In most states that is not true. You can draw your weapon at the point where you feel your life is in danger. You do not have to wait until the last second. If someone threatens you with deadly force (in most states) you would be well within your rights to either put your hand on or draw your weapon. The most important thing to do is KNOW YOUR STATE'S LAWS!
Naaa … You’re being way too overly simplistic. Over the years I've read dozens, if not hundreds of reports, on civilians drawing guns that contradict the altruistic tone of this statement. Just the term, 'brandishing' covers a multitude of ambiguous definitions. I wish the above statement were true; but, realistically, it is not.
One story that stands out in my mind is a case reported in Combat Handguns magazine about a group of teenagers who tried to rob a man outside a convenience store. The guy pulled a gun on them; they backed off; and, then, called the police, themselves, to report a, 'man with a gun'.
Guess who got hassled?
It's typical for the police to, 'strenuously interview' anyone who draws or displays a gun. You may know you're threatened; you may know you're in trouble; explaining things to the police (or, perhaps, the county prosecutor) afterwards is an entirely different matter.
Less than a year ago one of my 60 + year old (and not so clever) neighbors used a 22 caliber rifle to stop 3 teenagers from burning down an abandoned building on his property. With the fire already lit, he held them at gunpoint until the police arrived. Guess who got a summons for - not arson, but - trespassing, and who went off to jail in handcuffs - charged with, 'threatening' and improper use of a firearm?
Go ahead, just guess!
I didn't create this situation; I just have to live with it. Police officers are trained not to like guns or anyone who uses them. Unless you've got a, 'Philadelphia lawyer' at your elbow, be very chary about drawing a pistol - even under the most justified of circumstances. Personally, were I to be confronted by a crook who decided to back-off once he realized that I was armed, then, as far as I'm concerned, he's free to go.
If the bum should scurry on down the road and rob or even kill someone else, well, that's NOT my problem. Go ahead and tell it to the Clintons, if you like; maybe, one of them will step forward to correct the situation! (Ya think?)
There was a fellow from Philadelphia who posted on GT that he left his carry piece locked in the glove box of his car because he didn’t want to go into a nightclub armed. His car got stolen, and the gun along with it. Guess who, in spite of hiring a lawyer and making several appeals, ended up getting his CHL yanked for, what may be, life?
Go ahead, take another wild and crazy guess!
Me and mine aren't, 'junior rangers' with handguns. Why should I front $7,000 to $10,000 in legal expenses in order to corral some bad guy and make the world a better place for all mankind? What protection do I have against some official dork like, 'Captain Jenkins' showing up as the responding officer or from either one of the extremely aggressive and entirely politically correct county prosecutors whom I've known?
10 years of reading, 'It Happened To Me' in Combat Handguns have convinced me that any police officer responding to a, 'gun call' isn't coming there as my friend - and it doesn't matter how justified I might have been at the moment I pulled my piece.
(Which reminds me: This is exactly, 'How' I got into Glocks. A friend pointed out to me that if I ever had to use one of my Colt Series 70's in order to defend myself - right or wrong - away it was going to go into a cold, dark, (and, perhaps, damp) police evidence locker where it might reside, un:maintained, for the next 2 or 3 years!)
My personal conclusion? Yes, I carry a gun. I, also, know my state's firearm laws far better than most. Still, I'm very careful and very chary about when or where I'm even going to show - let alone use - a firearm. There's a whole crap-pile of politically correct, legal antipathy just waiting for any CCW holder who even comes close to crossing any of the numerous - often vague and ambiguous - legal parameters regarding guns and the legal use of deadly force.
This said, everyone else is welcome to proceed in whatever fashion they think best.