Police officers have a tough job, as a seemingly benign encounter can turn dangerous in seconds. This is particularly true during traffic stops, when vehicles can be used as weapons.
While officers have tended to shoot at the driver in these cases, the Associated Press reports South Carolina is adopting a new philosophy by training officers to approach vehicles from positions where they cannot easily be hit if the driver attempts to flee. They are also reminded that most drivers don’t want to hurt them and, as long as they have the car’s license plate number, the driver will likely be arrested in the future.
The training appears to be paying off as there were only six police shootings last year, where a vehicle was used as a weapon. This is down from 13 shooting in both 2014 and 2015.
Besides reducing the number of shootings, the tactic has been created to save the lives of officers, bystanders and passengers in a vehicle that may be attempting to flee. Money was also taken into consideration as police shooting have cost cities millions of dollars in settlements and legal fees. As the AP points out, in the past three years victims have received at least $2.8 million in settlements in South Carolina alone.
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