From Publishers Weekly
In the movies, police shootings are often glamorized; in real life, they’re often vilified. This engrossing oral history looks at such shootings from the point of view of the cops for whom they are an extreme but unavoidable part of the job. Klinger, a sociologist and ex-cop, interviewed 80 police officers in four states, who, like him, shot someone in the line of duty. He addresses the issue thematically, including chapters that explore the cops’ attitudes toward killing before they joined up, police training on the use of deadly force, incidents where interviewees refrained from shooting when it was justified, and the legal and psychological aftermath of shooting incidents. The shootings are described in vivid detail that probes the agonizingly complex, split-second choices cops must make over whether or not to shoot, most made under confusing and chaotic circumstances, often when the cops themselves are threatened or even wounded. Klinger’s sympathy with the police is evident. He disparages "antipolice activists and other windbags" and doesn’t seem to have interviewed anyone whose shooting was found to be unjustified. The experiences and responses are too diverse—some cops fall into depression after a shooting, while others take it in stride or even find it "exhilarating"—to allow for much generalization, so the interviews add up to little more than a collection of fascinating war stories. Still, readers will come away with a renewed appreciation for the difficulties police face every day on the streets.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


Review
"His new book, Into the Kill Zone: A Cop's Eye View of Deadly Force, is based on research he undertook for the U.S. Justice Department and includes information from 80 interviews with officers involved in shootings. The accounts are incredibly intimate,...The result is a fascinating though slightly repetitive series of first-person narratives on a taboo topic."
(Larry Olsen, Houston Chronicle, May 21, 2004)

"Most people's knowledge of police work comes from television and the movies, and the demands of drama rarely allow for an accurate portrayal of the life-and-death decisions so often made by the typical cop on the street. Klinger's book puts the reader in the cop's shoes, and indeed behind the trigger. For anyone interested in how things really happen, Into the Kill Zone is an excellent place to begin."
(National Review)


Review
"Klinger's book puts the reader in the cop's shoes...Into The Kill Zone is an excellent place to begin." (National Review Online, April 29, 2004)

"Readers will come away with a renewed appreciation for the difficulties police face every day on the streets." (Publishers Weekly Daily (online) April 22, 2004)

"accounts are incredibly intimate, ...result is a fascinating though slightly repetitive series of first-person narratives on a taboo topic. " (Houston Chronicle, May 21, 2004 by Lise Olsen)

"puts the reader in the cop's shoes, and indeed behind the trigger.." (National Review)


Review
“Into the Kill Zone is a startling and important book—a stark, no- holds-barred journey into the minds of the people who have made the ultimate decision. Klinger’s prose captures the adrenaline, emotion, and split-second decisions his subjects faced in the field. This is a must-read for anyone who has ever wondered about what it takes to face a life-and-death struggle and win.”
—Christopher Whitcomb, author, Cold Zero: Inside the F.B.I. Hostage Rescue Team

“David Klinger goes where no one has gone before, telling what really happens in the minds and bodies of men and women in combat. With compelling narrative and powerful detail, he shines a spotlight on the reality of violent conflict with a clarity and reality that makes most books on combat—fiction and nonfiction alike—seem like mindless pornography by comparison. Anyone who wants to know what it is really like to go into the kill zone should read this book. Police, military, and those who love them; military and police history readers; and readers of popular fiction should all read this book. Future depictions of combat should and will be held against the standard set by Into the Kill Zone.”
—Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, author, On Killing

“This book is a must-read for every police officer, police executive, and member of the general public who wants to know what it’s really like to shoot someone. From the gritty, piercingly painful opening to the haunting, solemn ending, Into the Kill Zone reads like a novel and is almost impossible to put down.”
—Daryl F. Gates, chief of Los Angeles Police Department, retired

“Into the Kill Zone is unlike anything else in print. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the oft-times violent world of law enforcement.”
—Robert D. Keppel, Ph.D., author, The Riverman and Signature Killers

“Written by a former police officer turned criminologist—himself once involved in a fatal shooting—Into the Kill Zone offers unique insights into the experiences of officers who have had to make split-second decisions about whether or not to use deadly force in the line of duty. Drawing on scores of firsthand accounts told by police officers, some of them still struggling to deal with the aftermath of shootings in which they have been involved, this gripping book will be of interest to a wide range of readers—from criminologists, social psychologists, and law-enforcement officers to sociolinguists, story analysts, and other humanists concerned with narrative as a basic sense-making strategy.”
—David Herman, professor of english, North Carolina State University

“Into the Kill Zone is one compelling book. It takes the reader inside the hearts and minds of America’s police officers as they face danger and grapple with the awesome power they possess to take human life.”
—Gil Kerlikowske, chief of police, Seattle Police Department

“This is a very special book. No one should presume to discuss police violence until they have read it and thought deeply about what it has to teach those of us who have been fortunate enough not to have faced the decision to use deadly force.”
—Rodney Stark, professor of sociology, University of Washington

“Nobody has ever before done what Klinger has accomplished in Into the Kill Zone. By presenting the most detailed and private thoughts of officers who have shot citizens, he has made a unique and major contribution to the literature on policing.”
—James J. Fyfe, Ph.D., deputy Commissioner of training, New York Police Department


Book Description
What's it like to have the legal sanction to shoot and kill? This compelling and often startling book answers this, and many other questions about the oft-times violent world inhabited by our nation's police officers. Written by a cop-turned university professor who interviewed scores of officers who have shot people in the course of their duties, Into the Kill Zone presents firsthand accounts of the role that deadly force plays in American police work. This brilliantly written book tells how novice officers are trained to think about and use the power they have over life and death, explains how cops live with the awesome responsibility that comes from the barrels of their guns, reports how officers often hold their fire when they clearly could have shot, presents hair-raising accounts of what it's like to be involved in shoot-outs, and details how shooting someone affects officers who pull the trigger. From academy training to post-shooting reactions, this book tells the compelling story of the role that extreme violence plays in the lives of America's cops.


Download Description
What's it like to have the legal sanction to shoot and kill? This compelling and often startling book answers this, and many other questions about the oft-times violent world inhabited by our nation's police officers. Written by a cop-turned university professor who interviewed scores of officers who have shot people in the course of their duties, Into the Kill Zone presents firsthand accounts of the role that deadly force plays in American police work. This brilliantly written book tells how novice officers are trained to think about and use the power they have over life and death, explains how cops live with the awesome responsibility that comes from the barrels of their guns, reports how officers often hold their fire when they clearly could have shot, presents hair-raising accounts of what it's like to be involved in shoot-outs, and details how shooting someone affects officers who pull the trigger. From academy training to post-shooting reactions, this book tells the compelling story of the role that extreme violence plays in the lives of America's cops.


From the Inside Flap
What’s it like to have official sanction to shoot and kill?  In this brilliantly written, controversial, and compelling book, author David Klinger—who himself shot and killed a suspect during his first year as an officer in the Los Angles Police Department—answers this and many other questions about what it’s like to live and work in the place where police officers have to make split-second decisions about life and death: The Kill Zone.

 Klinger, now a university professor, writes eloquently about what happens when police officers find themselves face-to-face with dangerous criminals, the excruciating decisions they have to make to shoot or to hold their fire, and how they deal with the consequences of their choices.

Writing with the narrative power of a Mailer, Capote, Chandler, or Hammett, Klinger presents the stories of other officers who have visited The Kill Zone to tell the reader what it’s like: the female cop who is overcome with remorse after shooting an assailant who turned out to be unarmed, the SWAT team member who has only one narrow shot at a robber holding two kids and their mother as human shields, the off-duty officer who engaged in a wild courthouse shoot-out with a man who looked just like his father, and many other intensely dramatic, beautifully told episodes that convey what officers experience before, during, and after gunfights.

Into the Kill Zone presents an original point of view about one of the most intriguing, controversial, and poorly understood aspects of American society. But most of all, it is a deeply moving, compulsively readable work of literary art.


From the Back Cover
“Into the Kill Zone is a startling and important book--a stark, no- holds-barred journey into the minds of the people who have made the ultimate decision. Klinger’s prose captures the adrenaline, emotion, and split-second decisions his subjects faced in the field. This is a must-read for anyone who has ever wondered about what it takes to face a life-and-death struggle and win.”--Christopher Whitcomb, author, Cold Zero: Inside the F.B.I. Hostage Rescue Team  “David Klinger goes where no one has gone before, telling what really happens in the minds and bodies of men and women in combat. With compelling narrative and powerful detail, he shines a spotlight on the reality of violent conflict with a clarity and reality that makes most books on combat--fiction and nonfiction alike--seem like mindless pornography by comparison. Anyone who wants to know what it is really like to go into the kill zone should read this book. Police, military, and those who love them; military and police history readers; and readers of popular fiction should all read this book. Future depictions of combat should and will be held against the standard set by Into the Kill Zone.”--Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, author, On Killing “Written by a former police officer turned criminologist--himself once involved in a fatal shooting--Into the Kill Zone offers unique insights into the experiences of officers who have had to make split-second decisions about whether or not to use deadly force in the line of duty. Drawing on scores of firsthand accounts told by police officers, some of them still struggling to deal with the aftermath of shootings in which they have been involved, this gripping book will be of interest to a wide range of readers--from criminologists, social psychologists, and law-enforcement officers to sociolinguists, story analysts, and other humanists concerned with narrative as a basic sense-making strategy.”--David Herman, professor of english, North Carolina State University “Into the Kill Zone is one compelling book. It takes the reader inside the hearts and minds of America’s police officers as they face danger and grapple with the awesome power they possess to take human life.”--Gil Kerlikowske, chief of police, Seattle Police Department


About the Author
David Klinger is a former police officer who teaches criminology and criminal justice at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. He is a highly regarded trainer and lecturer to police organizations across the country.  He has appeared on the Today show, Chris Matthews’ Hard Ball, Geraldo Rivera, and the History Channel.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

What's it like to have official sanction to shoot and kill? In this brilliantly written, controversial, and compelling book, author David Klinger -- who himself shot and killed a suspect during his first year as an officer in the Los Angeles Police Department -- answers this and many other questions about what it's like to live and work in the place where police officers have to make split-second decisions about life and death: The Kill Zone. Klinger, now a university professor, writes eloquently about what happens when police officers find themselves face-to-face with dangerous criminals, the excruciating decisions they have to make to shoot or to hold their fire, and how they deal with the consequences of their choices.

Writing with the narrative power of a Mailer, Capote, Chandler, or Hammett, Klinger presents the stories of other officers who have visited The Kill Zone to tell the reader what it's like: the female cop who is overcome with remorse after shooting an assailant who turned out to be unarmed, the SWAT team member who has only one narrow shot at a robber holding two kids and their mother as human shields, the off-duty officer who engaged in a wild courthouse shoot-out with a man who looked just like his father, and many other intensely dramatic, beautifully told episodes that convey what officers experience before, during, and after gunfights. Into the Kill Zone presents an original point of view about one of the most intriguing, controversial, and poorly understood aspects of American society. But most of all, it is a deeply moving, compulsively readable work of literary art.

SYNOPSIS

What’s it like to have official sanction to shoot and kill?  In this brilliantly written, controversial, and compelling book, author David Klinger—who himself shot and killed a suspect during his first year as an officer in the Los Angles Police Department—answers this and many other questions about what it’s like to live and work in the place where police officers have to make split-second decisions about life and death: The Kill Zone.

 Klinger, now a university professor, writes eloquently about what happens when police officers find themselves face-to-face with dangerous criminals, the excruciating decisions they have to make to shoot or to hold their fire, and how they deal with the consequences of their choices.

Writing with the narrative power of a Mailer, Capote, Chandler, or Hammett, Klinger presents the stories of other officers who have visited The Kill Zone to tell the reader what it’s like: the female cop who is overcome with remorse after shooting an assailant who turned out to be unarmed, the SWAT team member who has only one narrow shot at a robber holding two kids and their mother as human shields, the off-duty officer who engaged in a wild courthouse shoot-out with a man who looked just like his father, and many other intensely dramatic, beautifully told episodes that convey what officers experience before, during, and after gunfights.