The shooting of Robert Dotson, 52, in the northwestern New Mexico city of Farmington prompted a civil lawsuit by his family members, though public prosecutors found there was no basis to pursue criminal charges against officers after a review of events. The suit alleged that the family was deprived of its civil rights and officers acted unreasonably.
Hearing a knock at the door late on April 5, 2023, Dotson put on a robe, went downstairs and grabbed a handgun before answering. Police outside shined a flashlight as Dotson appeared and raised the firearm before three police officers opened fire, killing him. Dotson did not shoot.
“Ultimately, given the significant threat Dotson posed when he pointed his firearm at officers … the immediacy of that threat, the proximity between Dotson and the defendant officers, and considering that the events unfolded in only a few seconds, the court finds that the defendant officers reasonably applied deadly force,” U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Garcia said in a written court opinion.
Clearly the American sense of what is absurd is wildly different to the rest of us.
The question is absurd given the clearly absurd reality of the situation here.
This is a fact of life in the US. What the man did is completely reasonable in the context of the situation.
You seem to be trying to illustrate the fact that there is too much gun violence in the US. Which is of course true.
However, suggesting that what this man did isn’t a reasonable reaction to the reality of his situation, is ignorant at best.