Hey guys, I had a situation last week. I'm gonna tell the story as I saw it. What am I looking for? Was I too hesitant to act? Was there a better response? etc. Please respectful and helpful advice only Thanks in advance.
I am 25, I USED to be a skateboarder and from time to time I get the itch to go roll around. Our local park is in the middle of a normal park, basketball, baseball, and all that. There are 4 kids from ages 12 to maybe 14 skating around when I get there. The area can become a sketchy crime infested place after dark, but this is an hour or 2 before sunset. Obviously the gun stays in the truck while skateboarding, so I put it in glove box and enter fence and skate. After an hour I notice a group of 4 thugs (you know the kind) the guys that are not there for baseball or good clean fun. So, my radar goes off and I ease toward the exit just in case. I overhear 2 of the skater kids saying that those guys coming our way were supposed to be in a fight today. I then decide, time to head out. The Lead thug pulls a tazer and makes it crackle and chases some of the kids around. It seemed playful but I pre-dialed 911 on my cellphone (there are usually cops in the park) and grabbed gun (glock 19 if it matters to anyone) and holstered it sitting in my truck. The scene plays out, noone was hurt and I left. My intentions were if the tazer made contact with someone I was calling the cops. The gun wasn't coming out unless a kid got tazed and was being beaten/stomped in a life threatening way. Should I have acted sooner? At all?
I am 25, I USED to be a skateboarder and from time to time I get the itch to go roll around. Our local park is in the middle of a normal park, basketball, baseball, and all that. There are 4 kids from ages 12 to maybe 14 skating around when I get there. The area can become a sketchy crime infested place after dark, but this is an hour or 2 before sunset. Obviously the gun stays in the truck while skateboarding, so I put it in glove box and enter fence and skate. After an hour I notice a group of 4 thugs (you know the kind) the guys that are not there for baseball or good clean fun. So, my radar goes off and I ease toward the exit just in case. I overhear 2 of the skater kids saying that those guys coming our way were supposed to be in a fight today. I then decide, time to head out. The Lead thug pulls a tazer and makes it crackle and chases some of the kids around. It seemed playful but I pre-dialed 911 on my cellphone (there are usually cops in the park) and grabbed gun (glock 19 if it matters to anyone) and holstered it sitting in my truck. The scene plays out, noone was hurt and I left. My intentions were if the tazer made contact with someone I was calling the cops. The gun wasn't coming out unless a kid got tazed and was being beaten/stomped in a life threatening way. Should I have acted sooner? At all?