re: Cop shoots drunk disorderly fireman who should have complied

quote:

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Although police officers often say they are on duty 24 hours a day, it is more accurate to say
that their commission as peace officers imposes duties and grants authority to them to respond
to certain criminal acts regardless of whether or not they are “on duty.” Police officers have a
duty to “preserve the peace” within their jurisdiction as authorized by law (Texas Code of
Criminal Procedure §2.13). That duty is not limited to their assigned shift during which they
are paid by the city. Within their jurisdiction, officers have the authority and obligation to
make arrests without warrants for various offenses enumerated in Texas Code of Criminal
Procedure §14.03 (a) 1-6. An officer’s authority to make arrests without warrants outside of
his or her jurisdiction is limited to felonies, assault, disorderly conduct or public intoxication
that takes place in his or her presence Texas Code of Criminal Procedure §14.03 (d).

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quote:

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In short, although an officer may be off duty and working
as a security guard, certain crimes committed in his or her
presence trigger the officer’s duty to act as a police officer
in the furtherance of his or her official duties. In those
circumstances, the officer acts as a police officer and must
comply with the policies established by the police
department, not the policies of the private employer

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