This is why I carry on my person, not mounted in my truck

https://arizonadailyindependent.com...ed-by-target-of-crime-at-phoenix-gas-station/

"Frazier approached the man with a gun and attempted to rob him. The man went back to his vehicle grabbed a gun and shot Frazier. The man called police to report the incident."


Leaving his gun in his vehicle almost cost him his life.

 

in Texas, we do both.

In Houston, you are foolish not to.

 

Before you carry a firearm, determine if your state allows concealed carry or carrying a firearm inside the passenger compartment of your vehicle. Each state is different, find out first or you might wind up in jail. Louisiana allows concealed carry, open carry, and deems your vehicle is an extension of your home so a firearm may be carried anywhere in the vehicle. Not all states are the same as Louisiana, especially some New England states which will carry a heavy jail sentence for concealing a firearm in your own vehicle. Remember, if you defend yourself and have to shoot someone who you feel is threatening your life or another persons life, you will be charged "Regardless". The authorities will investigate and determine if you were justified in shooting. I don't know about Texas today. I carried a concealed permit in Texas when I lived there. The laws at that time allowed the taking of a human life over property. Personally I would not take anyone's life over property. So be aware of the laws in your state.

 

and,

if you are going to carry, you'd better be practicing at least once per month.

when you encounter:
You will not rise to your expectations
you will fall to your level of training.

 

AZ is a Constitutional Carry state and no permit is needed for open or concealed. I prefer to conceal in order to keep the element of surprise and not make myself a target. I maintain my permit though for reciprocity with other states when traveling. I will always maintain that a vehicle makes for a poor holster for many reasons.

 

In CT our pistol permits are carry permits, but there are restricted locations where carry is not allowed. When a firearm is left in a car in needs be in a safe, locked fully enclosed trunk or locked glove box. Locked toolboxes are acceptable as long as they are secured to vehicle.

Also...I don't believe we have reciprocity with any state, so there's that.

 

I carry appendix whenever I leave the house and have a seat mounted holster in the pick up. South Austin ain't what it used to be.

 

I only carry full semi-auto assault pistols with 20 mag clips.

 

You might be under armed in SA.

 

Haha. I stay out of the city.

 

My kids thought I was a overprotective weirdo...until they got out in the "wild".

now they know and understand why I be that way.


be the sheepdog.

 

I used to wonder if it was completely necessary to carry when I walked the dog. Then a neighbor got chased by a homeless guy here in South ATX. Then I went for a walk through the local greenbelt and found homeless encampments just about everywhere I explored. Now I carry everywhere and we're moving to Williamson County this summer. Austin is turning into a wasteland.

 

when we vacationed in Austin....we used to take the kids to zilcher park....i hear it's bad now.

 

I keep all my clips on my potato chip bags.

 

Don’t know the details of that case, but some will argue that if you can go back to your vehicle for your gun then you could have also left the situation.

I know every situation is different, but if you can get away without deadly force but decide to use it anyway, you will most likely be charged or held accountable in civil court.

I am not against guns or concealed carry. Just saying be careful. I’ve also always been trained not to pull a gun unless ready to use it because it will just escalate the situation. There’s a lot of people who think they are in an action movie and don’t consider consequences.

 

good words.

in TX, our License to Carry is a defense to civil suits. that alone is worth the $.

 

tag & release?

 

Zilker is usually fine aside from the huge crowds of people and trash. The parks people keep the homeless from living there because it's a tourist hot spot.

 

My wife felt the same way until we (myself, wife and son) were witness to two guys (one on meth) going at it not even 8' from us while eating breakfast one morning. Wife (a nurse) helped to corral everyone else out of the restaurant while I helped to restrain the guy who started it until police got there. I did *NOT* have my CCW on me that day.

That was the LAST day I was without it. In discussions w/LEO afterwards, they basically all but asked me to carry (saying "We feel better knowing guys like you are out there") and said, without explicitly saying it, that I'd have been justified in drawing a bead on the guy (he had a pair of scissors in his hand and was going after the other guy - the reason I jumped in to help restrain him), if not more.

 

It got Californianized

 

I don’t agree with this sentiment 100%. Aiming a gun at someone already aiming a gun at you puts you in greater danger than handing over your money to a lowlife thief. The thief is interested in taking your money, not taking your life. I am glad the thief did not win, but that was a big gamble the victim took. I would have handed over my money even if I was carrying unless I saw an opportunity where I was convinced I would win. I want to believe this victim did that; maybe he told the thief he would get the money from his car and the victim was able to get behind cover to fire from there, convinced if the lowlife thief shot back, his line of fire was not into a populated area. These are details the media should cover, not simply the act that the victim shot a bad guy.

 

Ok - bumping an older thread.

The above post makes one huge assumption - that your dealing with a “logical” person/criminal.

Someone who will pull a gun and rob strangers rarely is “logical” - logic would lead them to target specific people with a guarantee of a “reward” for their actions. Mugging strangers is far from a guarantee - maybe the victim has zip on them, maybe they are carrying - it’s literally a game of chance and logical people don’t gamble with their life.

No - your dealing with someone who is in a mentally altered state here - and trying to reason with crazy is crazy in itself. Better to be prepared than leaving an obituary that reads “he was a very logical person who tried to reason with everyone” in my mind. Of course logic keeps you out of the “rougher” areas of town - but sometimes you can’t control who comes into the “safe zones”.

I’m far from a proponent of acting out some Wild West fantasy - but I also realize that just telling people “guns are bad” won’t do anything to stop their criminal use. Carry responsibly and safely if you choose - or hope someone near you is when the need arises.

 

We had a story here of a Dad getting shot just for costing the car jacker extra time trying to tell them he didn't want to let his car go with his toddler in a car seat in back. I've seen stories of people shot for not giving things up fast enough. We have a college up in the hood suburban kids like to go to because they think it's urban hip or something to go to class in the middle of a neighborhood run by drug dealers. One of them was returning from Holiday break. Car jacker ran up behind him and grabbed him Rather than just pulling the gun on him and demanding the car. Triggered the kid's fight or flight instinct, getting him shot To death. Later came out the victim was a devout anti cop campus Socialist, the sort who probably would have gladly handed his keys and bank card over and apologized to the guy for income inequality forcing him to steal if he weren't caught off guard from behind. To give you an idea of how compliant he'd have been if it went differently, His family was actually so hard core in their pro criminal beliefs they came out and said he wouldn't have wanted his killer to catch too much time.

Such things have changed my calculus.

These are un disciplined street thugs, many in their teens, hearts racing, adrenaline pumping, often finger on the trigger, with it in the back of their mind that they could get interrupted by a police response if you delay them for an extra few seconds. Yes, they just want your stuff and tactically you have to be careful about when/how to resist. But it is a mistake to assume you can toss them your wallet and car keys and be OK. It's not a
Zero sum game, sometimes you may need to make a quick decision to fight back even against bad odds because it's a question of having a very slim chance vs no chance of surviving.

Yes, They would rather just have your stuff. But taking your life is a question of whether anything happens in the transaction to make them feel even mildly inconvenienced. Not some momentous choice they go into it hoping not to have to make. Not moving fast enough, trying to tell them you need a sec to get your 2 year old out. You reach for your seatbelt and they decide you may be armed. They're doped up or in withdrawals trying to get your car to go get a fix and the voice in their head suddenly tells tells them to pull the trigger just because they feel like it.

I'm not saying I look at every attempted mugging as a chance to practice my draw and try to replicate that "Collateral" transition drill. Just that you can't assume you'll be OK if you give up your stuff. That rests on making far too many dangerous assumptions. And no, It's not about killing to keep your stuff.

 

I carry but personally feel apprehensive about shooting due to knowing how judges are, and that you’re still going to jail and going to court and possibly a civil trial after. If I ended up in some weird situation that needed me to protect my life or my family where I couldn’t escape the situation, then yeah I’m pulling my weapon, but avoidance and escape are my first two options in that order. Might sound cowardly, but this is about protecting your life and your loved ones and avoidance is best, then escape. We used to go mall walking in the morning but too many crazies started showing up so we stopped. That’s just how I do things, some like to strap on a gun and go into clearly high-danger areas just because they know they have a gun on them. I think that’s taking an unnecessary risk.

 

If you're gonna carry, train.....

Be fast like Jim.

About 1.3sec for 3 shots(blanks I know)

More about the man.

 

The first thing to understand is that druggies, thugs, low-life, criminals whatever have absolute ZERO regard for human life. They will kill you for no reason whatsoever.

Situational awareness is the best thing you can have and practice. It is impossible to stay is condition red or orange all the time but keeping your head on a swivel and being aware that bad stuff can happen anywhere and anytime is important. If something doesn't look right or trouble breaks out I am outa there. Having a wife that understands these things and is also aware and able to watch my back is a great thing.

Shooting and self-defense are perishable skills and if you do not practice you loose them. I try to take at least one advanced course a year and I practice regularly. I do not expect to be John Wick but you sink to your level of training vs rising to meet the threat.

You can do everything right and still get a George Soros anti gun prosecutor or a jury that will want to throw you under the bus.

Here is a short list type essay I wrote about 12 years ago. It is a bit of a read but worth it and still applicable.

10 Things Non Gun People Should Know About Weapons Permit Holders

1. We don’t carry firearms so that we can ignore other basics of personal safety. Every permit holder that I know realizes that almost all dangerous situations can be avoided by vigilance, alertness and by simply making wise choices about where one goes and what one does. We don’t walk down dark alleys. We lock our cars. We don’t get intoxicated in public or hang out around people who do. We park our cars in well lighted spots and don’t hang out in bad parts of town where we have no business. A gun is our last resort, not our first.

2. We don’t think we are cops, spies, or superheros. We aren’t hoping that somebody tries to rob the convenience store while we are there so we can shoot a criminal. We don’t take it upon ourselves to get involved in situations that are better handled by a 911 call or by simply standing by and being a good witness. We don’t believe our guns give us any authority over our fellow citizens. We also aren't here to be your unpaid volunteer bodyguard. We'll be glad to tell you where we trained and point you to some good gun shops if you feel you want to take this kind of responsibility for your personal safety. Except for extraordinary circumstances your business is your business, don't expect us to help you out of situations you could have avoided.

3. We are LESS likely, not more likely, to be involved in fights or “rage” incidents than the general public. We recognize, better than many unarmed citizens, that we are responsible for our actions. We take the responsibility of carrying a firearm very seriously. We know that loss of temper, getting into fights or angrily confronting someone after a traffic incident could easily escalate into a dangerous situation. We are more likely to go out of our way to avoid these situations. We don’t pull our guns to settle arguments or to attempt to threaten people into doing what we want.

4. We are responsible gun owners. We secure our firearms so that children and other unauthorized people cannot access them. Most of us have invested in safes, cases and lock boxes as well as other security measures to keep our firearms secure. Many of us belong to various organizations that promote firearms safety and ownership.

5. Guns are not unsafe or unpredictable. Modern firearms are well made precision instruments. Pieces do not simply break off causing them to fire. A hot day will not set them off. Most modern firearms will not discharge even if dropped. There is no reason to be afraid of a gun simply lying on a table or in a holster. It is not going to discharge on its own.

6. We do not believe in the concept of “accidental discharges”. There are no accidental discharges only negligent discharges or intentional discharges. We take responsibility for our actions and have learned how to safely handle firearms. Any case you have ever heard of about a gun “going off” was the result of negligence on somebody’s part. Our recognition of our responsibility and familiarity with firearms makes us among the safest firearms owners in America.

7. Permit holders do their best to keep our concealed weapons exactly that: concealed. However, there are times with an observant fellow citizen may spot our firearm or the print of our firearm under our clothes. We are very cognizant that concerns about terrorism and crime are in the forefront of the minds of most citizens. We also realize that our society does much to condition our fellow citizens to have sometimes irrational fears about firearms. We would encourage citizens who do happen to spot someone carrying a firearm to use good judgment and clear thinking if they feel to need to take action. Please recognize that it’s very uncommon for a criminal to use a holster. However, if you feel the need to report having spotted a firearm we would ask that you please be specific and detailed in your call to the police or in your report to a store manager or private security. Please don’t generalize or sensationalize what you observed. Comments like “there’s a guy running around in the store with a gun” or even simply “I saw a man with a gun in the store” could possibly cause a misunderstanding as to the true nature of the incident.

8. The fact that we carry a firearm to any given place does not mean that we believe that place to be inherently unsafe. If we believe a place to be unsafe, most of us would avoid that place all together if possible. However, we recognize that trouble could occur at any place and at any time. Criminals do not observe “gun free zones”. If trouble does come, we do not want the only armed persons to be perpetrators. Therefore, we don't usually make a determination about whether or not to carry at any given time based on "how safe" we think a location is.

9. Concealed weapon permit holders are an asset to the public in times of trouble. The fact that most permit holders have the good judgment to stay out of situations better handled by a 911 call or by simply being a careful and vigilant witness does not mean that we would fail to act in situations where the use of deadly force is appropriate to save lives. Review of high profile public shooting incidents shows that when killers are confronted by armed resistance they tend to either break off the attack and flee or choose to end their own life. Lives are saved when resistance engages a violent criminal. Lives are lost when the criminal can do as he pleases.

10. The fact that criminals know that some of the population may be armed at any given time helps to deter violence against all citizens. Permit holders don’t believe that every person should necessarily be armed. We recognize that some people may not be temperamentally suited to carry a firearm or simply may wish not to for personal reasons. However we do encourage you to respect our right to arm ourselves. Even if you choose not to carry a firearm yourself please oppose measures to limit the ability of law abiding citizens to be armed. As mentioned before: criminals do not observe “gun free zones”. Help by not supporting laws that require citizens to be unarmed victims.

 

Obvious in this case, since the thief allowed him to go to his vehicle and get his gun!

I used to carry, but quit a long time ago. I stopped because I actually thought about it. Any perp is going to get the drop on me unless I'm preemptive. If they get the drop on me and *then* I go for a gun, they are going to shoot me... unless they really didn't want to hurt me in the first place, but rather wanted to rob me. Am I going to get in a gun battle... starting at a disadvantage!... over protecting my stuff? Am I going to kill somebody that is trying to rob me? Nope, I'd rather not. If they want it that bad, they can have it.

So... do I want to be preemptive? Pull my gun out and point it at people when if there is a chance they might be threatening? That would be insane.

I much prefer being defenseless. When someone is approaches me I look them in the eye and smile and act friendly... regardless of how they look or how they are acting. If you have a non-threatening attitude yourself, and act with respect and without fear, then potential perps are unlikely to target you as prey. And lest you think I avoid unsavory characters/areas, I don't at all. Nobody has robbed me and I'm not a super badass, that's for sure.