Discuss Haven

setting the scene: The Rev had a retention hold on a young troubled girl, arm around her neck from behind, and in his free hand he held a knife. He indicated he intended to kill the girl. Audrey and Nathan were yelling at him to stop, not to do it, etc. The Rev rejected their pleas and began a rapid downward motion with the knife, directed at the girl's chest. That was when Audrey Parker shot the Rev, causing him to drop the knife and subsequently fall down and die.

After Audrey shot the Rev she said "Now I am going to have to answer questions like why I didn't shoot the Rev in the leg."

It's a little thing, but it bugs me. That would not be a question anyone with any sense would ask her, i.e. nobody in authority who investigates police shootings would ask such a question.
The reason it bugs me is that many viewers who know nothing about guns will come away from that with the idea that shooting someone in the leg is a valid option for stopping a deadly attack. It isn't.
The only reason for shooting the Rev was to stop the attack. Shooting him in the leg would be unlikely to do that, whereas a shot to the chest wa much more likely to stop the attack.

For these and other reasons police officers are trained to shoot for the chest. That shot is most likely to stop an attack. Often a person who is shot in the chest will drop the gun in their hand, even though they may remain conscious for about 10 to 15 seconds after being shot through the heart.

[A friend of mine was the target of a home invasion several years ago. Though wheelchair bound (and apparently an easy mark) he was an extremely good shot under pressure. He could point shoot (shoot without using the sights) and hit small targets, and do so consistently. Two men ran through his front door (open because he had just returned from shopping) with pistols pointed at him. He shot each once through the heart. Both men dropped their pistols, hit their knees, then jumped up and ran outside and died in the street. A third man then entered pointing a gun at my friend who promptly shot him once through the heart. The man was knocked backwards, then started to raise his gun again. He was shot a second time through the heart. His eyes went glassy, then he turned and ran and died a few steps later. These men were violent criminals who had just committed several armed robberies and were likely intending to kill my friend and take his vehicle. They would have been flooded with adrenaline when they were shot. It was only the shock of a chest shot which prevented them being able to carry through their attack. A 'leg shot' would have resulted in my friend being shot dead.]

I hate it when TV creates false and unrealistic ideas which viewers may later carry and apply in real life.

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