Yeah Well, I Carry a Gun.

I have a gun, Won’t that protect me? Yes and no. Having a gun is good insurance against a physical attack in your home or a dark parking lot but, you must take a few things under consideration. Having a gun in itself will do absolutely nothing if you don’t have it with you or the attacker knows you’re unaware of his impending attack. Otherwise, he’ll assume you’re an easy target and will instigate an attack.

From the attacker’s perspective, he’ll usually seek out the oblivious inattentive victim in a vulnerable position. An attacker wants an easy target that will offer the least resistance. He also wants to waste as little time as possible during his attack. With that being said, Let’s go through a scenario in a parking lot at night to see how having a gun can protect you, or fail you.

Susie is a 40 year old woman with two children. She’s a manager at a restaurant in strip mall and drives an older BMW. Susie has a concealed handgun permit and a 9mm Springfield handgun with a full magazine. Susie keeps the gun in her purse and sometimes under the seat of her car when she’s driving. She’s been to the firing range twice in the past year and a decent shot.

Susie’s shift ended at 9 PM and ready to get home after a hard day at work. She’s wondering if the kids had dinner and have gotten started on their homework. The parking lot is fairly well lit with the lot being at about half capacity. The weather is cool and the holidays are approaching. Susie puts on her sweater and heads out into the parking lot. She takes a quick glance around to check to see if there are any suspicious characters in the area.  All clear. Susie starts walking to her car while digging through her pockets for her keys. She then pulls out her cell phone to check for messages and is now about halfway to her car. Three texts from her son, she starts opening the texts when she feels her right arm being grabbed. Susie jerks away and drops her phone while her purse slides down her arm. She starts running but falls. As she struggles to get up, the attacker runs towards her and grabs the back of her sweater. Susie’s mind is now racing as she tries to keep hold of her purse. She tries to scream but she only manages to yell at the attacker to let her go.

The attacker is now on top her and has her in a bear hug and starts dragging her to a van only two spaces down from her car. Susie is now struggling to break free and manages to scream at the top of her lungs until the attacker covers her mouth. Susie next thought is that of her gun in her purse and hopes she didn’t leave it in her car again. Because of the sudden attack, Susie’s body has gone into the fight or flight mode. Her adrenaline is pulsing through her body causing her to get tunnel vision. Her fine motor movements are unresponsive and only her major muscles are responding. She’s trembling and her voice is muted.

In the panic, she manages to swing her arm and hit the attacker in the face. He loses his grip and she falls to the ground. Susie reaches for her purse to get her gun. The attacker is now agitated and moving toward her again as Susie digs through her purse for her gun. She can feel it but her scarf and other stuff is wrapped around it. She’s pulls it out and tries to grab it by the handle but instead yanks it out with the scarf wrapped around it. The scarf is covering the trigger guard preventing her finger from putting her finger on the trigger. She points the gun at the attacker anyway. The attacker kicks her hand and sends the gun flying away and slides under the next car. Susie now becomes a victim.

Where did Susie go wrong? First and foremost, Susie needed to change the entire routine from when she clocked out in the restaurant. First, she should have checked her phone messages and made return calls / text messages while she was still inside. Next, she should have made sure her weapon was easily accessible and her keys already in her hands as she walked out. In the parking lot, Susie should have been looking around for approaching subjects. Susie should have noted the blind spot behind the van and used car window reflections to check behind her. In other words, Susie should have been conscious of her surroundings. Once Susie broke free the first time was when she should have screamed and tried to run away by kicking, not trying to save her purse or tried to pull her gun.  If she would have made it to her car, she should have gotten in, have her gun at the ready, locked the doors and left. Not sit in the car to check messages or anything else.

Susie other failure is that she felt over confident because she carried a gun. Carrying a gun can help but Susie wasn’t proficient in using that gun. Drawing a gun on a victim must be second nature for it to be effective. Susie had only fired the gun twice in a years and it was not second nature for her to pull it out when it was needed most. Next, Susie had no regular place to keep her weapon. Your weapon MUST be placed in the same location every time so you know where it is at ALL times. Susie tossed her gun in her purse the way she tossed her lipstick in. Her gun was covered by the scarf she through in on top of it preventing a quick withdrawal.  Many people have better control of their cell phones than their guns and will quickly forget the last place they put their guns. Had Susie had the opportunity to fire her gun, because of physical condition, it’s very likely she would have missed the attacker even at close range.

If you own a gun, did any of Susie's mistakes apply to you?

Another problem that many people fail to understand is that saying they will shoot an attacker is very different when you’re in the position to kill another human being. Most normal people have a deep seated belief that killing someone is inherently wrong and can’t be undone once the trigger is pulled. Many people who say they don’t have a problem shooting someone, fail to realize that even though they were in the right to shoot, there are still many legal and ethical consequences that may linger for a long time. The case does NOT stop when the attacker has been neutralized, it’s just beginning.

Once a shooting case enters the legal system, it is no longer a clear cut self-defense or right and wrong issue but, a strictly legal issue. Just because you may FEEL it was self-defense or in a “stand your ground” situation, the victims defense (family) will make every effort possible to discredit you and punch holes in your version of the incident. Then there’s the human aspect. Even though the attacker may have been a criminal and a dirt bag, he still may have a family and even children. Finding out about those orphaned children and widow may add additional grief to your already stressful situation. You can count on them showing up in the court hearings. Will you be ready for that?

Another factor that people fail to understand is the unintentional effects a shooting may have during any shooting. Remember that a bullet will continue on it’s path if it doesn’t hit the target. That now stray bullet that was fired in self-defense may continue on to strike an unintended target like a passer-by or a Good Samaritan trying to help. Or, in a worst case scenario, in the case of Susie, could have had her own gun used against her when she was over powered.

So, Should you carry a gun? Yes, IF and I emphasize the IF,

1.       If you understand that you must be proficient is using that gun. Train with it regularly. As any athlete, martial artist, soldier will tell you, it takes 800 to 1000 repetitions before an action becomes second nature. Learn to draw your weapon, fire your weapon, clean your weapon, and where it is at all times.

2.       If you become familiar with the laws regarding gun use in self-defense, stand your ground situations.

3.       If you learn about how crimes are perpetrated. The more you know about how crimes are committed, the better position you are to defend yourself. Find a weapons self-defense course that covers tactics. Find out if the course covers “what if scenarios” and legal aspects. Many courses only teach you how to shoot some dirt bag.

4.       If you keep in mind the after effects of any shooting you may be involved in. The consequences can sometimes be worse than having something stolen from your house at night. Are you ready to live with the consequences?

5.       If you are willing to change your mentality. As I emphasize in my presentations, we live in different world. The times have changed and so, you must too, lest you become a victim. While it may not be “convenient” to carry a gun or have to learn new laws and procedures, it will keep you from becoming a victim. Most people will learn more about a new cell phone and the procedures for using it than they will for carrying a gun that could save their lives or spare then from some horrendous act against them.

Today’s society places more value on convenience than security. What do you value more?