Those were warning shots. Warnings to the cop that he needed more range time.
I've never heard of a normal cop using frangible ammo. Hollow-points for all.
Unfortunately, TV shows and movies have conditioned people to think that every cop/gun owner is a sharpshooter, under high pressure conditions. Cops frequently get asked things like, "Why didn't you just shoot the gun out of his hand?" Then you have an incident, like this one, that reinforces the stereotype.
He was lauded so much for that shot that it became truly embarrassing for him. It definitely was a hell of a shot and probably saved that guy's life.
He said he was sorry.
vancouver.citynews.ca
The surety might be an airhead that couldn't be bothered to think about the responsibilities. "You mean there are consequences?"
The Whitestone Principle: It is better that ten innocents die at the hands of criminals than one innocent spend a few years in prison before being exonerated, getting millions in compensation.
I was going to say that this was just the immediate administrative penalty and he was still charged criminally, however, a little research shows that the charges against Ganter were dropped, last January. Criminal. Given his, "Can we charge him with something?" comment I can only imagine this isn't the first time that he's done something like this, then resorted to using the badge to get it quashed.
I was crossing the US border with a friend, shortly after 9/11. That's when I found out that he had once been charged with assault for, literally, hitting his landlord in the fist with his face. He was moving out and the landlord got pushy, then punched him. When police showed up he was the only one with injuries and the landlord made a claim of "mutual assault." The cops bought it, for no good reason. The charges were dropped but that stuff lives forever in records, to which US Border Services has access.
