What are the rules for officers shooting at a moving vehicle? | AP News
By: AP News
This seed answers some critical questions regarding the use of lethal force when dealing with a moving vehicle.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
What to know about the rules for officers firing at a moving vehicle
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A federal immigration operation in Minneapolis turned deadly this week when a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good during a confrontation involving her vehicle.
Cellphone video captured the shooting, which federal officials claimed was an act of self-defense but that the city's mayor described as "reckless" and unnecessary. Video shows an ICE officer approaching Good's SUV stopped in the road as the vehicle begins to move forward. Another ICE officer standing in front of it draws his gun and fires at close range as he jumps out of the way.
Here's what to know about regulations on using deadly force in these situations:
When can officers fire at a moving vehicle?
There is no universal training standard for law enforcement. But most police departments and federal guidance bar shooting at a moving vehicle unless the driver poses an imminent threat of deadly force beyond the car itself.
Why are shootings at vehicles restricted?
Experts say firing at a moving car is one of the riskiest forms of lethal force, increasing the chance of stray gunfire or a loss of vehicle control that can endanger bystanders.
Are officers expected to move out of the way?
Yes. Justice Department policy says deadly force is allowed only when no reasonable alternative exists, including stepping out of the vehicle's path.
Related Stories Congress is debating the possible consequences for ICE and even Noem after Renee Good's killing5 MIN READProtests against ICE planned across US after shootings in Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon1 MIN READWife of Minnesota woman killed in ICE shooting: 'We had whistles. They had guns'3 MIN READ
Can officers use deadly force just to stop or arrest someone?
No. Policies generally state officers cannot use deadly force solely to arrest someone or to disable a fleeing vehicle if the person does not pose an immediate threat.
Do federal immigration agents follow different rules?
Not fundamentally. ICE and other federal officers operate under similar Justice Department guidance limiting gunfire at vehicles, although federal agents have added legal protections when acting within their official duties.
What is ICE's policy?
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, allows deadly force only when an officer reasonably believes someone poses an imminent threat of death or serious injury.
Who investigates these shootings?
Federal agencies conduct internal reviews, and state and local authorities may also pursue criminal investigations. Federal agents are not immune from prosecution if they act outside their authority. The FBI is leading the investigation into the Minneapolis shooting.
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The Good killing was not a situation where an officer was in a closed space and could not escape a car barreling down trying to run him over.
I think he was potentially in danger , if for example she aimed the car at him. As we know, that is not what happened. The fact is that he very easily moved out the way. He didnt fall, didnt lose his balance, or get injured. Everyone "hit" by a car should be so lucky.
Oh, didn't you get the memo? ICE and Border Patrol agents are encouraged to escalate a situation then shoot first, ask questions later.
The memo I got was from the PotUS and Secretary of Homeland Security which states that this woman was a domestic terrorist who used her vehicle to run over an ICE agent.
Want to know how third world dictatorships grow? Watch as people buy the propaganda from a corrupt administration and then proceed —in spite of glaringly obvious facts— to usefully parrot the propaganda.
That is how any totalitarian state grows: Through the denial of observable facts and complicity of people who think that they can gain something.
Saw this coming a long ways away.
Credit to Nerm who found this video:
The video shows he began to pull his gun out before she started moving forward. He obviously intended to use it to threaten or intimidate her to get her to exit her car.
The fact that the ICE agents would not allow a physician on the scene to render aid is criminal.
Can you believe that Trump supporters are actually trying to dispute what is visibly seen on video?
Actually, this should be expected given they also deny what took place on Jan 6th, 2021 despite all the videos and other evidence.
It is sickening that the human mind can be so ensnared with confirmation bias.
we've already seen examples of AI manipulated video of the incident, which is sufficient enough to fool most trump supporters ...
I doubt they are fooled. I think the reality is more that they are intentionally trying to argue whatever bullshit the administration claims.
This is not about facts, truth, etc. but (as usual) it is all about ideological/partisan pursuits.
What has surprised me with the Trump era is just how far people will go into the depths of dishonesty in support of their ideological/partisan motivation.
Yes. Nothing they do, no matter how idiotic and wrong, would surprise me.
"I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't lose any voters, OK?" - Donald Trump, January 2016
To me, the most important part of the grainy low-res footage that this video says some are using to prove the agent was hit (at about the 2:41 point) is that the agent can be seen leaning in to make the first shot through the windshield, and THEN he seems to get pushed by the vehicle a bit.
If he hadn't been leaning he probably wouldn't have been touched at all (and it was just a touch). At the 2:46 mark on my player he's at quite an angle, with his feet out of the way, but his upper body practically laying on the hood while he's trying to shoot her in the face. That's why he made what little contact with the vehicle that he did.
I took a screenshot, and yeah, it's low res and grainy, but you can see how far he's leaning toward the vehicle. Everyone should check the video for themselves. You can hit pause and play repeatedly to kind of simulate a frame by frame playback.
If he hadn't been hell-bent on leaning in like that to shoot her through the windshield, he probably wouldn't have been bumped or pushed at all.
So it's like the excuse for shooting her (purported being hit by the vehicle) wouldn't even have happened if he hadn't first decided to shoot her.
This whole thing was so stupid and unnecessary. Look how far he's leaning.
Well even this is largely irrelevant. Even if the car touched him, he intentionally positioned himself. He then drew his weapon, readied his aim, and fired. Other videos show that he was drawing his weapon before the vehicle started moving. Protocol would be for him to immediately withdraw. He did not. He fired, repositioned again, fired into the driver's window, and then the vehicle (on its own now) continued in the direction the driver set it on and it went down the street. It did not move towards the agent, it went down the street. Then this 'wounded' agent walked down to see his kill and then walked back.
This whole nonsense is reprehensible. That anyone would try to blame this woman for being killed in these circumstances disgusts me beyond words. But we are living through the worst PotUS and worst administration in our history, so this and more like this will continue. What I did not expect was that so many would be so willing to abandon all integrity, empathy, etc. and defend/support this corrupt administration no matter what. Watching the feeble, dishonest attempts to defend Trump —in direct contradiction with reality— is sickening.
If you have been following the lunatic fringe right wingers descent into hell over the last several years, you would not be that surprised.
Exactly. I'm saying that the split second he held himself leaned in to aim that first shot is why he made what little contact with the vehicle that he did. That's the justification being given, that she "hit" him with her vehicle, but he might not have even been touched if he hadn't been holding himself there for that short time to aim.
I still want to know why he drew his weapon in the first place. None of the other agents drew theirs. If he didn't already have it in his trigger happy hand, the shooting wouldn't have occurred.
The video shows that he began to draw his weapon before she even started to move forward.
Amen.
Nerms video find is the best explanation ive seen yet and it shows this was easily avoidable but we all know Trumps DOJ will not bring charges, and if they do, there is enough grey area that a self defense defense, will probably get the shootr off.
It comes down to the whole approach that Trumps DHS department takes. Between masked military individuals with this wild west cowboy attitude where as Americans, as in US CITIZENS have no right to question them and their tactics, which are quite disturbing at times as we've seen priests shot in the head with projectiles, tear gas, rubber bullets and excessive force used on Americans with the right to protest this never before seen in our country, behavior. It is meant to intimidate as they go after any and all, not the worst of the worst, upsetting the citizens of these mainly blue cities that Trump has targeted out because elected officials have not kissed the fckn ring, and it is an absurd fckn thing to witness in this once great country.
These inadequately trained thugs are not desecalating situations, they are the accelerants. Trumpand his antics are tearing this country apart and the silence of the pussy GOP is appaling. 2026 elections cannot get here soon enough, cause even many, Many of Trump voters have seen enough of the emperor in the buff, cause he can't see anything but what eh stnaw ot ees, as his abbey normal brain is proving to be more insane than most had ever thought, and as he goes further than any thought he could, perhaps some deeper thought to understand what his second election has brought, as we are wrought with an enormous cavernous divide, from the inside, as to where our demise was predicted, and if people don't wake up soon, and put a check on this goon, the orange baboon and his pathetic ilk, are gonna bilk even more to his oligarchs from the poor and so many in between, cause his path has become ever increasingly more extreme, and it will be quite a relief when this potUS can cause no more grief, cause what a POS criminal we currently have as commander in chief!
.
The way too early bullshit this administration is peddling is so blatantly WRONG & inciteful, as it makes many aware, while others celebrate delightful, and that is just fckd up. They agree with what is said and not what so many know to be true, and it is disturbing to a point extreme, and I believe many around here know of that which i mean....
I'm very much looking forward to preserving, protecting, and defending the US constitution from maga traitors in the near future ...
The rules are clear. The shooter did not follow the rules.
There will be no consequences.
Let'a ask ChatGPT
I can’t determine intent or what actually happened, but purely from a physics/safety standpoint, the situation shown is high-risk for the person filming.
What the image shows (relevant facts)
A Honda SUV stopped or creeping forward.
The videographer appears directly in front of the vehicle, close to the bumper and hood.
Distance looks to be well under one car length, possibly only a few feet.
The SUV is large enough that the hood line is at or above the person’s center of mass.
If the driver suddenly stepped on the gas
At that distance, the danger is severe.
Key factors:
- Human reaction time is ~0.5–1.0 seconds.
- At even 5–10 mph, the vehicle would cover several feet before the driver could stop.
- At this distance, the person would likely be struck before they could move clear.
Vehicle geometry- SUVs tend to push pedestrians down and under, not over the hood.
- That greatly increases risk of crushing injuries.
Likely injury outcomesHigh risk of leg fractures, pelvic injury, or being knocked down and run over.
Significant risk of life-threatening injuries (head trauma, chest compression).
Real risk of death, especially if the person falls under the vehicle.
Bottom line
Risk of severe injury: High
Risk of death: Non-trivial, especially if the driver accelerated suddenly or panicked
Standing directly in front of an SUV like this is extremely dangerous, even if the driver does not intend harm.
Here's the photo I used from the officer's cell...
Well within the standard for a police officer to use lethal force.
You gave ChatGPT a photo that makes it look as though the officer is right in front of the car. This is, his cell phone held in his left hand while he was on the driver's side corner. Other images show that he was clear of her path given the direction of her wheels when she started moving forward.
So, basically, you lied to ChatGPT.
Keep going with the cheap theatrics and sophistry. I probably am not alone in holding the position that you are going to keep up this crap no matter what evidence is shown. If not for the fact that a woman was killed, this would be amusing.
As it stands, it is disgusting.
It's literally from his cell phone...
o, basically, you lied to ChatGPT.
Lol. She literally hit him with her car from that position. Of course he was in extreme danger.
I probably am not alone in holding the position that you are going to keep up this crap no matter what evidence is shown.
Phyiscian, heal thyself. Unlike all the people who have been pushing lies the last few days (and some amazingly clinging to lies despite videos contradicting them) I've been extremely consistent because my position on police shootings is rational, is consistent across all situations and doesn't shift every 12 hours when new talking points are issued.
When you commit crimes and ignore LEO's commands, it's reasonable for the cop to assume he's in danger if the put the car in gear and start towards him.
Yes, Sean, it is from his cell phone. I know that. I stated that. Did you not read what I wrote?
Clearly you did not read what I wrote. His cell phone was in his left hand. This is not a body cam (torso) this is his left hand reaching across the hood.
He positioned himself by the driver front corner and pulled his gun before the driver even started to move. When the car moved, the tires were pointing towards the road and NOT at the agent. The car's trajectory after the agent killed the driver proves where it was headed.
You just keep posting the same obvious lies.
And you even resort to lying to ChatGPT. Just disgusting.
No it is not. You are misrepresenting the protocol.
Lethal force requires a reasonable fear of imminent death/harm. Given he positioned himself prior to the vehicle moving and then had the time to draw his weapon, fire, reposition, fire again into the driver's window and still —while doing all of that— steered clear of the vehicle, this proves that the conditions for use of lethal force were not met.
Instead of all that, he could have simply stepped aside and let her leave the scene and that would be following protocol.
She would be alive and he would not be worried about manslaughter charges.
She hit the agent. You can lie all you want, but it's on video. Keep telling us she wasn't going towards him when SHE LITTERALLY HIT HIM. It's such an embarrassingly stupid argument that I feel dumber for stooping to engage with it.
Lie all you want , because at the of the day it's fucking beyond ridiculous to publicly argue you can ignore an LEO's commands, put a car in gear and accelerate towards a cop without running a very high risk of being shot. That's been true since the invention of the automobile.[✘]
Prove it. Instead of just lying, actually prove it. And then explain the countless videos that show that the car moved to the right of the agent.
At worst, the car brushed the agent. No way did she hit the agent. No way was he in any danger.
Your posts have proved how utterly desperate you are to defend Trump no matter what. Even when an ICE agent breaks protocol and kills a citizen you try to blame the victim.
Again, this is truly disgusting to watch.
What is your proof he was hit? It sure isnt the video he took with his cellphone where he isnt even onscreen.
For days, he has made empty claims which are contradicted by the evidence. The best evidence that can be taken to support his claim is the extremely fuzzy video that looks from the front passenger side of the car from a distance. The clear, close-up videos that show the agent's feet relative to the vehicle and the tires (and the position of the tires) clearly show the car was NOT directed at the agent.
He thinks the jostling of the camera when she pulls out is proof.
I doubt that, JR.
I think this is deliberate. IMO it is (obviously) an intentional attempt to push propaganda in support of the Trump administration.
Note that nowhere do any of the Trump supporters prove their points. And in each case they ignore the now abundance of clear videos showing what happen.
They deflect, they focus on irrelevant factors, they demure ('wait for more evidence'), they bend over backwards to try to discredit this dead woman. The whole mess is beyond disgusting.
Amen.