lmao I know I have to stop thinking objectively. Bottom line is, the DUI escalated very quickly to a felonious assault and potentially a robbery (debatable). The cop cant just say ohh gee he assaulted me, stole my taser, aimed it at me, attempted to fire it...im just going to let him go with my very dangerous weapon and hope he doesnt hurt anyone else.
They preemptively shot him under the notion that he would do one of the things you mentioned. That is pre-cog like.
The man deserved to be put in jail for many years for what he did, he didn't deserve to die. As it is in many car chases, you can still follow the suspect from afar and intervene if needed. If he moves to car jack someone, then you can fire your weapon. If he tries to break into a home, you fire your weapon.
But the cops made two deadly mistakes. First, they allowed the man to get the taser away as the two of them were unable to handcuff him. Second, they chased him, apparently close enough to feel threatened by said taser, to the point of killing the man.
The man made many poor decisions and that doesn't need to be ignored. But his mistakes were not deadly. The cops mistake in firing the weapon was grave. My opinion, you don't get a do-over when you take someone's life. I am not saying the cop should be charged, but I don't think losing a job is out of line when he questionably killed someone. Though I do think the investigation should be concluded before any decision on that is made.
And for the record, I am saying this as someone that stands on the side of police in this ongoing national debate. I think they have been vilified unfairly and they have been asked to do things that shouldn't be asked of them to do (mental health calls a perfect example). I am happy that the SWAT team in Florida resigned to make the point that they did. I am happy that NYC police hold a press conference to show dismay to the public. 98% of police are stand up individuals and we need them. We also need to recognize though that they can make mistakes, especially when those mistakes lead to loss of life. It's hopefully clear to everyone that there is a large portion of our country that feels betrayed by the system. We cannot function as a country the way that we could, and should, until elements of the system are appropriately addressed. Accountability for mistakes is a significant step in that direction. Something needs to change.