Was it necessary to kill her?

[Guest hitoallusa]

I am not sure why they had to kill her. This means all the car chases will end up like this? I don't think so. What is more surprising that people don't care about her death.

http://news.yahoo.com/police-probe-capitol-hill-car-chase-1-woman-054638743.html

[wayout]

Hard to say if there were any other alternatives readily available to subdue this person, but ultimately from what I read it seems as though deadly force was warranted. I find it hard to care strongly about her death without much more background on what happened to cause her to do what she did, but even then it is not easy to have much sympathy as she put others in great danger. Maybe we are also becoming more cold and dispassionate as a way to deal with such things?

[Guest hitoallusa]

I hope in my after life, I don't have to deal with this.. Yikes..

[Suckrates]

I hope in my after life, I don't have to deal with this.. Yikes..

hito, always Try to remember......"You do BAD things, you DIE"

[wayout]

hito, always Try to remember......"You do BAD things, you DIE"

And if you do GOOD things, you still DIE (just maybe not as soon or as violently, although there are no guarantees)

[Suckrates]

And if you do GOOD things, you still DIE (just maybe not as soon or as violently, although there are no guarantees)

Well Way, since you are RIGHT then I will deduce that we may as well do BAD things; they are more Fun, and you get the same result !

[RA1]

Apparently she has mental issues but instead of using a gun, she decided to use a several thousand pound car as a weapon, with a baby on board, no less.

I think most folks have some kind of mental issue at one time or another so the problem is to determine if they are a danger to themselves or others beforehand instead of after the fact. Not easy and fraught with Constitution issues.

Best regards,

RA1

[wayout]

Well Way, since you are RIGHT then I will deduce that we may as well do BAD things; they are more Fun, and you get the same result !

Well there is a certain logic to that Of course, my idea of BAD things may be kind of on the mild side and not evid

[wayout]

Here is the latest breaking news from CNN on the woman:

Investigators found two medications in the apartment of Miriam Carey: one used to treat schizophrenia and symptoms of bipolar disorder; the other an antidepressant, a law enforcement source briefed on the investigation told CNN.

Carey, 34, of Stamford, Connecticut, was killed by police gunfire after a chase from near the White House to near the U.S. Capitol on Thursday.

[TampaYankee]

I guess it depends on whether you are the cop she is trying to run down or one of his friends.

I do find fault with the police but not for that, at this time anyway.

I do fault them for not having the car completely surrounded with cop cars to cut off any possible egress. Clearly the back was left open as she turned the car around and drove away. There were more than enough cars present to do that.

Also, once it appears she will not surrender and begins attempts to move the car the cops should have shot out her tires immediately. It may not have complete stopped her but it would have hobbled her attempts to escape.

[Lucky]

What happened? I don't know about this,. Should I care enough to look into it? And if I did, how would my life improve?

UPDATE: Of course, on reflection I realize how cold my words were here. But, I don't really care, so why pretend that I do? There are nutcases in the world, they act out, they make the news. It'll all be forgotten tomorrow.

[RA1]

I guess it depends on whether you are the cop she is trying to run down or one of his friends.

I do find fault with the police but not for that, at this time anyway.

I do fault them for not having the car completely surrounded with cop cars to cut off any possible egress. Clearly the back was left open as she turned the car around and drove away. Nad there were more than enough cars present to do that.

Also, once it appears she will not surrender and begins attempts to move the car the cops should have shot out her tires immediately. It may not have complete stopped her but it would have hobbled her attempts to escape.

I don't think she was trying to escape, only avoid being stopped, something entirely different. Who knows what demons were possessing her at the time?

Shooting out the tires is TV stuff. As you suggest, it won't stop her. Airliner tires have been shot and it still took off after being hijacked.

I am sure there will be an investigation and later, we should know more.

Best regards,

RA1

[Suckrates]

Here is the latest breaking news from CNN on the woman:

Investigators found two medications in the apartment of Miriam Carey: one used to treat schizophrenia and symptoms of bipolar disorder; the other an antidepressant, a law enforcement source briefed on the investigation told CNN.

Carey, 34, of Stamford, Connecticut, was killed by police gunfire after a chase from near the White House to near the U.S. Capitol on Thursday.

DAMN, theres medication for Schizophrenia now ? I really NEED to look into that.

[AdamSmith]

(Medical secret: it works great, except for those cases where it makes the symptoms worse.)

[Guest Hoover42]

DAMN, theres medication for Schizophrenia now ? I really NEED to look into that.

It only works if you remember to take it.

[Guest zipperzone]

I don't feel sorry for her but I do for her 1 yr old child who was in the car. Probably too young to retain the memory but who knows what future long term damage may be caused.

[Guest NCBored]

I don't feel sorry for her but I do for her 1 yr old child who was in the car. Probably too young to retain the memory but who knows what future long term damage may be caused.

And, regardless of what the child may remember, she's lost her mother.

[Lucky]

What happened? I don't know about this,. Should I care enough to look into it? And if I did, how would my life improve?

UPDATE: Of course, on reflection I realize how cold my words were here. But, I don't really care, so why pretend that I do? There are nutcases in the world, they act out, they make the news. It'll all be forgotten tomorrow.

Second UPDATE: It's hard to avoid the story as it is all over the news. The more I have learned, the more regrettable that the police did not show more restraint. Lessons to be learned for all.

[Guest CharliePS]

Note to hito: in the AFTERlife, nobody dies.

[TampaYankee]

I don't think she was trying to escape, only avoid being stopped, something entirely different. Who knows what demons were possessing her at the time?

I don't think that distinction has much traction to the guy lying under her wheels.

I agree she was fighting much more than the police. However, mentally ill people can be very dangerous as many recent news accounts bear out. But much more than that, problems like this occur around the country by the hundreds if not thousands every year, few reaching anywhere near this level of notoriety. I've had personal experience with a troubled relative. The situation needs understanding and compassion but it can get out of hand and lead to very dangerous situations. More than once I've gone to bed at night wondering if I or other family members would be alive in the morning.

[Suckrates]

Mentally ill people can be dangerous behind a computer screen as they can be operating a Vehicle. Its all perception, and a tragedy for their victims.

[wayout]

We have to remember that the police are in a situation where they have little or no background information on the person in that car, and can only react based on the situation at hand as it develops/evolves and whatever protocol they are supposed to follow. Even though I am sure they train for such situations, they have to make very quick life and death decisions in a pressure situation. That it took place in the nation's capital surely plays into the whole thing.

The reality seems to be that, for better or worse, law enforcement will err on the side of taking someone out rather than risk harm to themselves or other bystanders in such situations. What if they shot out the tires and tried to negotiate a surrender but then the car exploded because the person was a terrorist and it was loaded with explosives, killing or severely injuring several people? Then the police would be criticized for not being more aggressive.