Joe Biden again suggested police officers be trained to de-escalate situations involving dangerous suspects by shooting them in the leg.
The Democratic presidential nominee repeated the controversial contention during a Thursday town hall moderated by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulus.
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Rather than shoot to kill in self-defense, Biden proposed wounding them instead.
“Most cops don’t like bad cops,” he said. “You can ban chokeholds, but beyond that you have to teach them how to de-escalate circumstances.”
“So instead of anybody coming at you and the first thing you do is shoot to kill, you shoot them in the leg,” Biden concluded.
.@JoeBiden says police should try shooting dangerous criminals “in the leg” pic.twitter.com/u3phk3MHSq
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 16, 2020
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Response To Biden Proposing Cops Shoot Dangerous Suspects In The Leg
Social media’s response to Biden’s proposal indicates disagreement on the part of many who saw the town hall comments.
Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich tweeted that the idea proves “he has zero idea how police training or responding to a violent threat works.”
Biden just suggested police shoot people in the leg, proving he has zero idea how police training or responding to a violent threat works.
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) October 16, 2020
Former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino also opined on Biden’s comments.
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“Spoken like a true moron who has never spent a moment in law enforcement,” he tweeted.
Spoken like a true moron who has never spent a moment in law enforcement. 👇🏻👇🏻 https://t.co/vkQfFqsXP8
— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) October 16, 2020
Conservative filmmaker Caleb Hull posted a video of Biden’s comments alongside a clip showing police officers actually trying to deal with a dangerous suspect.
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The scene shows an enraged man who charges them, is seemingly incapacitated when one officer shoots him, but eventually regroups and gets a chokehold on another officer and grabs his gun.
Here’s Joe Biden saying cops should just shoot charging attackers in the leg to stop them without killing them.
vs.
The reality of what happens when someone charges a cop with a weapon. pic.twitter.com/1OknQRQSFU
— Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) October 16, 2020
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RELATED: Biden’s Latest Fundraising Numbers Set Another Record – Should Trump Be Worried?
Biden Is Serious About This Solution
Believe it or not, this isn’t the first time Biden has suggested police officers be trained to shoot suspects in the leg.
He made the same contention during a meeting with African-American community leaders at the Bethel AME Church in Wilmington, Delaware, this past June.
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“The idea that instead of standing there and teaching a cop when there’s an unarmed person, coming at him with a knife or something, to shoot him in the leg instead of in the heart,” Biden said.
Joe Biden says he wants cops who have someone running at them with a knife to “shoot them in the leg.” pic.twitter.com/uhtj8gQa6l
— Adam Shaw (@AdamShawNY) June 1, 2020
Critics picked him apart at the time as well.
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Dana Loesch, a former spokesperson for the National Rifle Association, said Biden “clearly has zero experience with firearms, firearm law, or self-defense — you don’t shoot unless lethal force is absolutely justified.”
Biden clearly has zero experience with firearms, firearm law, or self defense — you don’t shoot unless lethal force is absolutely justified. His “shoot to wound” rhetoric is irresponsible, not unlike when he told people to just fire shotguns from their balconies. https://t.co/qyZsv4XcIG
— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) June 1, 2020
Rob Pincus, who has trained police officers throughout the United States and Europe, explained to the Washington Free Beacon why the ‘shoot them in the leg’ tactic is dangerous.
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“Legs move. It’s much harder to hit a smaller moving target than it is to hit the chest,” Pincus stated.
“From a technical shooting skill standpoint, from a technical legal standpoint, it’s not where we want to go at all.”
In that same response at Thursday’s ABC town hall, Biden also reiterated another proposal to have psychiatrists and/or psychologists accompany police officers on dangerous calls.
He’s made this suggestion before as well.
BIDEN: If a police officer “goes on a 911 call, it’s better if he or she has with them a psychologist or psychiatrist.”
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 6, 2020
At the first presidential debate, President Trump was able to stump Biden when he asked him to name one law enforcement group that supports his campaign.
Trump presses Biden to name a single law enforcement agency who supports him
Biden can’t name a single one and says he doesn’t have time to talk about it
Democrat Chris Wallace interrupts to stop the embarrassing moment for Biden pic.twitter.com/zYFrx2s0SS
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) September 30, 2020
Biden would later admit that he had “support from police my whole career up until this year.”
Perhaps his “shoot them in the leg” proposal is one reason why law enforcement doesn’t take Biden seriously.
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I really did not know the full extent of Sleepy Joes ignorance, WOW! There is a reason it is called "DEADLY FORCE" Joe. In the circumstance where you are peaked up, taking in information to make a decision to use your weapon or not on a split second decision. Shoot to soon, you will be brought up on charges. Not soon enough you may die or someone near you may die. So let's follow Joe's expertise in the same adrenalin pump situation. You draw your gun, on the move trying to get the bad guy. You shoot, and miss or just graze him/her. They grab a civilian bystander and plunge a knife into their chest, killing them. Who is at fault then Joe. Ever try to hit a leg in an arrest scenario. Now when you are taught to shoot center mass, do you know how many shots miss a torso? Leave the use of "DEADLY FORCE" up to the professionals. Idiot.
Whatta "igorunt Jerk" ! Yup yup yup. Just take a deep breath, take careful aim, and shoot them in the ankle.
It's a cinch they'll never Twist again ! That'll show 'em , by golly !
Do you really think there are people dumb enough to believe childish crap like this ? Probably descendants of those kids that thought "Hoppy" could shoot the gun out of their hands. HEH !
well , why we don't ask the criminal nicely to please stop and turn around so we can shoot them in the buttocks
All Biden keeps doing is shooting himself in the butt…
But it sounds sooooo good and reasonable when he plays it back on his recorder !
Whata dummy !
You have to wonder if Biden understands how dangerous a suspect shot in the leg or arm can be?? IF the officer has to shoot, it should be to secure the safety of onlookers and himself!
Maybe shoot in "third leg" – that might stop 'em!
This might work if they were trained to shot them in the crouch. They might throw down their gun or knife. Here's a novel idea, train the criminals to halt or stop when told to do it by the police. This is just as smart of an idea as shooting them in the leg.
OK, so issue the cops 12 gauge pumps instead of 9mm's. Sh00t them in the leg with 00 bucksh0t and remove their leg entirely :)
Not if the police use dum dum rounds
Shoot in the leg AND KILL INNOCENT CITIZENS.. You shoot in the leg and VAST MAJORITY of times the bullet will PASS THROUGH THE LEG AND CONTINUE ON AN UNCONTROLLED PATH..
that statement certainly clears up any uncertainty as to why no police office organization has endorsed Biden doesn't it!
Do Not call me that!!!
This is just about as stupid as suggesting someone take a knife to a gunfight! Biden is a clown and every decent law enforcement officer in the country knows it! Sure, shoot them in the leg while they shoot you in the head! All this crap for what $35-40K? If Biden wins, no police and no protection once they come for your guns! "Legs up Harris" has promised it!
The idea that instead of standing there and teaching a cop when there’s an unarmed person, coming at him with a knife or something
POOR POOR SENILE PEDO JOE. He can not even make ONE sentence without TOTAL IGNORANCE and hypocrisy dripping from it
"…an unarmed person, coming at him with a knife or something.."
HEY JOE, When you say they are "UNARMED", THEY CAN NOT HAVE A KNIFE AT SAME TIME…
Attacking WITH A KNIFE is the EXACT TEXT DEFINITION of an ARMED ATTACKER
the shoot 'em in the leg comment may well be the stupidest political statement of all time
I say ok shoot the leg …………… just as soon as you issue police officers and law enforcement officers with dum dum rounds, that will guarantee to stop criminals
Having worked with prison inmates, I asked them about the whole shot-in-the-leg strategy. Two had scars of leg shots and both easily shot back and seriously wounded police officers. They even escaped and were caught later. Criminals would love to be shot in the leg, which they can show later as a criminal status symbol and that surely does not stop them. Anyone who thinks that a shot on the leg will drop a perpetrator immediately to the ground is totally naive, because that only happens in movies!!
Reality is where life and death are decided. That thing about having psychiatrist ride along with police is another hamstring-the-police-as-much-as-possible tactic. I've heard even young non-Republican, non-Christian people recognize that too many in the behavioral professions are in much worse shape than they are and are, many times, useless. Those kind of people would get police killed and Biden would love that.
It's incredibly dumb, but not in the same league as stating that Guam may "tip over and capsize" from too many troops – a shining example of the brilliance of the Left, courtesy of Hank Johnson.
the shoot 'em in the leg comment may well be the stupidest political statement of all time