[Brian Pfleuger]

Many states have laws which specifically allow for shooting a fleeing criminal under certain circumstances.

In NY, it is expressly allowed when certain violent crimes are committed, the offender is fleeing and the defender "reasonably believes" shooting the offender is necessary, essentially the only option, to prevent their escape from LE.

I'll look up the exact text, but that's the gist of it. Anyway, it's not ALL that unusual that shooting a fleeing suspect would not bring charges. I'd still say it's generally a very bad idea and much more likely to go bad than good.


Found it:

This covers most of it, NY Penal Code 35.30:
4. A private person acting on his own account may use physical force, other than deadly physical force, upon another person when and to the extent that he reasonably believes such to be necessary to effect an arrest or to prevent the escape from custody of a person whom he reasonably believes to have committed an offense and who in fact has committed such offense; and he may use deadly physical force for such purpose when he reasonably believes such to be necessary to:
(a) Defend himself or a third person from what he reasonably believes to be the use or imminent use of deadly physical force; or
(b) Effect the arrest of a person who has committed murder, manslaughter in the first degree, robbery, forcible rape or forcible sodomy and who is in immediate flight therefrom


Of course, there's "law" and there's "case law". I wouldn't be surprised if case law directly contradicts the statute.