Sunday, December 19, 1999
Toughest decision takes a split-second
BY PERRY BROTHERS
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Each day on the job is a gamble. Any situation, any shift could end in death. And the fear of never seeing home again is as much a part of a police officer as the 9mm on the hip.
The second an officer decides to shoot a civilian, he or she makes a decision to exercise a power only granted to police officers. More and more that moment, that decision, is being scrutinized.
Cincinnati's SWAT team leader, Sgt. Randy Rengering, knows the intensity of that split-second; the intensity of killing a man to save your partner's life. He doesn't like to talk about it.
In his 20-year career, Sgt. Rengering has fatally shot two suspects. His SWAT position puts him at the forefront of the most violent police calls.
Sgt. Rengering worries that public criticism and legal wrangling in the wake of police shootings could paralyze an officer's rapid response.
“If they hesitate, they could be the ones going home in a body bag and not the ones going home to their family,” Sgt. Rengering said. “You don't have eight hours on Monday morning to decide if you're right or wrong. And, based on that split-second decision, you have to react. That split-second could cost you your life.”
Or the life of another officer. Twice, Sgt. Rengering has shot to protect a fellow officer. In 1988, he fatally shot Samuel Smith, 34, who was fighting with Officer Terry Peirano for control of a gun.
In February 1995, the SWAT team was called to a North Avondale apartment building where the partially decapitated body of a 15-year-old girl had been found.
The prime suspect: Harvey Price, the 34-year-old boyfriend of the girl's mother. Mr. Price barricaded himself in a bathroom and after negotiations failed, a group of SWAT officers went in after him.
A struggle ensued and Mr. Price, armed with a steak knife, tried to stab another SWAT member. Sgt. Rengering fired his Smith & Wesson 9mm and hit Mr. Price five times, killing him.
“It's a gutless feeling. You feel empty inside,” Sgt. Rengering said, softly. “Even though it's something you have to do at the time, you sit back and realize that you've taken a human being's life.”
Deadly force, weak controls
Shots fired: The cases
A mistaken shot in the dark
Toughest decision takes a split-second
No one knows national figures on police shootings
About this series
Agencies with review power
Experts who reviewed shootings
