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Biden slammed for suggesting cops shoot suspects ‘in the leg’ instead of killing them: 'It's not a video game'

The former vice president's answer shocked many conservatives while liberals understood from which perspective Biden might have said the words

One of the questions that were posed before Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden during the ABC town hall on Thursday, October 15, was about criminal justice reform and police brutality which has become one of the topical issues for ticket-holders in the upcoming election, especially after the death of George Floyd on May 25 while he was being arrested by four Minneapolis police officers. 

The former vice president's answer shocked many conservatives while liberals understood from which perspective Biden might have said the words. “You can ban chokeholds, but beyond that, you have to teach [the police] how to de-escalate circumstances,” said Biden. “So instead of anybody coming at you and the first thing you do is shoot to kill, you shoot them in the leg.” 

However, Biden's suggestion was easier said than done as according to Reason.com, it would "take an expert marksman" to shoot someone in the leg. Also, the only way that it was possible was if the suspect was at close range and standing still. "An average suspect can move his hand and forearm across his body to a 90-degree angle in 12/100 of a second," according to an expert. "He can move his hand from his hip to shoulder height in 18/100 of a second. The average officer pulling the trigger as fast as he can on a Glock, one of the fastest- cycling semi-autos, requires 1/4 second to discharge each round."

After the clip of Biden's statement went viral on social media, Katie Pavlich, Townhall editor and Fox News contributor wrote, "Biden just suggested police shoot people in the leg, proving he has zero idea how police training or responding to a violent threat works." Others soon followed suit, slamming the Democratic pick. 

"As a daughter and niece of police officers, I can't believe he just said that," one wrote, while another said, "Wife of police officer. He would be so horrible for our officers and the safety of our communities." A third commented, "Omg.... He is so incompetent. He has absolutely no idea what he’s talking about he’s just trying to placate and think off the cuff which is not his strong suit."

Another wrote, "He also obviously doesn’t know anything about guns. Had he even ever fired a handgun?" Someone else remarked, "I swear...people who don't understand guns shouldn't say anything EVER like this. It's not a video game."

There were those who stood up in support of Biden. "Way to take it out of context. He said police need to learn how to de-escalate situations and use non- lethal force but they also need to learn that in situations where force is needed to shoot them in the leg. Not kill them," one of his supporters wrote. Then another said, "Even if he did. It’s a lot better than KILLING the suspect." A third opined, "The problem is; SHOOT TO KILL is not the ONLY way to take down a suspect. If the officer’s life or civilian lives are not in imminent danger the goal should be to disable not kill. As it turns out, lethal force only seems to be the go-to with black suspects."