So what would you do?

[johnofgwent]

Well, in the USA, which you refer to as that open lunatic asylum he probably would not have been arrested. The police in the UK will always arrest anyone responsible for a death, even if it is in self defence, or defence of another. It is the way they do things. They will eventually release him on bail and the CPS can decide whether it was murder or not.
Sounds like a bystander had already decided that he had no choice. Horrible incident, all round.

Yeah but the problem is now his prints and DNA will be forever linked to the case and never expunged. He should have buggered a 16 year old while he waited for plod to arrive they'd have to erase his prints and dna then

In the states of course the assailant would have a severe case of lead poisoning and his victim would most probably be alive. And the driver ? Would have to stop by Wal-Mart on his way home to buy more ammunition

[johnofgwent]

Well I can tell you, because I have run down a gun toting bank robber.

Fans of Torchwood might recall a scene at the start of season two I think where a deserted street in a town has a zebra crossing at which a sports car driven by an alien with a fish head pulls up to the lights.

can't recall the rest. And the BBC altered the layout a bit. The zebra crossing is really about 75 yards from the lights towards the shops not where they repainted it.

The road is in Whitchurch, Cardiff and used to lead to Whitchurch (mental) Hospital and beyond that the  the BT site where my brother worked, and the M4.

Mum and dad's place was about a Mile and a half further down the road.

Coming off the M4 in my Maxi 1750 in the late 70s I stopped for the red lights at the crossroads and then pulled off on green. I pretty instantly found a queue for the zebra crossing or so i thought.

It wasn't.

The car in front of me suddenly shot off like a rocket as in front of me, a guy ran out from the bank on my left, in front of my car. He was standing sort of side on to me, looking away at a crowd. He had his back to me. In his left hand nearest me he had a big brown school briefcase sort of bag. And I couldn't really see his right hand. But he had something metal in it and lots of people were running away. And he was turning as if to face me 

I yanked the cars steering wheel a half turn threw myself down by the gearstick and floored it in first

There was a thump. Then the engine stalled

And then there was a roar of an angry mob.

I had hit the thieving bank robbing bastard square in the back and side of the knees, the impact threw him face forwards into / over a sort of low wall of breeze blocks someone had built a raised bed for some flowers out if. He went headlong over that onto the concrete paving the other side.

In them days coppers sat drinking tea in police stations. One such was around the corner and down the road. It was not very long before several boys in blue rocked up.

E's a fuckin hero" several standing round said to the coppers about me who gravitated to my car in the pavement.

"The bastard was standing waving his gun at the crowd and shouting at them, but before the bastard could do anything he ran him down into that flower bed".....

I told the copper with stripes I wasn't sure it was a gun, I couldn't really see, but the other people sure as hell behaved as if it was, and he was turning my way and I didn't have anything else to hit him with, so i
used first gear..........

The guy with the braid asked if I was hurt. I said no, u didn't think so. We had a look at my car and decided the serious front bumper might need adjusting, so he shook my hand and left me with a junior copper to bash the bumper a bit with the gear in my tool box and went to talk to the crowd

And that was it. 

The junior copper asked me for my story, I told him while we sorted the kink in the bumper out, he took the reg no, I gave her m my address, they said they'd call if they needed more but they never did.

Thinking back I think ONE of them did say it wasn't a real gun but before that the giu with the stripes said he wouldn't reccomend doing what I did as I might have been shot ....

But that was that.

Society knew who the criminals were in those days, and coppers knew who society viewed as good, and bad

A shame it's degenerated to the shitshow it is today

[cromwell]

Well, in the USA, which you refer to as that open lunatic asylum he probably would not have been arrested. The police in the UK will always arrest anyone responsible for a death, even if it is in self defence, or defence of another. It is the way they do things. They will eventually release him on bail and the CPS can decide whether it was murder or not.
Sounds like a bystander had already decided that he had no choice. Horrible incident, all round.

Good call and what's happened,the way we do things I think more apt than the yanks,there is an outcry thathe bloke was a hero....hero is an overuse adjective these days though the boy done good.

It seems there was a restraing order on the perp......that didn't work.

[Streetwalker]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10437219/What-Words-hero-ploughed-car-woman-trying-save-knifeman.html

OK so we don't know all the facts but based on what the link presents,I hope I'd at least try to help the poor sod,running the dick over seems safest option......obviously not for the woman.

I do have a steering wheel lock in the car and fire extinguisher, use the extinguisher in his face and then hit the **** with it or the lock.

Dunno would like to think I'd do something,anyway the blokes being held for murder.

Fair play to the driver just a shame he was a little bit late on the scene . I dont really see that anyone would have done anything different given the circumstances .

[papasmurf]

He must be a poor driver.

[Barry]

Well, in the USA, which you refer to as that open lunatic asylum he probably would not have been arrested. The police in the UK will always arrest anyone responsible for a death, even if it is in self defence, or defence of another. It is the way they do things. They will eventually release him on bail and the CPS can decide whether it was murder or not.
Sounds like a bystander had already decided that he had no choice. Horrible incident, all round.

[cromwell]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10437219/What-Words-hero-ploughed-car-woman-trying-save-knifeman.html

OK so we don't know all the facts but based on what the link presents,I hope I'd at least try to help the poor sod,running the dick over seems safest option......obviously not for the woman.

I do have a steering wheel lock in the car and fire extinguisher, use the extinguisher in his face and then hit the **** with it or the lock.

Dunno would like to think I'd do something,anyway the blokes being held for murder.