"Just because a subject has something unidentifiable in his or her hands, that's never an automatic justification for the use of deadly force," Greenwood said.
However, "If someone is carrying around a toy pistol we don't expect the police to know it's a toy," he said.
Despite the Bell and Coppin deaths, police officials say that statistics show the NYPD has become more restrained: Officers fired 540 shots last year, down 13 percent from 616 in 2005. In 1996, the total was 1,292. So far this year, members of the 36,000-officer department have killed 10 people. Last year, the total was 13 people, up from nine in 2005, and in 1996 it was 30.
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