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I have listened to the tape rather than watched it. From this, I suspect I have an explanation for what happened:
The cop was clearly rattled after the 100+ MPH chase. He reasonably feared the occupants were armed and dangerous. Light was low, and his visibility of the fugitives was not good; the possibility of one of them drawing a weapon unseen was quite real.
The cop, in his hyped-up state, was less than clear in his enunciation of his wish that the fugitives (now lying down) remain there; his command “don’t GET UP!!” sounded more like “GET UP”, though listening calmly I can hear it either way.
The cop shot the guy when he started to rise, in his mind in direct defiance of command. In those circumstances the shooting would have made sense.
Having listened to the tape this is plausible. And the cop is a veteran with no history of shooting or violence of any kind on his record, which makes it seem less likely that he is just a trigger happy thug.
Before you flame me, please consider the difference between “explanation of” and “excuse for” what happened.
If my explanation is correct, the fault lies (mostly) in the officer being unable to clearly communicate in a stressful situation. They are specifically trained for this, since stressful situations are to be expected and the potential consequences are obvious. The officer should have been very clear in his commands, and he was not.
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