Dealing with the police, post shooting

[mercop]

OK, the situation that you have prepared for and hoped would never come has, you have used deadly force against another human being. You have called the police and ambulance and they are enroute. What will you tell them when they arrive?

We cover this in depth during courses. Many students say that they will tell the responding patrolman “I am not saying anything without a lawyer”. Consider a few things, one this came out as a man with a gun call. Not a legally armed citizen using justifiable deadly force call. Chances are that firs the officers will be very amped up until they figure out what is going on. The is a very likely chance that they have never responded to a shooting that did not involve a non-criminal. Depending on where you are they whole get me a lawyer thing may backfire and you could be the difference between you being a listed as the victim or a complainant. Also the difference between sitting in the back of the car in cuffs until they figure out what is going on or sitting in the front seat.

What we teach is to give the officer your identification, tell him very briefly what happened and then advise him that you don’t feel well and would like an ambulance. Coming out of an adrenaline dump of that level will likely result in you feeling sick to your stomach and maybe even trembling. No officer in their right mind will deny you medical attention. Being separated from the scene will give you time to collect your thoughts and make some phone calls before being interviewed, even if escorted by an officer.

What I have found as a police officer is that as soon as I arrive on a scene of anything from a fight to a traffic accident, the involved parties run up to you and want to give you their side of the story. In a use of force incident these could be considered excited utterances and used in court. When we are stressed and afraid of being in trouble we have a tendency to regress into child like fashion. This can mean trying to put yourself in a good light with the way you present the facts. This is very natural and is not necessarily lying but can be construed as such. The human mind does not like unfinished story and has a tendency to fill in the empty spaces.

Just think about this before you need to.

[Montanya]

"I was attacked, I would like to file charges" the remaining statement of what occurred will happen when I am more composed. The "Anything you say can and WILL be used against you in a court of law" isn't just something they say for no reason, no matter how innocent my statement is, if there is a way it can be used against me it will be, so I would prefer to compose myself first and make a statement afterwards. If that temporarily means i have to be arrested, hopefully it will keep me outta a whole ton of trouble later.

I would rather spend 48 hours in jail, than 10-20 or 20-life because while I was amped up on adrenaline I said something off the wall to the police officer.

[BenningBoy]

So let's say it's a clean shoot. I call 911, request police and an ambulance. Say it's at my home. How much information goes from the 911 dispatcher to the responding officer? How do I avoid being mistaken as the assailant? And what happens next?

[Thekatar]

Call 911. Tell them there's been a shooting.

When the police arrive, cautiously approach them with empty hands and announce, "Thank God you're here, I'm the one who called you." Point at the guy lying on the ground and say "that man tried to murder me."

Tell the police your name and where you live. Politely decline to give out any more info until you are able to speak with your attorney. Keep your mouth shut until you talk to your attorney.

[mercop]

Depends on the dispatcher, IMHO they don't get enough information. I would give them my description, at least what I am wearing and where they will find me. From there it really depends. As soon as you feel safe doing so. secure your firearm.

[Mtbkski]

Originally Posted by Montanya

"I was attacked, I would like to file charges" the remaining statement of what occurred will happen when I am more composed. The "Anything you say can and WILL be used against you in a court of law" isn't just something they say for no reason, no matter how innocent my statement is, if there is a way it can be used against me it will be, so I would prefer to compose myself first and make a statement afterwards. If that temporarily means i have to be arrested, hopefully it will keep me outta a whole ton of trouble later.

I would rather spend 48 hours in jail, than 10-20 or 20-life because while I was amped up on adrenaline I said something off the wall to the police officer.

Originally Posted by BenningBoy

So let's say it's a clean shoot. I call 911, request police and an ambulance. Say it's at my home. How much information goes from the 911 dispatcher to the responding officer? How do I avoid being mistaken as the assailant? And what happens next?

Originally Posted by Thekatar

Call 911. Tell them there's been a shooting.

When the police arrive, cautiously approach them with empty hands and announce, "Thank God you're here, I'm the one who called you." Point at the guy lying on the ground and say "that man tried to murder me."

Tell the police your name and where you live. Politely decline to give out any more info until you are able to speak with your attorney. Keep your mouth shut until you talk to your attorney.

Originally Posted by mercop

Depends on the dispatcher, IMHO they don't get enough information. I would give them my description, at least what I am wearing and where they will find me. From there it really depends. As soon as you feel safe doing so. secure your firearm.

WRONG

Call 911 and report the shooting.

When police arrive. Tell them you want to have an attorney present before answering any questions.

Shut your mouth. Don't say nothing else.

Everything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

** Advice from my attorney**

[mercop]

some good responses here. Not saying anything until you see your lawyer would be best in a perfect world. During my career I have never had anyone do that. Everyone always wanted to get their story across. Now retired from LE as a full time trainer I believe since people won't shut their mouth it is best to remove themselves from the situation.

[BenningBoy]

I know it's alot of what ifs, but this aspect of it is seldom discussed,and frankly I worry more about the aftermath of an encounter than the encounter itself. A guy breaks in, is shot and wounded, but alive. I want to keep a gun on him till police arrive, but don't want shot when they do. How to handle?

[jerkin]

Originally Posted by BenningBoy

I know it's alot of what ifs, but this aspect of it is seldom discussed,and frankly I worry more about the aftermath of an encounter than the encounter itself. A guy breaks in, is shot and wounded, but alive. I want to keep a gun on him till police arrive, but don't want shot when they do. How to handle?

Heck, that's easy, shoot him again before they get there!

[Brown-Bear]

This is a good thread. I would guess I would need an ambulance and probably one of my daugters box of wipes to clean my drawers. I like the idea of going to the hospital first to compose yourself.

I have often wondered about the aftermath of self defense shooting more than the shooting itself.

Plus one on vomiting after an adreneline dump. Did it a few times in the military after close calls.

BB