There were two other officers watching the ladder. I'm fairly sure they helped the kids down. In an emergency, if it's on grass, snow, etc., wouldn't it be better to throw the kids out onto a mattress outside to cushion their landing and risk a broken limb rather than risk them being shot or witnessing their father being shot?
Not sure how likely it would be that a kid would've died falling from a second story window onto what appears to be snow-covered grass but sure, I suppose anything is possible.
