Episode 24 with Jeff Street

Introduction- Rob- We’re back with episode 24 of Self-Defense Gun Stories.  I’m Rob Morse with self-defense instructor Jeff Street.

Jeff Street

Jeff- Hi, Rob.  Hi to our new listeners, and welcome back to our regular listeners. Together, we report and analyze examples of armed civilian defense each week.  We want to inform you about the news, and inspire you to defend the people you love.  Our first story took place this month late at night in Detroit.

First story-  A 37 year old man stopped his car at a traffic light when he noticed the car next to him.  The passenger in that car had a gun.. And the gun was pointed at our 37 year old driver.  He was being carjacked.  The armed robber told the driver to get out of his car.  The victim did.  He waited for the robber to get out of his car as well.  That is when the victim drew his legally concealed firearm and shot the armed robber.  The robber and his driver fled.  The victim called police.

Jeff- There are a lot of details we don’t know here.  So we are going to give him the benefit of doubt, atta boy.  It says he got out of his car, but it does not say why he got out of his car.  If you are in your car when threatened and you can drive away then that is the best defense.   

A friend of mine was forced off the road in a road rage incident.  The driver of the other car got out and was pounding the windshield of my friends car with his fists.  My friend popped his car in reverse and made his escape.

Someone tried to carjack me once late at night. I was stopped at a red light with no other traffic at all.  My car doors were locked.  The suspect walked off the curb and started to reach for my door handle.  I looked in my rearview and saw no cars, so I backed up and away from the suspect.  He walked back to the curb.  I drove back to the light.  He walked back to my car. I backed up again. Finally the light turned green and I went home.

In our story, our armed defender got out of his car.  If he got out of the car when he could have driven away, then it might look to a prosecutor like a mutual combat situation.  This would be akin to 2 guys in a bar saying let’s go outside and settle this.

Rob-  What else can we do to avoid being a target when we drive.

Jeff- I try to stop so I can see the bottom of the rear wheels of the car in front of me.

That might aid in evasion.   Even if i was boxed in a tiny bit of reverse would change my shot angle to my advantage.   Honking the car horn may offer a distraction and draw witnesses or help.

We assume the armed defender was carrying his gun in a holster.  He was probably very close to the attacker when he had to present his firearm and shoot.  Carrying your gun in front of you, called appendix carry, offers the fastest draw.  There might be a better option.  If you carry your gun at your side then you could turn your body slightly and get your hand on your weapon before your attacker even knows  you’re drawing a gun.  

Then, our defender needs to get his gun up to eye level and make some some fight-ending shots.

Time is everything in this situation.  In the words of firearms instructor John Hearn “If you can make your opponent think about what you are doing to him instead of what he needs to do to you, then you have largely won the fight.”

Our second story took place near Atlanta, Georgia.

Second Story-  A couple were sleeping in their bed at 4 in the morning.  They heard a strange noise which woke them up.  The husband got out of bed and called the police.  He also retrieved his legally owned handgun.  The sounds grew louder, and the husband shot an intruder as the intruder climbed into their master bathroom through a second story window.  The intruder retreated the way he’d come.

Police did not find the intruder, but they saw the ladder the intruder used to get onto a first story roof.  The police found the intruder lying dead on the roof.  The victims did not know the intruder.

Jeff- Again without more details this one gets an atta boy.  We can do a little better by getting our handgun 1st  and calling 911 2nd.  Shot placement looks like it was good in that it quickly ended the fight.

This situation is common enough that we’ve learned to keep ladders in your garage not in your yard.

Let’s eliminate some really bad advice.  The perpetrator fell outside the window after being shot. The horrible advice is that if the perpetrator falls outside the window pull the body inside so that it will look like you shot them inside.  Wow!  Don’t do it.  Talk about tampering with evidence.

Rob- Gun store myth.  Mantle of innocence. Cops deal with liars all day long. Don’t be one.

Jeff- Our third story takes place early morning in Kentucky.

SAF orgThe Second Amendment Foundation SAF.org

Third story-  An elderly Kentucky homeowner heard a woman knocking on his front door and crying for help.  It was about 5 in the morning.   Even though this homeowner had just gotten out of bed, he was thinking already.  He had been robbed before, so this time he answered the door with his gun in hand.  As soon as he turned the doorknob, a young man pushed the door in and pointed his gun at the homeowner’s head.  The homeowner raised his gun and fired four shots.  The robber dropped to the ground and never moved.  The female decoy was also shot in the arm.  She fled.  The victim called police.  The decoy and the female getaway driver were arrested at the local hospital.

Jeff-  This is another go team moment.  I recommend a surveillance camera.  I have them and use them so I would have seen that there was more than 1 person outside.  Cameras are so cheap now.  If your camera is all of the sudden out of order don’t open the door.  Call 911 and yell through the door that the police are on the way.  Even when i’m expecting company I check the cameras before answering the door.  If I ever felt the need to answer the door for a stranger, my gun would already be in my hand.

Rob- Close quarters.  Dim light.  The door gets pushed in.  You have fractions of a second to see and recognize a gun and multiple attackers.  That is a lot to deal with.  If you’ve never thought about it happening to you then you won’t have time to solve it in the moment.  

Jeff- You have time to prepare today.  Yeah, this attack is typical and what we should expect.

Exit-  Rob- That wraps up this episode. Jeff Street, thank you for helping me today.  Where can our listeners learn more about you?

Jeff- I teach in Naples, Florida, and our listeners can find me at Step by Step Gun Training.com  We provide customized training as well as standard group classes.  You can also reach us by leaving a message on the podcast facebook page.  

Rob- You can also wish Jeff a Happy Birthday on our facebook page.  If you liked our discussion of the news, then please share our podcast with a friend and rate the podcast on I-Tunes.

I’m Rob Morse.  Please join us next week for more Self-Defense Gun Stories.

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