Without a moment’s hesitation.
Kill.
Main body mass.
Stare down the barrel of my .44 Taurus and say that.
Oh, I will! It’s a Taurus, dude. Maybe it will and maybe it won’t, but in the meantime my Ruger will eat your lunch, guaranteed.
[sub]I know, I’ve fired your Taurus. I’m a gun snob. Sue me.[/sub]
Of course.
I would shoot the person for the sole purpose of stopping the aggressive behavior. You could interpret that as shooting to disable but I have no illusions that the outcome may very well be death.
Whether I was shooting to kill or to stop the aggressive behavior I would aim for center mass. It’s a relatively large target and it’s likely to stop someone.
Marc
I saved the rest of the clip in case there is a second bad guy.
Can’t remember where I heard this stat, but IIRC most gunfights take place at a distance of about 7 feet. Yes, I would shoot, and I would aim for center mass. In the shock of being in a situation such as this, I would be as likely to hit a leg as I would the head. I would probably not hit center mass, but I would hit something at that distance.
Also, as I have been trained, I would keep firing until I disabled the threat, ran out of ammo, or was killed trying. Once you decide to shoot, you better mean to kill unless you KNOW, there is no longer a threat to you or anyone you care about.
It ain’t like the movies where one well placed shot in a stressful situation will neutralize the threat. People don’t always die from one gunshot, no matter how well placed. If you aren’t shooting to kill, then get a baseball bat for your home defense weapon, or a dog.
Finally, Stranger, I have a Taurus .357 wheelgun. If it takes more than 6 rounds to stop the target, I have to change my marksmanship badge. 
SSG Schwartz
If I had a gun and knew how to use it, I’d shoot to kill. Centre of mass, like the others have said.
BTW be wary of judging society by TV shows. The police aren’t all like Dixon of Dock Green or The Sweeney. They’re human.
Assuming that the threat described is being deliberately and explicitly caused by the actor (not just an accident about to happen), and assuming I had been properly trained etc and could act without significant risk of harm to innocent parties. And of course assuming gun ownership/possession for the purposes of personal defence was the norm, and assuming I wanted one, and had one…
Yes, I would shoot to kill. I understand that means targeting the torso, but I only picked that up second hand from threads like this.
(without wanting to turn this into a gun debate) In case that looks like me saying that I think guns would be a great thing to add to our culture, it’s not.
It’s just me saying that in a situation where someone was threatening to harm my family, my conscience would permit me to harm that person in order to prevent it happening. It happens to be the case that the tool called a gun is not generally available here to perform that task - and on balance, I’m completely OK with that limitation.
Yes, kill, center of mass.
As for “yes”, it would have to take some pretty unlikely circumstances for it to be “no”. I’m a man of peace, but I’m not a fanatic about it. There’s a time for talking and a time for violence and if I never have to experience the latter I’ll be happy for it, but if it does come then yeah, I’ll adapt.
As for “kill”, I would be stupid to try for anything else. I’m not James Bond. If the guy survives that’s a fortuitous turn of events, but it’s not my concern at that point.
As for “center of mass”, it’s the biggest target, and when the good Lord was kind enough to put a whole bunch of vital organs there as well, who am I to say no?
Shoot to kill. Repeat as necessary. The wounded lie and hire lawyers.
*Would you shoot another person to save your/your loved ones’ life/lives?
Yes, of course.
*If you would shoot another person, would you shoot to kill or only to disable?
Shoot to stop the threat. I wouldn’t finish off attacker if he survived. Probably even would provide first aid and call ambulance. But with half magazine load in the chest prognosis aren’t that good.
*If shooting to kill, where would you aim and why?
Center of mass, so most probably chest area. Unless very close / body armor, then headshot.
Absolutely.
I would shoot to end the attack. If the perp dies in the exchange, tough noogies to them.
Center of mass, unless they had armor. Groin or head as alternates.
I have never shot at a person except to try to kill them.
Cops is not a drama. It’s a show where they follow real policemen with a camera.
Absolutely I would shoot to protect myself or someone else.
I would aim for the center of mass. I would continue shooting until they were no longer a threat.
Thanks to everyone already having replied. I also am a little amazed at how many have answered “yes.” I tend to think that most people would like to think they would shoot to kill, but would panic instead. There’s no shame in it, it’s just one of those things. Many people like to think that if they saw someone choking in a restaurant, they would perform the heimlich, many would not.
At any rate, I just have to say, I love the SDMB – I ask what you would do and many have instead critiqued my methodology. (Thanks to the poster who corrected me on the esophagus/larynx – you are correct, I meant the other) Aiming for the center of mass is the smartest thing to do. As one poster mentioned, it is hard to train yourself to do that, but in reality, it is the best place for a lesser experienced shooter to aim. That’s where I was taught to aim growing up, but as I became a better shot, I learned to aim for the throat – YMMV (and usually does!)
Thanks to Sampiro for finding the Ghandi quote. I’d heard him say that as well. Well, not directly, I don’t think I was old enough, but you know what I mean. I would never shoot not in self-defense or defense of my loved ones, because it is just not very bright. I’d never shoot at a person’s back. Well, ok, unless some really odd set of circumstances came up in which my plans to dominate the world have come to fruition and my sexy arch-enemy is running away after I have tortured his hot, dumb, blonde companion to death…no loose strings, ya know?
*Would you shoot another person to save your/your loved ones’ life/lives?
Yes, without hesitation
*If you would shoot another person, would you shoot to kill or only to disable?
To kill. Shoot, keep shooting until you can’t shoot any more or the threat is eliminated
*If shooting to kill, where would you aim and why?
Center mass, just like they taught me.
Yes
Shoot to kill and keep on shooting unitl I know he’s dead. Then beat him with the weapon until I’m REALLY sure he’s dead.
Yes, I’d shoot an attacker.
I’d shoot to stop - continue shooting until the threat is removed. Once the threat is removed, call 911, ask for police and ambulance. Continue to cover the target until police arrive. Do not touch or assist target in any way.
Center of mass.
Litoris, if I might ask, you say you’re a good shot, so you’d shoot at the throat. Have you practiced in self defense situations, or just shooting targets at the range? Because I’m pretty confident of putting 10/10 (or at least 8/10) into a throat sized target at 7 ft., with a stationary target at the range and time to recover and aim after each shot, but I’d never dream of trying that with a moving, threatening target in a high pressure, low time situation.
Not in self-defense situations – I don’t know anyone willing to come at me while I have a loaded weapon. It’s where I aim when I hunt. Actually, the last time I had to kill, it was a very aggressive stray dog growling and snapping at me. I suppose some might have considered it self-defense, even though the dog probably only weighed 70 lbs (maybe?). One shot to the throat as it stood on the secondary porch (which has normal railings and several bushes through which I got to aim). I’m not saying I would always hit the throat, but it is my first reaction. As many have noted, you shoot until the target goes down and doesn’t come back up – if I missed the throat, I would go for center of mass.
Of course, if I were Chuck Norris…
(I recall that Ty Cobb, the Georgia Peach, was once, after he retired, accosted by a robber. By the time the police got there, the robber had been repeatedly shot and Ty was peeing on him. Just to be sure, I guess.)