Episode 53 with David Cole
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I had to re-record some of the audio. 🙁
Introduction- Rob- I’m Rob Morse, and welcome to episode 53 of Self-Defense Gun Stories. This podcast is for people who think they might want a gun for self-defense, and those who already have one. Firearms instructor Dave Cole is with us this week.
It has been a little cold to compete outside, but other than that, how have you been?
Dave- Hi, Rob. Yeah, it’s too cold and dark to shoot steel after work, but it’s getting lighter and warmer every day. Check out my latest post at Black Man With A Gun, called “March Madness” for more about the benefits of competition.
Hi to our new listeners, and welcome back to our regular listeners. We report and analyze three examples of armed civilian defense each week. I hope we inspire you to defend the people you care about. If you have questions or want to hear more, then please leave us a message on our facebook page.
Our first story took place this month in Nebraska.
First story- Are you armed at your local barbershop? You and your brother run a barbershop together. Your family lives upstairs, and you’re both cutting hair on a Friday morning. Customers were in the chars and in the shop waiting their turn. That is when a stranger walked in and pushed to the front of the line.
This stranger was carrying a shotgun and a backpack. He dropped the backpack on the ground and pointed the shotgun at you. He yelled, “You and everyone else, put everything in the bag.”
You glance at your brother. He nods in reply.
“Here, take it,” you say, as you throw your wallet on the floor. You and your brother are both licensed to carry. You’re both armed. You wait your turn and step back. Your brother draws first as the thief reaches down to grab your wallet. Your gun is drawn a second later. The thief shoots at you, and then both you and your brother are shooting at him. The thief runs from your barbershop. The entire robbery was over in seconds and captured on your security video.
You had a plan. Other stores in the area were robbed. You knew what you’d do because you talked about it before. You tell reporters that everyone needs a plan.
The police collected the robber from where he’d collapsed outside. They took him to a local hospital, and wouldn’t comment on his condition. The thief’s bullets shattered a mirror on the back wall. Thank goodness that neither you, your family or your customers were injured. You and your brother start sweeping up the broken glass.
Dave- Violent attacks happen fast. Knowing what to do saves you time. Having a plan can be more important than having the fastest draw. Visualize your daily routine, and when and where an attack might happen. Then think “what would I do?”
Rob- But practice helps too, doesn’t it?
Dave- Sure it helps to practice, but practice saves you fractions of a second. Having a plan can save whole seconds…and that’s a lot. It’s important to note what their plan accomplished, which was to distract the robber by throwing a wallet on the floor, creating the opportunity for the armed brother to draw his gun.
This is the value of “wargaming” scenarios…actually thinking about how a violent encounter might go down, and then how you might deal with it.
Rob- You don’t have ten seconds to calm down and think.
Dave- Our second story took place in California.
Second Story- Are you armed at work at 3 in the morning?
It’s a messy business, but someone has to do it if your customers want fresh pastry and doughnuts on their way to work. You don’t stay in the bakery business if flour and sugar bother you. All is not sweetness and light here in Lancaster, California. Being a baker means you go to work in the dark. Your day is half done by the time most people wake up. Your daughter owns the shop, but you help her at night.
It was early morning when you heard the crash of glass from the front of the shop. You looked up and saw two man run past the cash register and head towards the back of the store. He’s carrying the tire iron he used to break through the front of the store. Your daughter was back there. You drew your firearm and fired. Both thieves turned and ran. One of the thieves dropped the cash register. The other one dropped to the pavement outside.
You called police. You’d thought about what to say because you’d been robbed before at another bakery where you worked. That is why you were carrying today. You couldn’t get a concealed carry permit since you work in Los Angeles County, but you can still carry at work and at home. Neither you nor the other employees at the store were hurt.
Dave- (There are California gun owners. Carry at work. Carry on your body. Protect the people you care about.) Once again, here is a business owner who was prepared. People who work at odd hours such as this bakery owner, convenience store workers, and the like are often at high risk for crime. Rob, you have more intimate knowledge of California gun laws than I do, but it IS possible to have a defensive firearm, right?
Dave- So this baker didn’t simply surrender his safety to restrictive California gun laws; he found a way to do what he could within the constraints of the law to be prepared for violent crime, and it made all the difference.
Dave- Our third story took place in Idaho.
Third story- Rob- Are you armed when you’re driving your young daughter to school in the morning? Monday’s are hard. You got your 9-year-old daugher up, got her fed and had just dropped her off at school in Boise, Idaho. You were driving alone and had slowed down to stop at the corner. That is when a man jumped in front of your car and pulled open the driver’s side door. You slammed on the brakes and the car stalled. The carjacker demanded your keys and your purse. He started hitting you in the head when he didn’t get what he wanted as fast as he wanted it.
Your attacker grabbed your hair and tried to drag you out of your car. You yelled, “’OK, OK, that’s enough! I’ll give you my purse.” That is what you said, but that isn’t what you did. You reached into the console of your car and grabbed your gun. You turned and pointed your pistol at your attacker. His plans changed in an instant. He turned and ran.
You called the police. The suspect is still at large.
Dave- Great job to this mom. She thought about what to do because you don’t have time to think while you’re getting hit in the head. If there’s a common theme in our stories today, it’s “have a plan.” While the saying that “no plan survives the first contact,” it is still better to have a plan and adapt as necessary, than to have no plan at all.
It was fortunate that her daughter wasn’t with her, which would have made for a much more complex problem. I can imagine how I would feel if my young nieces were in the car while I was attacked. But that’s exactly why I carry, and it’s great that this mom was prepared and had her gun near her.
This is where things get complicated. I want our listeners to imagine they are driving with a child in the back seat. What if the thief had jumped into the passenger seat and grabbed her purse and her gun? I’m well trained, and I don’t want to have to solve that problem.
Better if she had her doors locked, especially since the news story doesn’t indicate that the carjacker was armed. Better still if she had her gun on her person. What if he had managed to drag her out of the car and away from her gun?
Exit- Rob- That wraps up this episode. Dave, thank you for helping me today. Where can our listeners learn more about you?
Dave- I teach in the Cincinnati area. They can contact me at Aegis Solutions for firearms instruction. I also write at the Blackman with a Gun website. Our listeners can reach me at either site. I’d also like to mention that our big “family reunion” is right around the corner…the NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits, and we’d love to see you there. It’s in Atlanta, Georgia, April 27-30, at the Georgia World Congress Center.
Rob- Our listeners can share their thoughts with us by leaving a message on the podcast facebook page.
Dave- We create this podcast under a creative commons license, so please share them with a friend, and give us a rating on I-Tunes.
Rob- I’m Rob Morse. We’ll be back next week with more Self-Defense Gun Stories.
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http://crimeresearch.org/
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