This is further supported by Stockley's partner being the officer who initially reported seeing the firearm rather than Stockley prior to the chase, and that the wounds suffered by the deceased are consistent with him reaching towards where the firearm was located.And further: Smith need not have even actually grabbed the firearm at the time he was shot. The officer merely needed reasonable belief that Smith was reaching for a firearm in order to justify the use of deadly force in self-defense (n.b. and that reasonable-belief standard is also why the "planted gun" theory has little merit; there was no need for the existence of an actual firearm, in order for the use of deadly force to be justified).