3 Lives Saved by CCW Permit Holders (in March)
A gentle reminder on the importance of “bearing” those arms…
It’s human nature, and a human failing: Sometimes we just don’t want to be bothered latching our seatbelts (because we’re just going up the driveway to get our mail), and sometimes we don’t feel like strapping on our EDC rig (because we’re just going to the store for some milk). But every now and then, it’s good to be reminded that getting a gun, the training to use it, the accessories to keep it safe, and the license to carry it concealed is a waste of time and effort unless we make use of that God-given right. Here are three stories of armed citizens with concealed-carry permits saving their own lives, and the lives of others, thanks to remembering that the Second Amendment protects the right to “bear” just as strongly as it does to “keep.”
1: LetGo? Not without a fight…
It seems the junkies of the world have gotten bored with stealing packages, and have taken to sites like “letgo” to find honest folks to rob in person. Case in point? This 26-year-old Milwaukee man and his 17-year-old girlfriend. Using a fake name, they contacted a woman who wanted to sell a laptop and watch, and then planned to rob her of her goods and whatever else she happened to have on her…and they decided to use a gun to do this. There was only one problem: Their victim had a gun, too, and she knew how to use it. In reasonable fear for her life, she shot the young woman who was attempting to rob her at gunpoint. Now the 26-year-old boyfriend is being charged with murder, since his girlfriend’s death happened as part of their felonious plan. The anonymous victim is no doubt shaken to the core, but she’s still alive…because of her quick thinking and her CCW.
2. “For no reason!”
This one’s a little different, in that the concealed-weapons permit holder’s actions aren’t as clear-cut as the story above, but there’s still a valuable lesson for the rest of us. It started when a young man saw another man on a bicycle, and thought, “I need his stuff more than he does.” He knocked the bicycle rider down, and stole the handgun that the victim was open carrying. Unable to retrieve it from its holster (hooray for retention holsters, by the way!), he ran away…only to come back in an attempt to get the victim’s wallet and phone. It was at that point the victim shot and wounded the robber. What’s interesting here is that when law enforcement initially responded to the scene, the robber tried to claim that he’d been shot “for no reason.” It wasn’t until he was told that there were surveillance cameras that caught exactly why he’d been shot that he changed his tune.
Because the victim shot when the robber had returned and only seemed to be after his possessions, said victim spent a couple of days in the county jail before prosecutors decided not to charge him. (Be that as it may, I can’t say that I entirely fault the armed defender…after all, his first encounter ended with him having been disarmed, and he had every reason to believe that the robber was simply going to assault him again.) However, since he was open carrying and the first thing the robber went for was that gun, this incident does add credence to the “open carry is a temptation for criminals” argument.
3. Why do they even bother in Texas?
Last, but not least, we have this story from the Lone Star State. Why criminals in Texas think that armed robberies are ever going to be a good idea, I don’t know. I mean, there’s “dumb,” “damned dumb,” and “tried to hold up a Texas liquor store” dumb. That’s why nobody should be surprised to learn that when these two Mensa members decided to make some quick cash, they headed to a store that’s probably the third-most-likely to feature counter jockeys who pack heat. (The first two would be the Texas gun store, and the Texas pawn shop, followed by the Texas quilting circle at #4.) They shot at the clerk and missed; he shot back and didn’t. The one he hit died shortly thereafter, and the one who got away was caught by law enforcement swiftly. Texas criminals, maybe you might want to think about choosing a safer line of work, like, say, fishing for Alaskan king crabs or teaching tigers to sit and stay.
Here’s the crucial point: Although each of the above examples is anecdotal evidence that guns save lives, consider the fact that these are the ones that actually make the news. Although the figures are fuzzy, it’s estimated that up to 97% of armed citizen incidents don’t involve a shot being fired at all. In those cases, the citizen may choose not to contact the police–no harm, no foul–and therefore you’ll never hear about it unless you were there. And if you were…well, aren’t you glad you had a gun and a permit to carry it concealed?
As far as the open carry case it is just same argument that someone who pays in cash is tempting robbers. The open carry victim had every right to shoot the robber as once he got the firearm, convince me the robber would not have shot he victim with the now stolen handgun!.
Drawing from concealed while already under the gun. How fast are you? Fast enough not to get shot? I think not. https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/949109023688634368/pu/vid/1280×720/04WCi3g3_pmAtBgk.mp4
Great article except for one exception.
From article: “‘open carry is a temptation for criminals’ argument.”
Yes, it’s an argument, but an illogical argument. Just as some criminals have attempted to rob/attack gun stores and police stations full of…well…open-carrying citizens and police. It’s not a problem of “temptation” but simply some criminals are so dumb or crazy it doesn’t matter who they rob or attack. How do we know attackers would NOT have attacked that person if they were conceal-carrying? We simply can’t know and these (useless) “debates” among the pro-2A crowd simply divides us….and division only helps the anti-freedom / anti-life crowd.
How about this: let people CHOOSE to open carry, conceal carry, or not carry at all. Freedom and it’s fantastic byproduct of personal choice….what a novel idea!
OK, I’m done ranting. Again, good article (just that one tiny exception, lol)
😉
Agreed that there’s no point in the whole “circular firing squad” that we gun guys get into sometimes when we’re bored! (Now there’s an article topic if ever I heard one…)
lol – write it!!
I just might…
It is frequently said that if you wear certain clothes like a fanny pack or photographer’s vest or whatever then “everybody knows” you’re carrying a weapon. Similarly this or that fashion choice is an indication to “shoot me first.” I am not saying I don’t believe any of that but I would like someone to collect some evidence.
I live in Alabama where Summer heat will just about melt a concealed weapon, so I’ve carried a Kahr 9mm in a butt pack for years now. Before it gets so hots that lizards wear bandanas to keep the sweat out of their eyes I frequently wear a photographers’ vest and no one has shot me yet. I’ve never even read of someone being attacked bec@use of what they’re wearing. I’m very skeptical of this bit of “street knowledge.”.
None of them sound to bright to me.
Let’s be clear and sensible here. Nowhere in the 2A does it say “permit” and I’m really tired of reading articles who point out that the victim had a CCW permit like that’s a blessing from God that you “may” defend your life. To deny yourself the ability to carry a gun to defend yourself because the ones that make that rule (who are armed themselves) say you can’t, is the highest height of stupidity. Diane Feinstein said it best to reflect gun grabbers idiocy when she said, while discussing her CCW permit,. and I quote “One day the American people will know their place, and they will stop thinking they deserve the same privileges as us.” while discussing her CCW permit. It explains everything.
can you source that quote? I’ve seen it other places too, but can’t verify it.
Open carry is an invitation to just get shot by the criminal “before” they rob you….however open carry is still better than no carry…
Most people to who choose to carry concealed while riding a bike are deluding themselves if they think the weapon will remain concealed while in motion. I would go further and say don’t bother carrying while distracted by riding a bike, playing tennis, doing handstands or a bench press in public if you don’t have awareness of what’s going on around you. That includes the cell phones and earbuds. The guy on the bike was lucky I’m confident he has went over and over in his head what he could have done differently while sitting in the jail cell.
Must agree with Brian that a lot of EDC weapons come out of concealment under common situations, so situational awareness might induce you to not carry. Also the author’s opening statement mentions the times when someone might decide not to carry. Look at it from the reasons behind the ‘ED’ in EDC. Every time you don’t carry, you increase the odds that you’ll “need and not have” rather than the preferred “have and not need.”
For a year in Central America, I carried a Beretta M9 inside my belt, totally concealed by the untucked square-bottomed shirt (Guayabaras) that everybody wore, or on a few occasions, a formal jacket or chilly weather jacket. Nobody ever noticed. Here in the U.S. that garb doesn’t cut it, so I carry a small .22 auto in my front pocket. It doesn’t “print” and nobody has ever given it a second glance. Less firepower, sure, but it lets me keep the “every day” in EDC.
Sometimes you can’t. A few years to go I had to return to may car a half mile away when they were wanding entrants at the door of the hockey arena. Oh well…
In the news: So this guy had his gun on him and was walking down the street with his wife. Bad guy walked up to them and pulled out a gun. The guy with his wife, pulled out his gun too and the bad guy shot and killed him. So just because you have a gun, doesn’t mean you are invincible. The other guy’s gun was already out. Although the good guy did shoot the bad guy, the good guy died and the bad guy ran off.
This (drawing while already at gunpoint) is what I don’t understand about the first example. The robbers already had the lady at gunpoint, but she was somehow able to get to HER gun and fire before the criminal pulled the trigger? I’d be curious to know how that went down…
-Ok, I clicked on the link in the story:
“After Manney entered the woman’s vehicle, she pointed the handgun she got from Gates at the victim and announced the robbery. The two began to struggle over the gun before Manney exited the vehicle while shooting at the woman.
The woman, a concealed-carry permit holder, then retrieved her own firearm and shot Manney multiple times, according to the complaint.”
So the thief had left the car, and was running away, but the victim got out and shot her? Seems like at that point it would have been easier to just drive away.
#2 “for No Reason” is why you should never open carry.