Too Small a Target

I'm usually a great supporter of the police, however we've awakened to very disturbing news this morning. A father who was hyped up on drugs allegdly was using his baby as a shield. It didn't work. The police seem to have killed the baby, too. Now, admittedly I haven't yet heard the details regarding this incident, but I'm trying to justify in my head, why there could not have been a sniper used to take this man down without shooting his baby. I don't get it.