Episode 126 with Jeff Street

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Rob- Introduction- I’m glad you found us and welcome to episode 126 of Self-Defense Gun Stories.

This podcast is for people who are curious about a firearm for self-defense, and for those who already own one. I’m your host, Rob Morse. We’re joined this week by self defense instructor Jeff Street.

Jeff- Hi, Rob.  Gabe White’s pistol shooting solutions, Private Coaching, Shooting Matches, Scoot n Shoots, and We will have 6 GLOCKs to give away at our Everglades GLOCK Range Event.

Rob- Jeff, how do you listen to the show?

Jeff– I listen to it on my iphone utilizing the Downcast podcatcher app.

Rob- That is how most people listen. You have our podcast in your pocket every week. Please give us rating on I-Tunes and Stitcher. Jeff, would you introduce our podcast to our new listeners.

Jeff- We study several examples where gun owners survived a life threatening situation. Were they lucky, or did they have a plan about what to do? What should we do if we were in their place?

Our first story took place last week in Portland, Oregon.

Rob- First story-  Are you armed as you have a yard sale at your parents house?  

Your mom and dad are having a yard sale, and you said you’d stick around to help. Your mom saw someone stuffing clothing into her handbag. Your mom and dad asked her to stop that. Instead of returning the items, the stranger sprayed you mom and dad with pepper spray, and tried to stab your dad with a knife. You stepped inside and got the family shotgun. You pointed the shotgun at the attacker and told her to leave.

She saw the gun and ran.  You called police. The police said the young woman was lucky she was not shot and killed.

Jeff- 1st let’s look at avoidance.  We try to keep the pool of people who have been on our property or inside our home to a minimum.  In our neighborhood the nearby county park lets you rent a space once a month for a community yard sale.  They had no clue who would show up to their property.

This crazy woman looked normal in her mugshot photo.

I like this story because it’s the most likely defensive gun use scenario in that no shots were fired.  The scarry shotgun got the job done. You still need to call 911 as soon as possible so law enforcement can hear your side of the story 1st. This type of Defensive gun use rarely makes the news.

Of course we must add POGO pants on gun on.

Sounds like she had mental health issues.

The time while you went inside to get a gun could have cost your parents their lives.

Have a good plan. “We’ll get our gun.” might not work if it is hundreds of feet away while you’re out at your mailbox. You only have the tools that are within reach.

Jeff- Having a gun can stop the confrontation from escalating, so it would have been better if the family was armed with firearms on their bodies.

Rob- Do you talk to your students about what to do if someone in your family is attacked?

Rob- This took place at a yard sale. In your shooting classes, do you include targets that you don’t want to shoot?

Rob- What did our defender do correctly?

Jeff- Good restraint that the son tried verbal commands and did not shoot when he saw that the verbal commands worked. Good restrain in not following the attacker.

Rob- I’m imagining that someone tried to stab my dad. I can’t holster a shotgun, so I have to go back inside and put it away. I have the same problem with a handgun if I don’t have a holster. What do I do with the gun when I need two hands.

Next question is, can I stop the bleeding?

Jeff- That is enough for now. Our second story happened last week in Warsaw, Missouri.

Rob- Second Story-  Are you armed when you go out to eat at a restaurant? 

It is late. You’re getting ready to leave a restaurant when you hear an explosion from the parking lot. At first you wonder if a car crashed into the sign outside and blew up. You hear it again, and then one of the restaurant windows shatters. Some crazy guy is shooting at the place. People are jumping out of their chairs and diving for the floor.

You have your carry permit, You’re armed. You move so there isn’t anyone in front of you, and you shoot at the attacker. Now he drives away. Lots of people call police. Amazingly, no one inside the restaurant is seriously hurt.

The intoxicated attacker was upset about a game of pool. He was arrested and charged with armed criminal action, 1st degree assault, and unlawful possession of a weapon.

Jeff- The police had been called after the crazy guy made credible threats.  The police came took statements and left. Then the crazy guy shows up.

It looks like the attacker was shooting from inside his car.  So our citizen hero shot at the car which caused the attacker to flee in his car.  

Our citizen defender had to respond very quickly, yet he took the time to move to a position where he wouldn’t be endangering bystanders.

Rob- Most attacks are face to face. This one was at a distance.

Jeff- sometimes you can use verbal commands. I’m betting this man was drunk, so verbal commands would not have worked in this case.

Rob- What else did you notice.

Jeff- I noticed that the defender had innocent people near him and had to move in order to have a clear shot.

Rob- We don’t want to hurt innocent people. Do you talk with your students about moving with a gun?

Rob- Do they get to practice moving around a target, a simulated person, that they don’t want to shoot, they don’t even want to point their gun at an innocent person.

Jeff- good restraint in that the defender stopped when the attack stopped.

Jeff- medical training. Our third story happened last week outside of Wichita, Kansas.

Rob- First this message from my friends at the Second Amendment Foundation.

Please join and support the Second Amendment Foundation at SAF.org

Rob- Third story- Are you armed when you’re driving your truck?

You’re driving along the street at 9 pm. A car pulls into the street right in front of you. You have to change lanes to keep from hitting the car. You pull back into the right lane and proceed on your way.  They car passes you, and then stops, blocking both lanes. The driver gets out of the car, walks up to your truck and demands money. You tell him to go away. The robber starts smashing windows of your truck.

You draw your firearm and shoot him. Now you call police.

You’re not charged. The robber’s family say he suffered from mental illness.

Jeff- our Defender was blocked in and couldn’t drive away. Once the window was broken our defender was in legitimate fear for his life.  Shooting the Crazy attacker was the only course left. Good thing he had his gun ready to use. The attacker died. Our defender probably had excellent shot placement.  The attacker may have seen the gun and still continued the attack. Well placed shots were the only answer. At this point we need immediate incapacitation.

mentioned in the previous story, that drunk people don’t respond to verbal commands. Crazy people don’t listen either.

Jeff- Again, no time to get a gun from home, or to go get ammunition and load it. By the time you recognize that you have a gun problem, you need your defensive tool right now.

Jeff- Drive away if you can.

Jeff- Use necessary force. It sounds like the victim stopped shooting when the attacker was no longer a threat.

Jeff- Call police. You want to identify yourself as the victim of a crime. Ask for police and EMTs.

Jeff- Call your lawyer.

Rob- Do we see attacks like this very often?

Jeff- There are thousands of attacks outside the home every day.

Rob- Let’s go on to our fourth story.

Jeff- Forth story? We usually do three stories.

Rob- Our listeners left us a message on the podcast facebook page and asked for a fourth story. If you like more stories, then let us know. If you want a shorter podcast, then let us know that as well.

Jeff- Our fourth story happened last week in Racine, Wisconsin.

Rob- Fourth story- Are you armed as you get into your car to go to work?

You’re running a little late and getting ready to leave for work. You hear two kids scream from in front of your house. You look up and see two kids being attacked by a dog, and the dog is about as big as they are. You run to the street and the dog stops biting the two kids. Now the 80 pound pit bull lunges at you.

You have your carry permit. You’re armed. You draw and shoot the dog. Evidently it wasn’t a fatal wound, and the dog runs back to it yard. You shout for help to treat the kids. Then you holster your gun and call police and EMTs.

The EMT take the children to the hospital to treat the bite wounds on their legs and feet. The dog has bitten strangers before.

Jeff- our hero stopped the attack on the kids but then the dog came after him.   Its difficult to hit a small fast moving target. The problem that you or i find ourselves in may be one that requires a higher degree of technical skill.  That is why we continue to train.

That is why Wait. let me go inside and open my gun safe and then get my ammunition that I keep stored in a separate location, and then load my gun, and then run to the scene to help.

Rob- There wasn’t time for that.

Jeff- People are attacked in their home and outside their home. I’m proud of this man for moving toward the sound of the screams to protect the kids. I’m also glad he wasn’t bitten himself. It shows good planning that he had a gun to protect himself and the children. The news reports say the dog and the older child weighed about 80 pounds. They were walking to the school bus stop down the street.

Rob- It was safe every other day.

Jeff- Yes, but that doesn’t mean it will be safe today or tomorrow.

Rob- Do you talk about this with your students?

Rob- It isn’t easy to shoot a small moving target with other people around.

Jeff- And the defender only grazed the animal. That means the bullet stopped somewhere else. You might be shooting down at a concrete or asphalt surface, and a bullet can skip off and head down the street into your neighbor’s house.

Rob- You might not be able to back up because the kids are behind you. How do you train your students to handle these situations?

Jeff- Small steps. Safety, concealed carry, advanced problems.

We get to practice all kinds of unusual shots out at the range. Those are things you probably can’t do at your usual shooting range where you rent a stall and have someone standing  and shooting right next to you.

Put your gun away.

Call for help.

Treat the injured. Medical training and equipment.

Call 911

Talk to the police.

Exit-  Rob- that wraps up this episode. Jeff, thank you for helping us again. Where can we learn more about you?

Jeff- Contact us at Step by Step Gun Training in Naples Florida.  We provide custom training courses as well as group classes. Leave a message for us on the Step by Step Facebook page.

Rob- Let us know what you think. Do you like the longer podcast with four stories? Do you want more personal news from our instructors? Leave us a message on the podcast facebook page.  We have an inbox there if you don’t want to leave your message in public.

Jeff- We share this podcast with you for free.  All we ask is that you share the podcast with a friend and give us a rating on I-Tunes and Stitcher.  We’re also available on Google Play Music and Spotify.

Rob- This podcast is part of the Self-defense radio network at sdrn.us

I’m Rob Morse.  We’ll be back in a few weeks with more Self-Defense Gun Stories.