This is very likely what happened. Unfortunately, unless there is more amateur footage that gets out, we will never know. I don't know about you, but most everyone I know is terrified of the police. I'd flee too, given the right circumstance.

I am sympathetic but don't ever do that!

If you run, they'll assume you have a reason to run, and chase you.

Try to not react, smile a lot and act really really dumb. The police see tons of dumb people, you'll blend right in.

I use variations on this all the time. For example, when I go through customs, I think, "I'm a boring guy, I write computer programs, give me half a chance and I'll tell you all about it!" I never get looked at twice (being an older white male really helps too) - once in the Bahamas the machine singled me out for a random bag check and the guy lost interest before removing the top layer of my clothes.

(It helps also that I have nothing to hide... again I don't buy into "If you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear," but when I'm crossing a border, I think this...)

What about when they stopped her, had the doors open and she floored it in reverse and rammed a cop car behind her, injuring the officer who had to be removed with the jaws of life?

Video?

Wait a minute. So people are saying this was just a case of a woman that was "so scared" that she couldn't think straight and did one of the absolute WORST things you could have done in a situation like this? Seriously? I mean how stupid can you really be to floor the gas pedal after running into some DC barriers? Sorry, I'm sure this is going to get downvoted to hell, but if you ram into some barriers, and then try to fucking gun it in your car when cops justifiably come to talk to you...then...I don't want to say you deserve to get shot...but what the fuck? I mean seriously. What the fuck?

If that's what actually happened, then that lady really was so fucking stupid that I think she might have been dead soon anyway acting that stupid. Because this just seems TOO stupid for me to believe this was the one explanation for this scenario, I'm still thinking there's more to this story than just some moronic lady that drove like an idiot into some barriers and then decided to be EVEN MORE of a fucking idiot and try to speed off from the cops.

I just...my mind doesn't even register that level of stupidity if that's what happened.

I think we'll see this was a black woman, who yes, prolly has every fucking right to feel panic deep in her heart, anytime she's around white male cops. Don't down vote me because you don't believe racism exists.

Na, na, bro. I didn't downvote you. I Upvoted you. You just made a very good point. I just saw the link in this subreddit with a picture of the baby and it looked like a black/African American baby. In my mind, I have to admit that I was originally thinking of some ditzy ass white broad that was just being a total airhead (now you can downvote me for the racism), but when I thought about a black lady in that same scenario, I STILL think the lady is SUPER stupid for having sped away, but I can still see some black lady saying "Aw hellll naw I ain't waitin' f'no mothafuckin' cops on this one," and bolting away.

Still waayyy fucking stupid for anyone to do that of any race though. Just way stupid.

Don't down vote me because you don't believe racism exists.

I should downvote you for even thinking that I would think this in the first place, however (though I didn't dv you for it). I know racism totally exists, man. I've been met with it many times in my own life - let alone seeing it all around every. Damn. Day in this country.

It totally sucks.

What if she accidentally hit the cop car, then panicked like this?

Na. Fuck that, man. That's a hit and fucking run, bro. TOTAL douche move regardless of what the reasoning is. Sorry but either way you cut it, she was a fucking moron for doing what she did.

She did the equivalent of what dumb ass characters do in movies that make people in the theater go "DON'T open that fucking door, you moron! You're going to get killed!"

She did like...you know...the opposite of what anybody in their right mind is supposed to do? Yeah. Dumb asses in scary movies do that so they can get killed by the bad guys. In real life though? Come on.

Sorry for my crassness, but...damn. Ultimately, the lady did a LOT of stupid, STUPID shit...and the sole logic that many are defending her with is "but she was scared!"

Sorry. But that doesn't fly (with me). I know it might not be a popular perspective, but she did some very dumb shit and hurt people BEFORE any real shit went down w/the cops. All this was initially her fault - and then she actually EXACERBATED the situation and made it worse by taking off like a bandit?

Na, man. Just...stupid move, you know?

First of all, I'm no man.

Second, if her behavior is illogical, why no suggestions about MK Ultra? Seems to be the first response for any male suspect, so why is this just a stupid woman?....

if her behavior is illogical, why no suggestions about MK Ultra?

Whaaat? Why on Earth suggest MK-Ultra? Maybe they had something to do with it...Maybe not. I don't know WHY she was driving like an idiot...but she WAS, and the only point I'm making is that the cops weren't all that in the wrong for assuming that a shit head driver being dangerous would CONTINUE to be dangerous to others. I've seen much worse actions by cops. That doesn't excuse what happened here, but I also wouldn't say that they were all that much in the wrong in this case.

Seems to be the first response for any male suspect, so why is this just a stupid woman?....

lol. Damn. You're just...are you like...being self-conscious or overreacting based on some male/female issue here? Look, lady, it doesn't MATTER whether it was a male or a female. The DRIVER was acting like a moron. Yes, women have indeed been shown in tests to be much worse drivers than men. Okay. Fine. So what though? This lady had a kid in the car with her (all the more reason for her to be calm) yet reacted WAY out of proportion bad.

Maybe it was MK-Ultra. Again, I don't know. All I know is that she made some really BAD decisions and, as much as cops are douche bags, I don't blame them for acting like they did this on this particular occasion.

Right, cuz rampant sexism doesn't exist on reddit. I don't care what the circumstances, no dead woman needs to be called a c%@#!

Right, cuz rampant sexism doesn't exist on reddit. I don't care what the circumstances, no dead woman needs to be called a c%@#!

...What? Who just called her a cunt? Me? What? I don't even...

Wow. Yes. You're right. Rampant sexism does exist on Reddit in the world...as does even more rampant racism and inequality...But...what. the. fuck are you talking about here? Seriously?

Look, I am not your enemy, lady. Matter of fact, a lot of males aren't. You might want to think they are, and it might make you feel better in some sort of...I don't know...Joan of Arch (?) wannabe martyr/thinking the whole world is against you kind of way?...but I could care less whether you're a male or a female or both or whatever. I was just addressing the specific points (that we know of) regarding this case and this situation and how people jumping on a stupid "bad cops! innocent lady!" band wagon just isn't making sense and is not very critically minded.

I'll just...back up from you slowly (again).

The c-bomb was on another thread, my apologies. (As a side note, I wish different threads on the same topic could be all inclusive together! )

But the stupid female driver attitude is in nearly every thread. I don't know how I'd react, let alone w a toddler in the car. But you can't speculate how you would react to drawn guns either, especially when there's been no clear evidence of what started this escalation. Of course, the government could release the dashcam videos, or audio from the police chatter.... (Or, y'know, the audio or video from inside her hacked vehicle....ahem...)

And the daily assumption that I am a male poster is grating, to say the least.

The c-bomb was on another thread, my apologies.

No worries. Apologies accepted. It gets confusing sometimes.

But the stupid female driver attitude is in nearly every thread.

Well, I haven't seen it much, but I will say I imagine it's been said in many threads. I guess I'm just saying that it's just a stupid thing to do PERIOD - whether the individual is a female or male or whatever. That was simply a STUPID MOVE. A lot of people, it seems to me, are giving in way too much to the thought that says "Well she was just scared! What do you expect her to do?"

I simply don't agree with this type of defense. That's b.s. as far as I'm concerned. You have a child in the car. You BETTER be acting properly and correctly - for the kid's sake if not for your own - and the lady actually did the opposite of that in that moment. "She was scared" is simply not an excuse as far as I'm concerned even if she DIDN'T have a kid in the car - let alone considering that she did have a kid in the car.

I don't know how I'd react, let alone w a toddler in the car.

I would hope that you would have a much more level head. If you ran into some barricades in a major government area and then you got beset by a bunch of cops pointing guns at you, it would seem that the logical thing to do (if it was an innocent mistake that you made) is simply to put your hands up, and calmly explain what happened.

"I'm sorry. I got confused and disoriented and I made a mistake and accidentally ran into this barrier. I didn't and don't mean any harm. I have a child in the car."

How hard is that?

Instead, she proceeded to do even MORE harm by running into people and cars before bolting off like a demon? Na. That's just...plain stupid...even for a woman. I mean seriously. That's REALLY dumb. I wouldn't even expect a stupid oblivious woman to be THAT stupid - let alone a "professional" woman (dental hygienist) with a child in the car like this woman was. I mean come on.

I don't know you, but I don't think you would be that stupid. At least I would hope not.

But you can't speculate how you would react to drawn guns either, especially when there's been no clear evidence of what started this escalation.

Actually I personally can speculate, because I actually have had drawn guns on me and I actually have been shot at point blank in front of my face by a big ass gun with full lethal intent pointing at me from no more than 4-5 ft away. This is part of why I speak so vehemently on this subject. This is why it makes no sense to me that she would react like that. I've been in enough lethal situations (knives, guns, attacks by violent groups of people, etc) to know how one can react in order to not exacerbate things.

And the daily assumption that I am a male poster is grating, to say the least.

Well, most Redditors are statistically male. Also, this is, unfortunately, an entirely chauvinistic, male-dominated planet we live on. I think a great deal of the problems that this planet has comes from the male-oriented perspective from which things get addressed, and I think things might be better if the planet were more maternally-oriented - although it would have its own set of problems to deal with as well.

That being said, this is the shitty planet you currently manifested on. It's grating - yes - but continuing to understand exactly why things are the way they are, and dealing with them as best you can, should help you evolve enough to not have to return to it after your journey here this time around is complete.

You type a lot!

Okay.

I think a lot.

It's worth noting that when people are "so scared they can't think straight" they often do the worst thing they could do. A woman with a child who suddenly has guns leveled at her may very well do these things.

And no one is saying that is what happened. It is a THEORY as to what may have caused this to happen. Kind of the general theme of this whole subreddit. When you can't trust a word of what your government or the media tell you it's the only option we have left.

It's worth noting that when people are "so scared they can't think straight" they often do the worst thing they could do.

Still though...I'm sorry but how the fuck is accidentally (or even purposefully) running into a barricade enough to make you "so scared you can't think straight"? I mean are you THAT fucking oblivious?? (not you, of course. I mean the person who "can't think straight" after hitting a barricade). You're that oblivious that you would literally GUN IT away from the cops after doing something like that? I don't know, man. That just doesn't make ANY sense to me. I understand that it might just be me projecting, but damn. My mind just doesn't grasp THAT level of obliviousness and immediate, unthinking, uncritical level of abject fear. I feel that if you're THAT fucking unstable that you're going to spook THAT easily and THAT horrendously over something like that? then maybe you really shouldn't even be behind a wheel in the first place.

A woman with a child who suddenly has guns leveled at her very well may do these things.

See I don't buy that for a moment. Again, I admit I might be projecting, but this is the VERY type of situation where a woman should be all the more composed. You have a fucking child with you, you shitty woman. You BETTER be calm, cool, and collected...not spastic and overreacting - so as to make sure that the child is protected and not harmed by any shitty driving or reactions on your part. That just doesn't make any sense to me. Seriously. Again, I admit that maybe I'm just not relating with THIS level of stupidity or overreaction, but I just can't grasp overreacting to THAT extent.

I know it might be an asshole statement on my part, but if you're going to react THAT stupidly in a situation like this, then the cops can't be faulted for shooting you the fuck down. I'm the first one to say "fuck a cop" - especially with all the horrible shit we keep seeing them doing day in day out - but I still feel that if I'm a cop, and I have someone react like this lady did, then I'm going to think that "the only reason this person is reacting THIS horribly to a situation that doesn't warrant that reaction is because she might be a LOT more dangerous than just an average bystander that just made an honest mistake by running into the barrier." I'd be on guard and ready for anything at that point because the person so overreacted to a generally benign situation.

And no one is saying that is what happened.

Yeah, but a LOT seem to already be guessing pretty confidently that that's what did happened. Like you, for example. You're certainly not saying that "this is how it definitely happened". Of course not. However, you're not the first one that is alleging this possibility, and I'm just responding by saying that if this IS what happened, then that doesn't make ANY sense (to me) because the minor accident on the lady's part does not seem to warrant her reaction to it afterward at all.

It is a THEORY as to what may have caused this to happen. Kind of the general theme of this whole subreddit.

Fair enough. And I'm just offering a counter perspective is all.

When you can't trust a word of what your government or the media tell you it's the only option we have left.

I agree with that, and I also think it IS a good idea to float out various different theories with regard to what may be the case for any one scenario. However - and like I said - I'm just offering my own personal perspective with regard to why the OP theory just seems a bit..."too easy" an explanation to be what actually happened. I said elsewhere that - yes - female drivers can be horribly overreacting to things. Their reaction times have been proven to not be as good as male reaction times while driving, etc. They're simply not as good behind the wheel. I know that. Still, however, this scenario seems to go above and beyond just that simple explanation.

Hey though. I might be totally wrong. I admit that. Wouldn't be the first time. However, I'm just stating that it doesn't seem like a tiny fender bump that doesn't even leave a noticeable mark on her car would be sufficient to make her react so psychotically and END UP NEARLY KILLING ANOTHER OFFICER by backing up into him and putting him in the hospital BEFORE just taking off and fleeing the scene of the crime. I mean WTF? How do you NOT expect to get shot up after a reaction like that?

EDIT: fyi I mentioned her running into an officer because I saw a post about her having done this and a picture of the cop being taken away in a stretcher. I don't have the link at the moment though.

But I didn't say that she panicked from hitting a barricade. I'm saying the cops may have panicked from her hitting it, or from something else. They may have fired or drawn weapons before she did anything. THAT is what could have caused the panic. Many people fear the police, and who wouldn't. Every day there's another story in the news about cops doing something stupid, whether it's them shooting up a van with Asian women because they look like a Chris Dorner, or them beating the shit out of you for looking strange. If they fired a shot then she had every reason to panic. If they drew their weapons then it is still very feasible that she could panic. If she had just been involved in an accident and suddenly sees guns drawn then that could easily cause her to panic. I don't know if you've ever been in or seen someone in a state like this but it is very common. Why do you think they try to ingrain "stop, drop and roll" throughout school? Because when you sense imminent danger your first reaction isn't "what is the smart thing to do". Your first reaction is get away from the threat. A woman in a car with a child who suddenly sees guns drawn or has a gun fired at her is going to flee, and she isn't going to think about whether the person she is fleeing has a gun or not. When you go into shock anything can happen.

But I didn't say that she panicked from hitting a barricade.

...I didn't say you did either.

I'm saying the cops may have panicked from her hitting it, or from something else.

That's a possibility. Another involves a qualitative assessment of her actions in the situation (namely everything I noted above). I think both possibilities are valid at this point.

They may have fired or drawn weapons before she did anything.

Even if they did, my point is that she's still beyond stupid for taking off the way she did if that were the case.

THAT is what could have caused the panic.

She essentially made it worse. You're saying maybe she couldn't help it because she was "so scared", and I'm just saying I can't relate to THAT level of fear in that type of situation. That's like "let's think of the stupidest thing I could do in this situation" kind of stupid.

And I've been held up by cops, cuffed, thrown in jail, ticketed, etc, etc, so it's not like I'm some guy that hasn't had anything happen to him or can't relate to how to react in stressful situations. I know my mind is very different than other people's or this lady's, etc, but still - it doesn't make sense to me that she would do that under these circumstances is all.

Many people fear the police, and who wouldn't.

Understandable. Taking off the way she did made it worse, however. I don't know how anyone wouldn't know that doing what she did would make it worse - scared or not scared.

Every day there's another story in the news about cops doing something stupid, whether it's them shooting up a van with Asian women because they look like a Chris Dorner, or them beating the shit out of you for looking strange.

All very valid points. Well taken. I understand. Again, however, she had to know that there is NO way she was just going to "get away" from them. She (again) made things WAY worse for herself by doing what she did.

She would have otherwise been ticketed and/or cuffed and thrown in jail for what she initially did (hitting the barrier). Instead, she freaked out, acted stupid, and went and got herself dead.

If they fired a shot then she had every reason to panic.

I don't know whether they fired before or after. Even if they fired before (and, again, we don't know one way or the other) she...well...broken record at this point. I'll stop.

If she had just been involved in an accident and suddenly sees guns drawn then that could easily cause her to panic.

God dammit that is just SO fucking stupid though. That's all I'm saying. It's SOOO stupid in my mind that I'm just like...not buying that this is "all" there was to this story. My mind is raging against that explanation. I'm like "No one could be THAT fucking stupid. Seriously?"

I guess perhaps. But still...wtf?

I don't know if you've ever been in or seen someone in a state like this but it is very common.

I've had knives pulled on me, been shot at point blank, been ganged up on by a big group of guys, put in the hospital, etc. I'll admit that maybe my perspective on how to react to situations like this might be different than an average female's...but still...I just don't get her reaction is all. This kind of reaction absolutely exacerbates the situation, and I just don't know how people don't...almost instinctively know reacting stupid makes situations like this worse.

Why do you think they try to ingrain "stop, drop and roll" throughout school? Because when you sense imminent danger your first reaction isn't "what is the smart thing to do". Your first reaction is get away from the threat. A woman in a car with a child who suddenly sees guns drawn or has a gun fired at her is going to flee, and she isn't going to think about whether the person she is fleeing has a gun or not. When you go into shock anything can happen.

Damn...Well...She got herself dead for her stupidity. Sorry - again, I know that might be an asshole-ish statement or response, but, it just kind of pisses me off when the smart and OBVIOUS thing to do ("obvious", of course, maybe just to me) is to STAY FUCKING CALM AND THINK, MOTHERFUCKER...and someone does the fucking opposite of that...and they end up making things worse when they absolutely WOULDN'T have made things worse if they would have just kept their damn head on.

Anyway...Oh well.

I agree 100% that if this is what happened that her reactions were 100% stupid, no doubt about that. It's not the way I would react, you would react, or probably 95% of the population would react. But I have seen reactions like this before, and I am sure you have too if you put it into perspective.

Lets say you are sitting in your armchair watching TV and you see a spider crawling on the arm of it near your hand. Your reaction is you're going to possibly flinch and then you're going to

a. Thump it (this is what I would do)

b. Smash it

or

c. Ignore it

Meanwhile, your wife is in the same situation. She is going to see the spider, flip backwards out of the chair, trip over the coffee table and smash into the wall

My only point is that wife just got shot.

It's not the way I would react, you would react, or probably 95% of the population would react.

Okay so wait a minute. If you acknowledge that her reaction is, then, very strange and unorthodox, why do you think that it might likely be just a case of a lady who's "too scared to act right"? It's like you and I both are agreeing on the premises, but we're drawing different conclusions. I'm saying basically the same thing you're saying in this sentence, but I'm saying that BECAUSE of these things ("it's not the way most of us would react") it seems that it doesn't seem like it was just a case of a lady who was "too scared to act right". I might be wrong, of course, I'm just stating that it seems odd to me is all.

But I have seen reactions like this before, and I am sure you have to if you put it into perspective.

I would say you're correct in that we've seen stupid reactions similar to this - yes. I'm just scratching my head over a lady acting THIS stupid in this type of situation is all.

Lets say you are sitting in your armchair watching TV and you see a spider crawling on the arm of it near your hand. Your reaction is your going to possibly flinch and then you're going to

a. Thumb it (this is what I would do)

b. Smash it

or

c. Ignore it

Ha. I guess I am a weirdo. I'd walk toward the restroom while the spider's crawling on my arm, grab a cup, gently cover the spider, walk it outside, and put it on a tree somewhere.

Meanwhile, your wife is in the same situation. She is going to see the spider, flip backwards out of the chair, trip over the coffee table and smash into the wall

She would freak the fuck out - but a lot less so now that she's with me and she understands how I act. Hell just last week or so, we were at a nice restaurant and a Stink Bug - literally this thing right here - jumped out of nowhere and got on her arm. She frrreaked out!! lol. I said "Calm down, honey. Here. Give it to me." It landed on my shirt at that point, and I literally got up and walked from the back of the restaurant where we were seated to the the front exit and toward a nearby tree outside as this thing was crawling up my shirt toward my neck. When I got outside, I shook the shirt a little bit, it jumped off, and that was that. It made for interesting conversation with some of the patrons that saw the whole thing after I came back in.

How I reacted to the Stink Bug is how I tend to work on being in general - just really thinking about the situation and what would be best to do within the context of calmness and honor.

My only point is that wife just got shot.

Fair enough, but I just don't understand how people can't get the CONTEXT of the situation.

"Scared Lady verses Cops and GUNS". In my mind, Scared Lady better turn into NOT Scared Lady real fast or she is not going to like the outcome of the situation.

Anyway...I guess we've talked about this well enough. Thanks for the conversation. I see your points, and they're valid.

I guess we'll find out a bit more about all of this in the coming days.

Until then...

See?! A wife is gonna freak on a spider? For reals, guys? We're all screaming and holding our petticoats up, cuz oh my dear Lord & husband, THERE'S A SPIDER?!!! GFY...

But it's not entirely fair or balanced on your part to get that upset here because even though both males and females do freak out at insects, etc...it IS the case that females seem to certainly have been shown to freak out MORE. How is that chauvinistic when it's what actually happens? My girlfriend DID freak the fuck out. This wasn't me putting some "male spin" on things.

I tell you what though: She, again, is a LOT better than most females with bugs, etc (and most males for that matter) because I'm as okay with it as I am - so it helps her - but it's not like she doesn't freak out at times...and to say that she does is not a bad, horrible, or chauvinistic thing.

I think you're right that this world's chauvinism sucks. It does. However, I also - to be fair - think that you seem to be more hypersensitive to the chauvinism that exists than is actually happening in various circumstances. Of course, I don't know you, so I don't presume to know what's going on in your head, but I can certainly imagine that if I were a woman and I were to see such constant chauvinism as exists on this planet, I might be pretty damn aggravated too. However, I do still think there's an imbalance where - even though there IS shitty chauvinism in the world - you might see more of it happening than actually is happening in any particular case.

It's a difficult balance, because it seems that you're simply sick and tired (justifiably so as far as I'm concerned) with all the b.s. that goes on in this planet regarding this subject.

I'm not going to fault your reactions...but I can speak for myself in saying that I at least TRY not to be too chauvinistic (if chauvinistic at all) in what I do or how I think.

So you are saying she deserved to be shot? Yes you are!

What? God that is just a stupid, stupid statement. I'm saying that there are a lot of things to take into consideration, and if you are driving in a 5,000 pound machine that you have JUST used as a fucking weapon and have injured one of my coworkers and then you TOOK OFF erratically, then I am right to assume that you are now a danger to the public and DO have the right to stop you from doing that.

See, this subreddit has a LOT of good and valid information, but there are also some occasions like this one where it seems like the bandwagon just gets too filled with people not even thinking about the situation in a very valid way.

Oh well.

Here's some amateur video, I don't see how that could not be the case.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/03/politics/u-s-capitol-shooting-main/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

I'm more upset they decided open fire on a car with a toddler in it. They are very lucky that child wasn't shot.

It seems they've lost their touch; all their recent false flags are riddled with major flaws. Maybe dissension in the ranks?

It's almost like they didn't even plan them...

Psycho unarmed terrorist with child or bad driver in unfamiliar area? I don't envy the job of a police officer. Especially now. All they could see is a Lexus with blacked out windows.

When you become a police officer part of the job is knowing that there are risks. One of those risks is having to hold your fire until you know for certain that the person you are killing deserves it.

Point taken. They are supposed to be professionals. This is just another, sad, needless mistake, made by people who are supposed to know better. That club seems to be getting larger every day.

Idk what her case was but as a native DC resident its imperative to know that you just DO NOT go fucking around in some parts of DC. The White House is one of those areas. Maybe she was having a medical problem or maybe she wasnt familiar with the area but from that reaction, come on, you have to expect to get shot at.

You know, your country is really sick, I dont know any other country from the first world that would shoot a women for fleeing in car. The car maybye, more like slam it with police car in chace, but only in US, police cames with drawn weapons to car accident and shoots a women with child nex to her

It scares me how much brainwashed US people are that they still think everythink is OK after this. It is scaring how much the public control tactic using fear and dumbing down works

The simple fact of the matter is that the police are operating like military. Ideally, the rules of engagement should be different between Military and LE...LE should resort to lethal force as an absolutely last resort. The simple fact of the matter is, the woman was unarmed. Panicked? Maybe. Crazy? Who knows. Regardless, the police responded with lethal force FIRST. Hopefully this event will serve to open people's eyes to what's going on. It's a mess out there...and only if people wake up will things ever change.

"What if..."

But I didn't say that she panicked from hitting a barricade. I'm saying the cops may have panicked from her hitting it, or from something else. They may have fired or drawn weapons before she did anything. THAT is what could have caused the panic. Many people fear the police, and who wouldn't. Every day there's another story in the news about cops doing something stupid, whether it's them shooting up a van with Asian women because they look like a Chris Dorner, or them beating the shit out of you for looking strange. If they fired a shot then she had every reason to panic. If they drew their weapons then it is still very feasible that she could panic. If she had just been involved in an accident and suddenly sees guns drawn then that could easily cause her to panic. I don't know if you've ever been in or seen someone in a state like this but it is very common. Why do you think they try to ingrain "stop, drop and roll" throughout school? Because when you sense imminent danger your first reaction isn't "what is the smart thing to do". Your first reaction is get away from the threat. A woman in a car with a child who suddenly sees guns drawn or has a gun fired at her is going to flee, and she isn't going to think about whether the person she is fleeing has a gun or not. When you go into shock anything can happen.