General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Hiroshima - quit lying to yourselves [View all]GreenStormCloud
(12,072 posts)Any use of a gun against a person has the risk of killing that person. Even a shot that is aimed to merely wound has the potential of killing the person. Therefore, you must NEVER shoot unless you are ready to bear the responsibility for their death. If you aren't ready for that then keep your hands off the gun.
The only reason for shooting someone is that they are doing something so evil that they must be stopped, immediately, even if they die as a result of being stopped. Stopped means rendered incapable of further agression. Since people can absorb minor wounds and even major wounds and still stay in the fight you must aim for incapacitating wounds. That means that you have to aim for center-mass.
You can only fire when you are in the gravest extreme. A warning shot, or deliberate shot to wound, is an attempt to stop by persuasion. You are trying to persuade them, by extreme means, to stop. That means that you also have the time to evaluate whether or not they have been persuaded and then to fire for effect if needed. Since you did have that much time, then you were not yet in the gravest extreme. You were not out of options. Legally, you fired too soon, and may be subject to legal action against you.
So you keep you hands off the gun until you are out of options, then shoot for center mass. Your intention is always to stop him, never deliberately shooting to kill him. If he does die, that is his tough luck.
That is the way self-defense with deadly force law works.