Showing yourself as "good guy" in defense shooting

As an addition I was told to have your ID in hand along with your CCW permit. This saves digging in a pocket for it as well shows you're the good guy.
Time permitting of course.
 
jfrey123 said:
...Last thing I want is a responding officer to see a guy fiddling with getting a gun in his waistband...
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Good reason to learn to re-holster with one hand and without looking -- and to use a holster that allows you to do it.

I was with Threefeather in Mas' LFI-1 class last month. The drill, as I recall, is basically:

[1] Holster the gun, but keep your hand on it until you see the first responding officer, at which time slowly raise your empty hands. The reason you keep your hand on the gun until the police show up is that there may be more BGs around or the BG down may decide to get up and try to finish what he started. If you're still holding the gun when the police show up and they tell you to drop it, then drop it. It'll get dinged -- too bad; but don't try to discuss or negotiate it with them. They won't be interested. Drop it on its side; it's safer that way.

[2] You don't want to just clam up. That's what the BGs do. You're a good guy. But you also don't want to start telling the whole story. You'll be shaken up. You've been under a lot of stress. It would be too easy for you to "put your foot in it." The police aren't necessarily your friend. They don't know you or what a splendid fellow you are. They would like to make an arrest, if they think they can make it stick, and they will do whatever they can, within the rules, to try to make it stick, if there may be a chance. Arrests that stick are good for their careers.

[3] So what you do say is:

  • That person attacked me.
  • I will sign a complaint.
  • Evidence is [indicate where there's evidence].
  • Witnesses are [indicate witnesses].
  • You'll have my full cooperation in 24 hours after I've talked with my lawyer. That's all that I can say now.

If you call 911, be sure to describe yourself. If someone else is making the call, ask him to describe you.

Take Mas' class. It's time and money well spent.
 
ZeSpectre said:
..Unfortunately once someone starts talking after a stressful situation it's almost impossible to shut up...
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That's why it's important to learn the script.

Threefeathers said:
...did I get you the pics I took of Mas and Gail with my wife and I last week? ...
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I didn't see any.
 
NPS said:
Showing yourself as "good guy" in defense shooting
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I think first we need to define what our goal is. We've just survived fight #1. Now we're about to enter the ring for fight #2. Those two fights are fought completely different. What we don't want to do is survive the fight with the bad guy, only to be shot by the first responders. And that's about the only thing you can do on your own when it comes to interacting with the police.

"Blue on blue" shootings happen often enough in big city PDs that those departments have gone so far as to develop policies for plain clothes and off-duty officers. Some policies may even include the practice of keeping a jacket closeby which can be quickly put on that has POLICE in large letters across the back. Even with those precautions, it still happens.


Scenes of shootings are usually chaotic. There may be many more people present than just you and the bad guy. If he has friends, or especially family anywhere nearby, expect them to show up. They may even get there before the police officers arrive, flag them down as they pull up, and say things to them that describe you as dangerous to the public.

How you dress matters. Your body language matters. How you appear in your first impression will matter more than anything you say. We all make first impressions about people within the first few seconds of seeing them. The first responders will probably see you before coming within conversation distance. Once inside conversation distance, nothing you say in those first five seconds will have much impact.

Right now just plan ahead and resolve that whatever you intend to say will not be heard over the sirens, the confusion of the scene, and their commands to you. In all likelihood even if they do hear it, they aren't going to make their decisions off of it. "Officers, be careful! He still got his gun," might get their attention. But beyond that, just assume your words will have no impact. Do exactly as you're told. Do not resist a physical takedown. Be helpful in ways that look out for their safety, because in those first five seconds that's all their concerned about.

You want to survive those first five seconds. Think objectively about how you look. Do you look like someone the police come across and arrest every day? What do your clothes say about you? Phoning in your description might work. But it assumes two things - your description will be passed onto the first responders with enough accuracy to identify you; and you're the only one making that call.

We need to find ways to buy ourselves enough time to not get shot immediately, and convince them we are not an immediate threat. That is not the same thing as trying to convince them we were not the bad guy in the fight.


The "shut up and call a lawyer" stuff is good advice. For fight #2. But we need to survive fight #1 first, and that fight doesn't end until all the guns are put away, including the ones the first responders bring with them.
 
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