Las Vegas Sun

This is an obvious cover-up and hoping that the for-show-coroner's inquest will make it all go away. Classic Police backing up one another for the sake of taking care of a buddy. I'm a Las Vegas native and currently serving in Iraq, in a Combat Arms occupation. What I read reflects exactly the way things work here, anytime deadly force is used. You shoot someone, regardless of right or wrong, and automatically, it's a "given" that you will put that you felt that you're life is in danger, irregardless of the truth. 99.99% times, that's the truth, that the soldier felt like his life WAS indeed in danger, but the 1% of the time where it's a lie, THE TRUTH eventually emerges. Unfortunately, that's most likely not going to be so in this case. The thing that struck me as ludicrous is that there were 2 officers, and that they were able to grab the 2 children but for some reason, unable to subdue a woman, who as reported by the officers held a knife to one of the child's throat. They had pepper spray, tasers (which for some unexplained reason, BOTH tasers did not work), and yet felt that their live were in danger. Let me get this straight. You have a gun, and let's say she even has a knife (even if this scenario sounds unbelievable), yet YOU (the officer with 2 years experience and academy training) felt that you're life was in danger enough to shoot a woman? What kind of training are the officers of today going through? Shoot if you can't handle a situation, we'll cover for you, the citizens are lame and ignorant, and we'll be fine? I deal with suicide bombers, both men and women, random drive by shootings, snipers, and I'll tell you right now, never will a woman with a knife EVER make me feel like I need to use deadly force, never will I cowardly proclaim that I was just protecting myself and my buddy to justify the murdering of a mother. Not here in Iraq, nor ever in the streets of Las Vegas. To have to read about this tragedy while here in Iraq just enrages me more. THIS is what I'm protecting? THIS is what I have to go home to? and if in the end there is no accountability, then I'm ashamed that THIS is the place that I will be welcomed back into.