Disabled man tries to fend off home invasion as deputies wait down the street

[Wingate's Hairbrush]

Not LEO. Very pro LEO. Curious for informed opinions.

Odd one out of, ahem, Broward County, starting to get some attention. As reported and pending updates and further contextualization, 70-year-old disabled man calls 911, pistol in hand, as would-be intruder attempts to break down [glass] front door. Deputies arrive, position themselves 500 yards from scene, and do not engage for lengthy interval as homeowner pleads with operator and neighbors begin calling 911 themselves.

Link below includes doorbell and security cams with 911 audio:

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/cr...aee-story.html

Sheriff's Office tight-lipped thus far, though a comment from the Sheriff himself when questioned about the incident on a local radio program isn't encouraging:

"We just cannot afford to kill an unarmed Black man in this country without it having a ripple effect in this community,” Tony told NewsRadio 610 WIOD. “So we can do better, we can move faster but we also have to be precise, and make sure we are not jeopardizing the entire community like this call could have done.”

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/cr...k6a-story.html

[fatdog]

What horseshit

[Wingate's Hairbrush]

What horseshit

I appreciate the sentiment, and it might represent the best final summation of the incident in question, but I want to underscore my purpose in posting it is for informed opinion and discussion.

[BehindBlueI's]

Not how we would have handled it. It would have been an attempt burglary in progress, although from the pictures of the door I doubt it was actually an attempt burglary in progress. I know the media will couch it in the most emotional and outrageous terms possible...but do you really think the glass door kept out someone who really wanted in? I'm sure the elderly fellow was frightened and rightfully so. I bet you most cops here can recall multiple similar incidents were the guy pounding on the door isn't a burglar. He may still be dangerous, mind you, as they are usually high as a kite or mentally ill and pounding on the door because they think their lover lives there, God told them to, they hate glass (seems common with acid, for whatever reason), whatever, but they are attracting attention and not actually attempting to gain entry. At least get eyes on the guy and start talking to him. I can't read the first story since it's subscriber only, but how did he eventually surrender to deputies if they weren't in contact with him?

The sheriff being an elected official is reacting to which way he perceives the political winds blowing. People say things like "take the politics out of policing" but policing is inherently political and even more so in a sheriff's office/department because sheriffs are directly elected. The sheriff, unlike a mayor, can't scape goat someone else. Discussing the politics of BLM, etc. would be best suited for the politics sub-forum, but the effect on policy of politics is pretty relevant here. If the deputies were acting under policy, it's likely one of liability reduction.

[Pacioli]

Sun Sentinel has a pay wall. Here are alternative sources, the yahoo story appears to be a reprint of the Sun Sentinel story.


https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/di...e-on-your-own/

https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20...bled-man.shtml

https://news.yahoo.com/sheriff-hurry...130900058.html

[Wingate's Hairbrush]

I don't have a Sun Sentinal account, but I do empty cache and cookies on my computer often and that tends to reset access for a lot of news sites that permit one or two articles before locking down. Rinse and repeat.

As to the glass door, I'd've though a determined individual gets through any of them pretty fast, but apparently the victim's was hurricane rated, which seems to be a significant upgrade. Still, I'd never have a glass front door, and his apparently did end up fracturing.

Per the article, suspect was arrested after walking over to the deputies.

[BehindBlueI's]

I don't have a Sun Sentinal account, but I do empty cache and cookies on my computer often and that tends to reset access for a lot of news sites that permit one or two articles before locking down. Rinse and repeat.

As to the glass door, I'd've though a determined individual gets through any of them pretty fast, but apparently the victim's was hurricane rated, which seems to be a significant upgrade. Still, I'd never have a glass front door, and his apparently did end up fracturing.

Per the article, suspect was arrested after walking over to the deputies.

I saw it broken and just figured if he wanted in he'd have gotten in, but since I don't know anything about hurricane glass I'll shut up on that point.

And the 'walked over to deputies' was my point. Apparently they did respond and were at least close enough to monitor and communicate with him or he wouldn't have known to surrender to them. I am honestly not willing to spend the time to research exactly what did or didn't happen, but if they were close enough to see him and talk to him they were close enough to drop him if they needed to. If we responded and the guy was on the porch and talking to us vs still trying to get in, we wouldn't rush up either. There's no reason to. Stay behind cover, talk the guy down, have time to get more resources like less lethal launchers in place, etc.

Somewhat similar, we had a guy with a knife trying to open a door with a uniformed reserve officer (older guy) holding the door shut. The door could not be locked, as the officer had just ducked into a liquor store for cover when the guy initially threatened him. We did not rush the guy, although I got very close to dropping him with a rifle because I could see the officer holding the door was getting tired. I made the decision to have less lethal fire and we resolved the situation without killing anyone. We used what time we had but when it became apparent he would make entry soon, we didn't have any more time so we changed gears.

One of the hardest things to do in LE tactically is to slow down. The "tactical pause" and evaluate, especially with younger guys.

[Lon]

Broward County Sheriff’s Office

‘Nuff said.

[TGS]

Cops take a course of action that isn't aggressive enough so that they don't unwittingly smoke an innocent at night: cowards.

Cops take a course of action that is too aggressive and they unwittingly smoke an innocent: racist f'ing pigs must hang.

We've devolved to judging LEOs in a very binary manner and until we evolve from that and stop using yellow-journalism as our primary source, this is the policing you get. Deal with it.

[Rex G]

Just wondering whether the complainant having “pistol in hand” might have had anything to do with this equation?

I also wonder whether “500 yards” is truth, or the usual hyperbole?

Neither of the above thoughts is to be considered commentary. I simply do not have enough information, to comment.

My background is 33+ years of street policin’, in a large southern city. Retired since 2018.