Bodycam video shows the Trader Joe's shootout.

Bodycam and cruiser video has been released from last Saturday's police shootout and hostage taking at a Trader Joe's in Los Angeles California. That incident ended with the hostage taker in custody and an innocent civilian getting caught in the crossfire. The civilian, Melyda Corado, was a manager at the Trader Joe's and was killed by a police bullet. ABC News has more information on the video.

What's my take on this? I think it is pretty obviously a justified shooting since the attacker in the case had been shooting at cops throughout the video. Their lives and the lives of the general public were in danger. He was an absolute menace and had to be stopped. It's a tragedy that someone died but I don't think the cops should be held legally responsible for their actions. 

That being said, I am not so sure that they should have opened fire right away. One of the most basic rules of gun safety is to be aware of your target and what is behind it. And I don't think the officers did that in this case. Though shooting happens very quickly you could see a lot of people behind where the suspect was and presumably more were inside of the store. There was a decent chance of someone getting hit and that is exactly what happened. 

Of course on the other side I think that there is an argument to be made that the suspect was so dangerous that he had to be stopped even if there was a chance of a civilian getting caught in the crossfire. He was actively trying to murder two police officer and he too wasn't careful about who else was behind his targets. He also murdered his grandmother and kidnapped and shot a teenager and was a general menace. Shooting him after all that was not only justified, it was the right thing to do. Doing it in a way that ended up with a dead civilian might not change anything. 

And there is the argument that if the officers hadn't shot back one or both of them could have been killed, along with innocent civlians and the kidnapped teenager. The suspect might have even escaped and continued his crime spree, so it's not like not shooting would have been consequence free.  

The whole situation just goes to show how gray these use of force situations can be. I think there is a strong argument to be made that the cops involved should have held back or do exactly what they did. Either way, I am glad that it wasn't me in that position because in the heat of the moment I don't know which way I would have gone.