you could have done a better job than by all means sign up and be a law enforcement officer. just remember what you said in your statements, i will repeat them at your funeral since the world just doesnt work the way you seem to think. what you need to remember is that you may have known tommy, but they did not.
reply to a better job
Maybe I should sign up since it seems that someone who is a better shot or perhaps more sympathetic and understanding, is needed...Not all law enforcement is to blame, whoever was over the SBI should have listened to some of the local officers and the family members simply because they knew the man better...Further more I don't make statements that I don't mean..The shooting officers superiors are to blame in my opinion.
There is only one person to
There is only one person to blame...and that is the man that came out firing. Let's be responsible for our actions and quit blaming others
reply to wilmman & guest12345678
You should't be on here to argue or proclaim your false facts, there are family viewing these remarks. Would you want to read these if it were your family? I don't think so! Some of you need to calm down and remember that the family is mourning and you were right someone should take responsibility and quit blaming others (the ones in charge of the shootings) and realize they failed to protect and serve the community by failng to use proper procedures that could have saved his life. You all don't know nothing about Mr.Adams,Mr.Ludlum, the family or the circumstances of the issue and for the ones of you that do, you know my statements are true and practical. You have no right saying anything about the love or concern that Steve Ludlum had for Mr. Adams or his family. If you disagree then you are deceiving yourselves and others. So please be nice because we could be discussing this about you or your family next. May God bless you all....
Craig
The only FACT that matters is that this guy came outside with a loaded weapon and fired that weapon in the general direction of the officers. LEO did what they had to do and have done no wrong. I understand that you and this guy's friends and family are in pain, but that doesn't give you or anyone else the right to criticize LEO for doing what they legally had a right to do.
to wilmman's bogus facts
The only fact here is that you are way to caught up protecting your leo's and it don't give you or your leo's or anyone else for that fact the right to criticize the family.Wake up and get real wilmman.If they would have needed him alive he would still be here. But unfortunatly he was of no importance to them so they ended it the easiest and quickest way and if you can't realize that I say again wake up wilmman smell all the wrong doing.Also let me reiterate the point that as long as Steve Ludlum was there he was calm..There were other things that could have been done to apprehend him and other ways to do it...
Say what you want
What would you be saying if he shot an officer? Say what you want and defend who you want...it doesn't change the fact that this man came outside with a loaded weapon and fired it at/near/towards LEO. It's unfortunate, but he brought this upon himself
you really know a lot
you really know a lot about everything, so you think!! these comments that you have been posting make me sick, you were not there, but i am sure if you had of been you would be guilty of the same crime that was commmited, cold blooded murder, by the people who are suppose to be able to handle these situations in a better manner, GOD WILL PREVAIL!! HE ALWAYS DOES!! DO YOU BELIEVE LEO MAKES MISTAKES !!!,THERE IS ONLY ONE PERFECT ONE!!!!!LIKE I SAID HE WILL PREVAIL !! MR WILMAM OR WHO EvER YOU ARE, YOU TRULY HAVE A HEART OF STONE!!
WilmMan Re: Say What You Want
Case closed, The judge and jury has spoken. We can all go home. Thanks WilmMan, you know so much, how do you do it? You must make a lot of money, because you know anything there is to know about everything. Good Job. Oh me, guess you brought this upon yourself.
Craig, your family has my
Craig, your family has my deepest sympathy. I can only imagine how difficult it must be trying to weed through the negative, ill-informed opinions here and I hope that you and the rest of your family won't linger too much longer. You don't need this right now. Take some time and comfort each other, away from this garbage. Good luck to you.
The only fact that really
The only fact that really matters is that this guy came outside with a loaded weapon and fired it off in the general direction of the officers. They did what they had to do. I know you and his friends and family are in pain, but that doesn't give you the right to crticize LEO for doing their job
Beating Dead Horses
You are the authority on every last subject on this forum. Why is that? Way too much time on your hands?
Since you are neither the Judge, jury and you were NOT THERE; what gives you the right to pass judgment on something that you have only heard about in the news?
Shooting
As a 20 year veteran of a department, I think those who don't wear a badge and have never been in a situation that involves a firearm and it is a threat to your life should think twice before making the comments that are being made. Not really sure where the "30 shots fired",is coming from. Maybe it was when he was shooting into the woods where some officers were. This must be how many times Mr. Adams fired his weapon during the whole day. The bullet holes that some are describing they have found could possibly be from the Adams weapon that he fired. This incident is still under investigation I'm sure. I think we should all, including myself, wait and see what the final outcome of the investigation reveals before criticizing law enforcement or the family for what they should have done. Whether it is 1 or 30 "U" don't know what you would do until you are in that situation. I can speak from experience after being pinned down for 6 hours from gunfire from an assault rifle. This is only 1 incident of many involving a weapon for me and probably will not be the last. My thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Adam's family and with the officers involved with this incident.
Justice System Reform
We should have this much attention and publicity focused on the real dangers in our community. Those dealing the drugs, abusing the innocent and robbing us blind. Maybe when someone calls for police protection in these situations the accused will be met with the same brutality.
Tuesday morning quarterbacks....
I have read most of the comments that have been written about this situation. Why does all the fingers have to start pointing when something like this happens. The old saying says when you point your finger at someone you have 3 pointing back at yourself.
My points are...
Law enforcement was not doing house calls that morning they were requested to come because someone needed help once they were at the location they could not leave an armed man who had already shot at his wife to harm anyone else. It was already proven he was willing to shoot at someone
Paperwork was taken out and by law they now have to do something.
If you were in the area it was proven that it went on for several hours I don't think rushing in can even come into this matter
I don't think anyone wanted the outcome they got that day nor did they plan for it to be that way.
When someone talks about how many shots I think the number 30 has come up on several articles, has anyone counted the number of times he shot because when you're counting you have to count them all
Next I was not the one standing in a location getting shot at and more than a few times. You have to somewhere ask yourself when you say they had no regards for him then why did it go on for so long and why did they not do this when they first got at the location
It appears that people see things that makes it easier for them to handle the part they did or could have played in this situation.
When you ask why LEO did this or that ask why the people that knew him best did or didn't do more. When you ask why LEO did or didn't do this or that ask why he had guns when it has been said he had been off his meds for days.
When you ask questions ask them all
When you read the articles that say LEO did this or that ask yourself what the articles would have read if they had left an armed man in a populated area with neighbors and family around and he finished what he started earlier that day. When you are not the one sworn to protect it is really easy to pass judgement but until you dress in the uniform and pin that badge on you can only say what you think you would have done.
My sympathy does go out to the family but it also goes out to the officers who had to be involved in this situation
Everyone wants to question
Everyone wants to question the officers tactics in this case and it is really easy to suggest shooting the suspect in the leg or tackling him when you arent the one who has to do it. As a family member and freind of many law enforcement officers, i know how hard their jobs are, low pay, long hours and no respect from the average citizen. These men and women are there to serve and protect the public and then when they defend themselves and return gunfire at an armed suspect they are wrong. Obviously whoever suggested that the man was harmlessly firing into the air has no experience with firearms. It is easy to criticize when you are not the in the line of fire. This is a tragedy shared by all including the officers and their families.
Bladen Co. Shooting
I am a registered nurse who was formerly married to a law enforcement officer. I can tell you that they are there to protect our citizens. That means you, John Q. Public. Had the victim shot and killed someone himself, whether a law enforcement officer, or family member, this whole story would read differently.
This is a tragedy, no doubt. But remember, the victim was out of control, no longer on his medications, and a threat to EVERYONE around him.
We all have a job to do. The Bladen Co. Sheriff's dept. was just trying to serve and protect.
We should try to think about what that law enforcement officer and his family are going through, also.
Would have, should have,
Would have, should have, could have...I am sincerely sorry for this families loss, and even more sorry for how it all went down. Thirty shots? Seems incredibly excessive. This is hard news to swallow.
30 shots or 1
30 shots or 1 shot...what's the difference? As unfortunate as this incident was, the officers did the right thing. The man walks out and shoots at the police. The police are going to shoot back. I'm pretty sure the officers didn't continue to shoot after the victim fell. There were several officers that RETURNED fire so it's not like you had one or two officers fire off 15 rounds. It's more likely each officer fired off around 4-6 rounds. What exactly did you expect to happen? Do you think the officers delegate one officer to return fire? When you shoot at an officer, every officer will return fire.
And those questioning why the officers didn't try to wound the suspect...that is a mute point. Officers are not trained to fire their weapon to injure you, they fire their weapon to kill you. Thier weapons are for deadly force and this was a deadly force situation.
I guess the difference here
I guess the difference here WilmMan would be the possibility of the man surviving one shot. I don't suppose there was any hope with him being lit up with 30. And if what you say is true about the firing protocol, maybe it's time to train these officers to be better shots so that situations like this don't result in major overkill.
"Moot" is the word you were searching for, btw.
Moot is what I should have
Moot is what I should have wrote. Sometimes I don't always think about the words before I type.
As far as the police of shoot to kill, that is the policy of every police department in the US. A policy of shoot to wound would not work due to the fact that a weapon should never be used except for life and death situations. And don't get me wrong, I feel bad for the families and I understand them being upset over the situation, but when the dust settles the family will realize the officers did what they had to do and they didn't do anything wrong
huh?
Who are you folks getting your information from. He was not shot 30 times... more like two or three..... Folks when we are in a situation where someone is shooting.... we do not have one person that does all the shooting while the others sit back and watch..... futher more this is a law enforcement officers worst nightmare to take the life of another even if he or she is protecting there own..... And as for the comment about officer jump the gun to be in the spot light....believe me their are enough of you hero's we deal with everyday to keep us in the spot light for something.... this is a said situation for everyone... and im truley sorry for the family, but dont think we go to work everyday for things like this to take place.....we want to put in our 12 hours and go home to be with our families just like the next person. Folks try to get the facts before you post something.
Guest1041, give us facts
Guest1041, give us facts then.
1) How many shots were fired?
2) How many wounds did the man suffer?
3) Did the victim shoot in the AIR in the presence of the officers, or was he firing AT them directly?
4) Are the accounts of the man being unarmed for periods of time during all of this, when he could have been taken with at most a bad scuffle, a lie?
Let's have the facts please. I think we could all use them, and you seem to be just the right person to get them for us.
I think..........
I think if Mr. Thomas Adams would have meant to kill someone he would have. This man has no criminal background. Why not wait it out instead of taking him down? These are trained police, they know what will kill someone. Why not shoot him in the leg so he will fall or hide beside the door where he was to come out at and tackle him. They really didn't have to shoot him at all. They have tear gas and why didn't they shoot that in the house whenever he was in the house. Whats the need in having it, if you're not going to use it. He was at his own house and everyone has arguments. It sounds like to me the police were wanting attention from the media and not caring about one's family. She called the police out there to help not to come out there and kill a person. I think they had no right shooting him near the heart, because they are trained (so said), so why not lower? That was uncalled for. My deepest sympathy goes out for the family.
This takes me back to my
This takes me back to my previous point why does everyone feel that the crime was justified by him being shot at 30 times? All it took was 1!! Not only did they butcher his body by all of the gunfire, the house was demolished by bullet holes. Looks like someone needs more target practice. First and foremost you have to remember that this man was a husband and a father and I would appreciate a little RESPECT for the ones that are grieving for him and trying to make sense of all that has happened. I'm sure that if it were your father, husband or anyone in your family...you would feel a little bitter about the situation, especially when you have a news camera in your face 15 minutes afterwards.
he was shot 3 times
he was shot 3 times
shooting
The police officers completely went overboard with this situation. They could have wounded Tommy Adams without killing him. He never shot at anyone-he shot into the air-he never threatened an officer or held anyone hostage. He never had a history or mental illness therefore the entire situation should have been handled differently. Tommy was a deer hunter-if he had wanted anyone dead-that would have happened before he was shot. Steve Ludlum asked the officers to back off so that the family could try to calm him down to reason with him. The law enforcement would let NO-ONE....no family member NO-ONE try to reason with him at any point or time. The only way 1 family member was able to get to Tommy to talk to him was to slip thru the woods near the home and get to him. They actually sat and talked and had a conversation-but the "authorties" supposedly want to "negotiate" as they call it and made this person leave. Leave so there would be no witnesses...the only people that feel like the "law enforcement" did the "right thing" is the law enforcement. So to the people who believe that the law did the right thing wait until you are in this situation and see how you feel..Tommy-you will be missed and you were loved because I still remember the times at the beach fishing,and digging oysters when we were children when me and Dale were children..
Everything else aside,
Everything else aside, whether he deserved it or not, does it suprise ANYONE that the police dramatically over-reacted. It's become the norm in today's world. Shoot first and ask questions later, isn't that what America now stands for??
Shoot first, ask questions
Shoot first, ask questions later??? Are you serious. The officer were being shot at. How are they to ask questions first? And they did not fire first, they RETURNED fire. Get a grip. It's obvious that you have something against LEO and no matter if they acted correctly or not you would criticize them.
been shot by bad guy before
I feel bad for the family, I feel bad for the officers involved. I'll say a prayer for both sides. I'm a law enforcement officer that survived being severely shot by a bad guy several years ago, and I know what it feels like to shoot someone. To take a life or have yours taken, THAT'S WHAT IT COMES DOWN TO. THANK GOD, no officer was shot in this case and maybe if just one round had been fired at the subject he would have been given the opportunity to injure an officer or a family member and then they would have to live with the aftermath of its horrors. Bottom line when it's your life hanging on a thread, you're not counting how many times you pull the trigger, believe me, you can't pull it enough. Once again I feel for the family. No family should ever have to live with such a terrible tragedy and no family should have to live with a folded flag.