Episode 39 with Robyn Street

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Introduction-  Rob- Welcome to episode 39 of Self-Defense Gun Stories.  This podcast is proud to be a member of the Self-Defense Radio Network.  I’m Rob Morse and we’re joined this week by instructor Robyn Street.  Hi, Robyn.  You had a Glock Range Day at the Louland Gun club in Naples Florida.  How did that go this year?

Robyn – Hi, Rob.  

Hi to our new listeners, and welcome back to our regular listeners. Together, we report and analyze examples of armed civilian defense.  We inform you about the news, and I hope we inspire you to defend the people you care about.

Our first story took place this month in South Carolina.

First story-  Are you armed when you stop to buy gasoline?  The victim was buying gasoline at a convenience store in Aiken, South Carolina.  It was shortly after 6:30 in the morning.  An armed robber came up beside the victim and demanded money.  The victim gave the robber the $15 he had in his wallet.  The robber then ordered the victim to get in the car.  The robber started shooting, but it isn’t clear if that was inside the car or outside.  The victim reached into his car, grabbed the gun he kept there, and shot the robber several times.  The victim ran inside the store and called police.   The robber died at the scene.

The robber appears to be a drug addict.  He was out on bond for a burglary in one county, and for shoplifting in another county.

Robyn

• Gas stations are very dangerous places.

• So, I tell my students to plan-ahead.  I advise them to always have at least half a tank of gas.  That gives them some cushion room so that they can plan to get gas at a relatively safer times and at safer places.

Rob- This was 630 in the morning, but a druggie needs drugs when a druggie needs drugs.

• Be careful not to lose your situational awareness at the pump.
• Distracted by getting out our wallet to pay and putting it away.  Robbers like to get our wallets and while we are at the pump be careful that your wallet is out as little as possible.
• Don’t tempt the bad guys by keeping your wallet out where it can be seen.
• Our victim had let his guard down.  Don’t let people get that close.  Scan your environment!
• If you see something that makes you uncomfortable, say something like “Stop, that is close enough.”  That is great advice from John Farnam.  We need to get over worrying about appearing to be rude.  That simple statement lets the person know that you are aware the they are there and that you are not going to be an easy target.  
• Your action may also draw the attention of others. Potential witnesses.
• The victim gave the robber $15.  Compliance does not guarantee safety.  
• In this case the robber told the victim to get in the car.  My advice would be never get in the car.  Fight for your life where you are.   
• We don’t know why the robber started shooting.  But once it starts happening why really does not matter.
• The victim reached in his car to grab his gun. It would have been much better if he had been wearing his gun.
• After he had shot the robber, the victim went inside to call the police.  That was the right thing to do. He ran inside where there would more witnesses.  As soon as the call can safely be placed.  Call 911 and get police and medical assistance to your location as soon as possible.  Then prepare for their arrival. “Officer thank God that you are here.  I am the one that called.  This man tried to murder me…
• I think that this is a great story.  We all go to gas stations.
• You won’t have time to think if this happens to you.  That is why we need to think ahead.  We need to run through what if plans all the time so that we create mental pathways and plans for our brain to fall back on if a horrible event occurs. Instead of suffering from either analysis paralysis or denial, we need for our brain to say well I knew this might happen.  Here is what I need to do and get on with it.
• Scenario training is so critical in our self-defense plan.  

Robyn – Our second story took place in West Virginia.

Second Story-  Are you armed when you answer the door at home?  A man was at home early on a weekday morning with his wife and child.  He answered a knock at the door.  As he unlocked the door, two armed and masked men pushed their way inside.  They hit the male homeowner in the head.  The homeowner grabbed a gun he had in the home and shot both robbers.  The robbers limped away.  One or the robbers was shot in both knees.  Police took one of the robbers to a local hospital.  They later arrested the second robber and his female getaway car driver.

• This just goes to show you that we need to be prepared at all times.
• not a time when we think that we will be attacked but this proves that you never know.
• First of all, I would suggest installing a camera or at least a peep hole so that he could see who was at his door.  You should not open your door for a stranger.
• Here we see that he was overpowered by two armed robbers.  The armed robbers hit the man in the head.
• He was lucky that he was able to get to his gun.  There is no guarantee that he would have been able to get to his gun.  That is why a good rule is pants on gun on (POGO).  
• Lucky for the family that he was able to get to his gun.  If they had been victorious over him.  They would have turned their attention to the wife and the child.
• This is why we encourage families to train together. If the wife would have been prepared to defend her family she could have helped to protect her husband.  Working as a team is a force multiplier.
• Another benefit of working as a team is that during the planning stages, each person will become more situationally aware and their communication skills will improve.
• Good the homeowner prevailed, but we certainly do not train to make knee shots.  His shot placement was suboptimal but it worked so in this case, good for him.
• As soon as the imminent threat is over and he could safely call the police, he needed to get that done.  
• The police did a great job and caught the two robbers and their getaway driver.  

Robyn- Our third story took place in New Mexico.

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Third story- Are you armed when you’re at home in the morning?  It was about 11 in the morning when five young men kicked in a front door of this Las Cruces, New Mexico home.  The robbers were armed with knives and a hatchet.  The homeowner was struck on the head and stabbed several times before he was able to grab his firearm.  He then shot at the robbers.  The robbers ran from the home.  One of the robbers was shot in the leg and left on the driveway.  The other four robbers drove away in a gray car.

Neighbors heard the shots and called police.  They arrested the robber lying on the drive way, and had emergency medical techs transport both the homeowner and the robber to hospitals for treatment.  The robber was arrested for two felonies and a misdemeanor.  The homeowner is expected to fully recover.

Robyn- This is our carry all the time episode, isn’t it.

Rob- Seems to be.

• This is even worse than the last story.  Now we have five young men kicking in the door.
• They were armed knives and hatchets.  If we had made that up in a training scenario the participants would have thought that we were being silly and that this could never happen.  Well, surprise, here it is in real life.
• We were told that the homeowner grabbed his gun.  I hope that he had it in a holster on his body.  After being hit in the head with a hatchet and stabbed several times he would not have had much of a chance to go get to his gun.
• I am so glad that he did not give up.
• This reminds me of a watch repair man, Lance Thomas.  He had been targeted as a victim several times.  In an interview about one of the attacks, the reporter asked Lance how he kept going even after he had been shot?  Lance looked at the reporter and simply stated that he was not out of ammunition and he was not dead yet.
• This homeowner was literally fighting for his life – outnumbered and injured he prevailed.  Never give up! Never surrender!
• He only shot one of the attackers but it was enough to convince the robbers that it was time to get out of there.  Good for our victim but we cannot count on that to work every time.

Rob- Most of the time, the robbers stop when the homeowner presents his gun.  That is the rule, and the homeowner only has to shoot one time out of 12.  In this case, a gun scared away 4 of the 5 robbers.

• The neighbor called the police.  It would have been better if our victim would have been able to make the call first.  It is best to be the first one to get to make that call.  Get your side of the story told first.
• In this case, he may have been too injured to make the call.  If that is the case, thank goodness that a neighbor stepped up to make the call.  It is great if you have a good relationship with your neighbors.  You can look out for each other’s safety.

Exit-  Rob- That wraps up this episode. Robyn, thank you for helping me today.  Where can our listeners find out more about you?

Robyn-  I teach in Naples Florida, and our listeners can find me at Step by Step Gun Training.com.  They can also contact us on Facebook.  We provide custom training courses as well as standard group classes.

Rob- Our listeners can share their thoughts with us by leaving a message on the podcast facebook page.  

Robyn – If these examples gave you something to think about, then please share them with a friend.  Would you also give us a rating on I-Tunes.

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

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