I find this refreshing.  What I do not find refreshing are the actions he takes immediately after the incident.   At one point he states :   “Don’t worry, my training took over, I called my parents and let them know what had happened, then I called the medics etc”.

HIS TRAINING TOOK OVER ???    Who in the world “TRAINED” him to call Mommy and Daddy before of emergency personal ?

Imagine that you are on the shooting range.  (Shooting ranges are usually rural)  You are shot and bleeding!  You do not really know how badly you are injured!  Why under those circumstance would you call someone who can do nothing for you?  His parents did not need to know anything at this point.   The medics and other first responders however did.

Critical incidents (auto crashes, injuries, attacks, etc)  are always:  Tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving.  You have no way of knowing what will happen next or when it may happen.  Calling anyone who can do nothing to resolve your problem wastes precious time and diverts your attention from where it needs to be.

If you are involved in a critical incident:  Call Emergency Personnel.  PERIOD! Contact  people who can render aid to your immediate situation and stay on the line with the 911 call taker until help arrives.

You will have plenty of time later to post on Face Book or Twitter.

Of near equal value is your ATTITUDE.  Look around you the next time you find yourself in a public setting.  Are the people aware?  Probably not, but we have been over that already.  But this time look at the attitudes.

Clint Smith once said “If you look like food, you will be eaten”.  He is so right.

Criminals are predators.  They notice things like posture, demeanor, focus, alertness, and other indicators that help them select the easier prey.   They will then attack without mercy, at the first opportunity.

If however, the criminal/predator sees strength and resolve; they will look elsewhere.

To think for even one second that the criminal/predator cannot tell the difference is an exercise in foolishness.

It is nearly impossible to survive an ambush.  In short , if you are caught unaware,  you will most likely lose.  All the guns, knives and karate in the world are useless if you don’t recognize the need to employ them in time.

Fate favors the prepared mind.   And part of that preparedness involves paying attention to whats happening around you in real time.

When was the last time you really looked around yourself and examined what the other people , traffic , dogs , cats or what ever were doing.

Look for what is out of place.  Why is one man wearing tattered clothes when everyone else is in a suit?  Why is that strange looking character walking through the parking lot looking in the vehicles?  Why did three men move to my side of the street when they saw me?

Paying attention to the details will go a long way toward  your primary goal in self defense:  AVOIDANCE

Which ever task you choose is better accomplished with your mind uncluttered with irrelevancies.   Such as explaining your location and problems to someone who can do nothing to improve your immediate situation.

If you can, seek cover or relocate ASAP.  If you must,  engage your attacker.

Guns, knives, and other weapons work well for defensive purposes.   During a crisis have something useful in your hands.

Only after the crisis has been resolved and your safety is assured should you even think of reaching for your cell phone.  And even then take a second look at  what is happening around you before you focus your attention elsewhere.

Then dial 911,  and as we learned last week:  LOCATION

For now however let’s focus on location.  Picture this,  you and your significant other are out for an evening on the town.  Something happens, lets say the building across the street is on fire.  Or you crashed your car.  Perhaps you just survived an attack.           You dial 911!

Can you articulate to the 911 call taker where you are?

The exact address is useful, but not always necessary.  And let’s face it,  no one knows the address of their favorite restaurant, gas station, etc.  But information such as:  I’m across the road from the Burnt Beef  Steak House on Wayne Street will get work.

People put a lot effort into telling us “What” is happening.  That can wait.  The first thing we in public safety want to hear is “WHERE”.   Remember this, it is important.  Know where you are and be able to articulate that to the 911 call taker.

That way if the connection is broken we can still find you.

We can  figure out “What” later.

Under no circumstances should you use hand loaded or reloaded cartridges for defensive use.  The reasons for this are:

Contrary to popular belief you cannot improve on what is commercially available.  ie: if your .38spl is not powerfull enough, get a .357mag.  That 9mm not enough for you?  Get a 40cal.  Etc.

And no, you will not be able to out shoot factory ammo in a dynamic situation.  Therefore the theoretic accuracy advantage claims are bogus.

Opposing council may well ask: “Was there nothing on the market that was nasty enough for you?   So you had to make something more awful !!”

The list is a long one.

Using hand loads will gain you nothing tactically.   But it will arm the other teams lawyer with more ammo to use against you.

Mistake Number 2:

Your language.  We are all well aware that using ethnic slurs in our normal conversations is a bad idea. It is ill mannered at best.  And if you ever get in a conflict with a person of (fill in the blank) ethnic origin such habits will come back to haunt you. As they should. Yet we constantly refer to our firearms as “my weapon”.  It is a pistol, handgun, shotgun,rifle etc.  Call it what it is.  The best way to survive the legal aftermath of your defensive actions is to prepare in advance.  Lay the ground work for your attoney.  Make it easier for him/her to present you to the legal authorities as the responsible citizen you are. To give apposing council something something to use against you is just plain silly at best. At worst?  Legaly damaging, to say the least. Let’s be honest.  No matter how proper your defesive actions were.  There will be an investigation by the legal athourities.  This is the way it should be.   Refering to your defensive firearm as your “weapon” may be fine for the ”Machismo Impaired”.  But the informed, responsible armed citizen should know better.

1. They do not receive documented training. This is of extreme importance.
If you are ever involved in a defensive shooting you will quickly know exactly what I mean. If you have documented training your attorney will use it to paint a picture of you as a responsible person striving to do the right thing.

If you do not have anything to show for training? Apposing council will use your lack of training against you.

You may joke all you want about ”better to be tried by twelve than buried by six”.   But the fact remains that proper training will help you to survive not only the critical incident, but it will help you survive the inevitable legal aftermath.

No matter how you choose to arm yourself, firearm, knife or whatever you owe it to yourself and your family to make the effort to get trained.

Again, it will help you survive on the street and in court.

Think of it as winning TWICE.

Mistake 2. coming soon