-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
After an argument between 19-year-old Tyler Comstock and his father, Tyler jumped in his father’s van and took off. The father called the Ames, Iowa police who located the vehicle. A high-speed chase ensued. When the chase ended, Ames police officer McPherson reportedly ordered Tyler to shut off the van’s engine, although this is not heard from the dashcam video, and shot him six times when he refused to comply. Tyler was killed by two gunshots to the chest.
An audio recording indicates that dispatchers pleaded with the officers to “back off” their pursuit. They knew who the driver was so there was no need to endanger themselves or the public.
James Comstock, Tyler’s father, had refused to buy a pack of cigarettes for Tyler: “He took off with my truck. I call the police, and they kill him. It was over a damn pack of cigarettes. I wouldn’t buy him none. And I lose my son for that.”
H/T: Des Moines Register & Tribune, Natasha Lennard, Scott Kaufman.
This is actually from my hometown. Please watch both dashcam videos of the chase before casting judgement.
After starting to run from the police, the driver deliberately backed into a police car, then speed through a red light at a very busy intersection with no hesitation, threading the needle, and luckily didn’t T-bone anyone. Then, he drove onto campus, going the wrong way up a one-way street, just before classes let out. ISU ‘s central campus is packed when classes let out. Also, while the driver was driving backwards he nearly ran over a pedestrian.
While I believe there are definitely cases of excessive force, this driver was completely out of control and likely to injure or kill people with his truck. I wish he had not been killed, based on his actions, though, he seemed unlikely to stop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jD91hm57y_U
This is crass but….overkill. What is going on with our nations PD’s? My brother retired from the Milwaukee PD a couple of years ago. I’ve met many of his friends on Dept. and I can’t imagine any of them would react the way we are hearing about in all too many stories of late. These kinds of incidents seem to be happening in a much higher number than years ago. Is it a reflection of the training? The hiring?
As mentioned by several, adrenalin killed the kid. When the kid backed up into the patrol car, that set off the adrenalin rush on the part of the officer that he had to get him for what he did.
How do you train to control the adrenalin rush that you know will someday happen to nearly every officer?
OS,
Seems like business as usual….. Which supports possible excessive force….
Gene & neighbordave,
One of the things I talk about with new hires is that rush of adrenaline, and possibly anger.
Here is a video I use for instructional purposes. This took place in Birmingham, Alabama. The white van which first appears on the right is the bad guy. He is being pursued, and an officer on foot moves to deploy a spike strip in his path. The driver of the van takes aim at the officer with the spike strip, hitting him and knocking him down. The chase is on. For the pursuing officers, there has just been a direct attempt on a fellow officer’s life. The pursuing officers don’t know the severity of the downed officer’s injuries, but that act did not improve their mood one bit. The van turns up the on-ramp. The pursuing officers now have two problems. They absolutely cannot afford to let him get on the Interstate and into traffic; and, he is now wanted for attempted murder of an officer. The lead car executes an almost perfect PIT maneuver. The van swerves into the ditch and rolls over. The fleeing felon is obviously not wearing a seat belt because he is ejected out the window, hitting his head and is out cold.
At that point, no one knows if the guy is dead or alive, or if he has major injuries such as a fractured skull or broken neck. Instead of securing the scene and waiting for the ambulance, five of the officers attack the unconscious man. Officers not participating in the assault appear to be trying to deescalate the situation. It is all caught on dashcam of one of the patrol cars.
The aftermath: After an investigation and hearing, all five officers seen assaulting the suspect were fired, losing all benefits. I have not been able to find out if any of them were able to find a job in law enforcement again. I also don’t know if they were ever charged with anything but the last I heard, there was an ongoing investigation. I do know if they apply to any agency I consult with, they will be regarded as radioactive.
Here is the dashcam video of the incident. There is no sound.
Otteray, the adrenaline rush you mention is the key. Most people cannot control that even a little bit, even if they could recognize it happening to them. I see this from time to time, and have talked people out of foolishness as a result (almost Obi Wan (sic) like). If you could devise a program to highlight recognition and coping with the rush, it would be ground breaking. (Might help address PTSD on some level, since I would bet the military uses the creation of adrenaline to overcome the natural tenancy of most humans not to be predisposed to kill.)
The police are not our friends.
O.S.:
Not true. As indicated by the audio, in the last link, the officer was notified that it was a father/son dispute.
On the audio, there are two dispatchers. The male sounds like a supervisor since he doesn’t handle most of the dispatching. Often police officers are assigned to 911 call centers.
To say officers go their entire careers without pulling their weapon maybe a thing of the past. This commander reveals why things changed in Los Angeles. The recruitment standards are so low to admit those with criminal records. http://www.fulldisclosure.net/2013/11/sheriff-pay-outs-cover-up-lowered-standards-vb125/
I forgot to add: I guess it is true: smoking can kill ya’ 🙁
“One of the things where training needs to be improved is teaching officers how to deal with the adrenaline rush and emotion generated by a pursuit. The psychological factors are often overlooked or minimized in training.”
Yep.
It is easy to underestimate the power to destroy critical thinking that such an adrenaline rush creates.
What Anon said.
It is one thing to read this, but quite another to see it in real time. As is the case in many similar situations, these events happen with almost lightning speed. The truck driver had turned the truck into a four thousand pound lethal weapon and the two officers had about two to three seconds to make the decision. I have watched that dashcam video a half dozen times and believe I have a pretty good handle on what happened.
When he rammed the patrol car the offense changed into assault on an officer with a deadly weapon (the truck). Assault with a deadly weapon translates as “intent to kill.” By his actions he demonstrated that he was willing to use deadly force by using his truck as a weapon. At that point, he may as well have been shooting at the police or bystanders as far as intent is concerned. At the time they fired, both their cars were disabled and it was not at all clear that the truck was stuck or disabled, since he was revving the engine to get it going again. If he got away and hurt or killed somebody, the officers could have been charged with dereliction.
Remember that the dispatcher may know about the father’s call, but the patrolmen on the street get a 10-45 (stolen vehicle) call. That’s about all they know. Stolen truck. When they try to stop him, he does not respond to the lights and siren, but instead jackrabbits away at speed.
As far as a dispatcher telling them anything regarding tactics, the dispatcher is sitting in a darkened room with a microphone, telephone and computer screen. Additionally, it is the exceptional dispatcher who has ever been a patrol officer, and going through the Academy is not part of dispatcher training in any department I have ever worked with. There is no real time first person view video as we see with drones. Dispatchers sometimes give good advice, sometimes bad advice. It all depends.
Are there officers who are too quick to shoot. Yes there are. However, most officers go through an entire thirty year career without ever taking their sidearm out of its holster except to take it to the practice range or to clean it. If anyone thinks officers who have used deadly force somehow get a kick out if it, the opposite is true for the vast majority. There are a few psychopaths who get through the psychological screening, but we are getting better at weeding those out.
I have been doing debriefings of officers and first responders who have used deadly force for four decades. It changes one forever, and not in a good way. One of the things where training needs to be improved is teaching officers how to deal with the adrenaline rush and emotion generated by a pursuit. The psychological factors are often overlooked or minimized in training. When a younger officer is involved in one, they are not prepared. The results are sometimes tragic.
What was the point of a high speed chase–especially in a case such as this? I don’t think police should be involved in high speed chases anyway. Innocent people can get injured or killed.
Nal,
We’re on the same wavelength today. When I was young the common wisdom was that the policeman was your friend. All children were taught this in school, on TV and in most homes. With the militarization of the police and their
empowerment to act rashly without consequence, they become out of control. In many cases actually igniting situations they were meant to defuse.
What Lrobby99 said.
The cop will claim he felt his life was threatened. Criminal charges against the cop will be buried. Just like the son.
I support the father wholeheartedly not buying the cigs. But calling the cops may (obviously) have been a bit much. At some point, the son would have returned home and they could talk it out. Unfortunately, that won’t be happening. And Mr. 6-Shooter cop …. Where is he going to end up … Leavenworth would be a good start ….
How about shooting the tires…. Seems that this was a family civil disturbance….. Less force….. Unless there is more this is a crazy overreaction…..
Pigs will be pigs. I’ve met some nice cops in my day who whistle a tune as they walk down the street doing their job. Unfortunately, those guys will always be overshadowed by the bad actors and police unions and departments that refuse to clean ranks and do justice to victims and the actual good cops out there.