Thoughts/rant

[kwo51]

BikerRN I think your agencey has little concern for the people that pay it wages.I think all persons have the inate duty to prevent a mortal incounter to a fellow citizen. Would you not want me to protect your family if the time came. I could not stand by and watch another human beat to death even if it was Danny Rollings.I could humanly dispose of him.He did kill a member of my extended family.Just my opinion.

[grizlybear45]

good job glock fan. each of us will have to make our decisions when we are in a situation. not allof us will do the same thing. it would be nice if there was a clear set of engagement rules nationwide to follow but there's not. we have to do what we do and live with it the best we can do. good to all whom face this situation.

[Memphis]

WOW! It seems my opinion changed after every reply. I don't like the frequent "LEO" usage though. I think anyone that can be identified positively as a victim should be defended without question. They do not have to be LEO or military or a priest for that matter.

I think one thing that has been missed in this thread is that when you choose to defend someone else you can ALWAYS make a mistake. I didn't see the video but, is it possible that she was stabbing him earlier? Is it possible that the LEO you choose to defend is a BG in sheeps clothing? Is it possible that your round will seemingly break the space time continuem and hit someone else? Basically, YES!

All these things ARE possible and the simple fact is, you're right. Ultimately, whether you choose to defend someone else or you choose not too, you made a decision to act one way or the other. Please don't judge yourself or others. At least you chose.

[Scarecrow]

first off I have to say to Glock Fan that you get a lot of respect points from me for that.

it is really hard to say what "should" be done. well in the case of the older lady getting mugged by a bunch of punk kids I think it is safe to assume who is who. but just stumbling upon a situation sometimes it can be really hard to tell who is who. in my ccw class we were told a story of a man who came up on a man on top of a woman in an alleyway somewhere and the woman was screaming for help. the man thinking that was an obvious rape pulled out his gun and shot the man who was on top of the woman. as it turns out the man who was shot was an undercover officer trying to restrain a prostitute.

[Glock Fan]

I'm glad that the old lady got her money back. She would have been SOL if the punk kids got away with the loot.

As for the LEO assistance situation, my friend and I were talking after the incident. It took a while for the subject to come up, but eventually we talked about what first came to mind when we saw the cuffed officer. Both of us had similar thoughts in which we thought it was a bf/gf relationship and they were doing some kinky stuff. :o Glad we were able to help out in that situation as well.

Good point about the UC LEO arresting the prostitute. I'll be sure to use that example in my next firearms class. I always stress that folks should be very cautious before acting in a situation that the walk up on. I tell folks that unless they're positively sure of the situation, be very cautious in acting. It's possible that they may shoot the wrong person.


gf

[GregRN]

Whether you agree or not, BikerRN makes some good points. It will be extremely expensive to defend your actions. Probably enough to endanger your family's welfare. As far as what I would do in any situation, I don't know. I think it was Mike Tyson who said, "Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." The decision I will make in the situation will be the one that allows me to sleep at night. But thanks, BikerRN. Too many people in the forums want to boast about how they will take care of the BG. Refreshing to have a thoughtful debate take place without the macho BS.

[RMcLeod21]

Originally Posted by M50 Guy

A few years ago there was an incident in California where some nutcase was running around inside a supermarket with a sword hacking up people. If my wife or kids were in that store and were hurt, and I found out later that there was an armed off duty federal agent that ran for the exit because he was worried about the financial aspects of intervening I think I would be extremely upset....I'm no hero, I just don't think I could live with myself if I had the means to end something like that and decided not to based on a possible civil suit later. Some things are more important than money.

On the flip side.....if I were in a bank and it was being held up..and nobody was hurt yet, I could kind of rationalize that the robber would likely just take the money and leave so I would be ok with running out the door.

+1 I totally agree!

[RDW]

As a past LEO, and a present CCW holder I can thank the Lord that I have never had to make that decision. When I was at the S.O. we were told that we were technically never "off duty" and were accountable for our actions 24-7.In other words we were to treat every situation as if we were on the clock.
Now, as a private citizen I have a whole different mind set. I like to think that I would do the right thing, but my idea of the right thing may be different from the man on my left and right. Since I have had my CCW license I can honestly say I have never pulled my weapon, or been in a situation where I thought it might become necessary. We will each have to wrestle our own demons if put into that situation, both before and after.