I'm against zero-thought policies, too, generally.
I think a little more thought from the officer and the department about what the goal was - and how to reach it - would've been better for everyone.
And then there's Hough's point about potentially more badguys on the way. Surely the department didn't expect this officer to go it alone against multiple bad guys? It is about priorities, right?
What made getting the kid out of the car a higher priority than getting backup there?
So what blame does the officer receive from you?
He should have either stepped back farther before deploying the Taser or removed the cartridge and used a drive stun. That's pretty much it. The remainder of the outcome rests with the suspect, as they most often times do. If the kid had handed his DL and registration out the window like a reasonable human being he would have been on his way in minutes. The kid chose not to and the officer escalated as can be expected.
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