Is it time to take guns away from the police?

[A_Britishcolumbian]

it seems to me that we have seen far too many instances of people dying from bullets fired by police in 'canada' in the last decade at least.

as i was reading about the sammy yatin case i noticed a comment by another reader referencing another police shooting resulting in the death of a hospital worker riding his bicycle, "Patrick Limoges, 36, worked at the downtown hospital and was on his way there Tuesday morning when he got caught in the crossfire of a police operation and died."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/ ... oting.html

instances such as these leave me wondering, what were they thinking? why open fire in an urban area where so many lives are vulnerable to errant rounds?

i have heard many people say, police and non-police, that the accuracy of a handgun is terrible, one needs to be within about 7 metres of a target.

i also wonder, would a situation like mayerthorpe have happened if the shooter believed the police did not have firearms?

we all know the deadly capabilities of the various ert units, are they not enough firepower?

i would think that public perception and respect for our police forces could only be enhanced by a removal of guns carried by police.

[KL3-Something]

Ok. So long as you take guns, knives, baseball bats, 2x4s, screw drivers, hammers and crowbars away from the bad guys.

[baconbits]

I don't believe that Police should stop carrying firearms, they should have that "tool" available to them since there are situations where "the bad guys" have firearms as well. However it seems as though Police Officers these days are very quick to use they're guns instead of physically taking down a suspect.

[fluffy]

I have to wonder if the spate of bad publicity cops have been receiving over the last couple of decades has affected the number of people wanting to sign on to the job ? Have "enlistment" requirements been changed at all? It seems to me that some fairly rigorous psychological screening at the onset might weed out some of the bad apples, but regular psyche assessments for those already on the force might help too. I would think that the constant exposure to society's dark side that the law enforcement community has to deal with might take a long term toll of its own. It also seems to me that the power and authority associated with the badge and the gun might just be attracting the sort of people that the force could do without at this point.

[A_Britishcolumbian]

the 'popularity' of the ranks seems to be at a bit of a high actually. the 26 positions that came up in pg recently were filled very quickly.

in all the police shootings, as it has so eloquently been pointed out in several threads, the member firing has 'feared for their life', even when the victim has been a child, a senior, or a handicapped person. it would seem we need a bravery test for potential police.

use of the 'tool', i question this huge. when do we see police deploy these tools against known deadly people? i am not seeing known violent offenders being gunned down nearly as often as the aforementioned children, mentally compromised or deficient and seniors.

i do not believe we would see anyone die from errant beanbags.

calgary is taking the initiative, putting cameras on the police. maybe this will be the filtre that will solve the problem, i am actually pro gun myself.

other jurisdictions around the globe get along fine without a need for their police to tote guns, i am quite sure we could manage fine as well.

[grammafreddy]

I think the corruption streaks go right to the top. I was hoping this new guy would make some drastic needed changes, but it seems not.

[Woodenhead]

No need to remove their guns.

The screening for the job position needs to be seriously tweaked, though, IMO. The stresses of the job are often self-harming as well.

[grammafreddy]

No need to remove their guns.

The screening for the job position needs to be seriously tweaked, though, IMO. The stresses of the job are often self-harming as well.

As is the bullying and jockeying for power.

[Nebula]

Agreed. Let's decriminalize marijuana, take the savings realized by not having cops chasing everyone with a joint and put the funds into better psychological screening and ongoing police mental health checkups and interventions.

[Glacier]

Decriminalization saves money? That would be a first.

http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2010/02/03/on- ... ave-money/

[Jo]

Okay, let's veeeeer gently back on topic, people. Let's not make a hash (lol) out of this thread.

[Nebula]

My bad. Sometimes off topic posts grow like a weed. I'll nip this one in the bud and stay on the high side of the debate.

[Bsuds]

My bad. Sometimes off topic posts grow like a weed. I'll nip this one in the bud and stay on the high side of the debate.

Don't shoot the messenger!

[Trigger69]

I don't believe that Police should stop carrying firearms, they should have that "tool" available to them since there are situations where "the bad guys" have firearms as well. However it seems as though Police Officers these days are very quick to use they're guns instead of physically taking down a suspect.

This may seem true to some ---or---- is the reality of the situation the media sensationalizes events more to sell more paper or to get more web hits. I think it's the media...

[dogspoiler]

The Media cannot sesationalize the cops shooting someone untill the cops shoot someone, they don't dream it up.