Exam 4: Justification Defenses

A nonexculpatory defense is a defense that is related to the elements of the crime or defendant's alleged fault or guilt.

David is a patrol officer with the Dallas Police Department. While patrolling southeast Dallas, David sees a man running out of the house on the corner of main and 3ʳᵈ Street. A woman stumbles out of the house. She is yelling, "Help! I have been robbed!" David immediately reports the crime in progress to dispatch and requests a back up. He observes the man enter a 2001 dark green Chevrolet pickup. As the suspect pulls the vehicle onto the roadway, David asks dispatch to verify the license plate on the vehicle. Dispatch advises David that the vehicle belongs to Lonny Smith who is well known by all of Dallas police as a hardened criminal who has fired his weapon on more than three separate occasions in a battle to resist arrest. David follows the fleeing suspect while he waits for back up to arrive. Three other units arrive and they initiate a felony stop. Are David and the other officers justified in displaying and using deadly force against this suspect? Why or why not? What if the suspect jumps from the car and tries to run away without displaying any type of weapon. Will the officers be justified in shooting him since he is a fleeing felon? Why or why not?