There’s not much if here, we have pretty good evidence it was intentional.
This is irrelevant. If the driver actually was trying to run down the cop then the cop had the right to use lethal force to defend himself as a last resort, simply because the cop’s bullets may hit one of the other criminals in the car instead of the driver doesn’t mean the cop was unjustified in firing.
I would agree however if the cop deliberately killed someone in the passenger seat he’d not be able to argue he was acting in self defense, there’s no evidence of that at the moment. There’s no evidence of a lot of things (we don’t know if the car was trying to run the cop down, we don’t know if he was in a situation where he had no other choice) in this situation.
But whether or not he was driving is irrelevant. If he was in a car that was being used as a deadly weapon against a police officer, and is accidentally shot, that doesn’t influence whether or not the cop was justified in shooting. It’s like the sad case a few months back of a police officer shooting a 3 year old girl in the process of shooting the man who was using her as a human shield. I don’t believe the police were punished in that case because they were being fired upon, and had the authority to respond to lethal force with lethal force.
Again, speeding is not a crime in my state. It isn’t in the criminal code nor does speeding make you guilty of a crime. You guys don’t seem to understand the definition of crime so I’d refer you to the Code of Virginia.
Everywhere I park that is metered is ran by a private entity, so if I did exceed the allowed parking time it wouldn’t be a crime, it’d just mean the owner of the parking area had the legal right to assess a fee on me. It’s like saying if you have ever paid your electric bill late (and thus had to pay a penalty) you’ve committed a crime, that is not the case.
And I’ve already explained to you that speeding isn’t considered a crime here. It isn’t dealt with in criminal court, it isn’t covered under the criminal code, it doesn’t go on a “criminal record.” It isn’t a misdemeanor or a felony. Larceny is a crime in the criminal code, depending on the specifics it is a misdemeanor or a felony.
I don’t consider everyone who has ever broken any law to be an especially nefarious criminal, and I’ve never said that. You just want to prop up that strawman because it is so easily shot down. There are obviously different levels of criminality and there are people who may accidentally break the law with no malice involved. They are a far cry different from someone who steals from a restaurant and then tries to flee from the police. That shows a criminal nature and thus means society is better off for losing someone like that.
Anyways, the hypotheticals are stupid in your argument. There’s a big difference between breaking the law in such a minor way you’d never get caught and in fact the police wouldn’t even do anything if they saw you doing it an fleeing from the police after stealing.