I just witnessed a shooting, very unhappy with the way I handled it.

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G

gunsmith

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1st off thank you Jesus and God that no one was hurt!

I am way, way off my game. I am just getting out of a legal and spiritual dilemma and have not been able to practice for an entire year.
For reasons I do not wish to discuss my ccw had been suspended and I only got it back 3 weeks ago. (the same with my carry gun).

What happened tonight is a real eye opener.

I am a taxi driver and had just refused entry to a guy dressed like a gang banger in front of a strip club that was closing (for you Reno guys it was The Wild Orchid)

I knew the dancers were just about to leave, they are pretty and always tip great so I would rather have them in my car then some dude who looks like a gang member.

I was to the north of a driveway for the strip club in the south bound lane.
A girl and two of the bouncers walking with her had exited and they were walking her to my car when one shot rang out, I heard her ask "what was that?" and I said "it was a back fire" but I had my doubts.
@ 3 oclock behind a brick wall 4 ft tall I could see a "gangbanger" driving an Escalade, I still was completely relaxed and not at all concerned, then he was either bump firing or it was a Sub Machine Gun with a slow rate of fire, he was shooting it into the air , about 15 shots in a second or two..
The two bouncers stood there, a club customer just stood there and the girl too, like they were watching fireworks or something.
Nobody , including me went for better cover, which was available just 2 feet in front of us (well, I was still in the drivers seat & my seat belt was on)
When I realized they were shooting all I did was grasp the handle of my ccw, I didn't clear leather:banghead::(
Believe it or not, I worried about my job as we are not allowed to carry.
They drove out of the driveway and turned left and drove north right past me!
All I did was duck, but knew I was a sitting duck as I only had a car door between us.

What I should have done was shouted for the others to take cover (I trained to do that in the National Guard like 30 something years ago)
and I should have exited the cab and cleared leather.
A whole car is better cover then a car door, and I couldn't engage as I was in the driver seat, with a seat belt on.
I feel real bad about not shouting at the others to take cover.

They caught the guys:)
A few blocks later.

The girl finally made a decision, she went back to the club...so I didn't even get a tip.

half an hour later I got pretty angry and felt really dumb.
so many things happened in 2 seconds, it felt like ten minutes and I had a very poor reaction...

Well you guys and gals? what should I have done?
flame suit on
 
Well you guys and gals? what should I have done?
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Well, you saw that they were firing into the air, so no need to clear leather. I might have shouted a warning and taken cover but, if they're not shooting at me, or towards me, or at anything else on the ground, you'd be hard-pressed to defend shooting back. As it is, I give you points on maintaining awareness, subtract a few for inactivity.
 
Thanks

thanks, I was (am ) feeling pretty poorly.

I did write a very accurate police description of the driver for the police though, when I drove by after they caught them I was pleased at how well I described him.
 
I think you did just fine, so stop beating yourself up over it. There's not much you could have done, and any adult who needs to be told to take cover when shots are being fired... well, Darwin has an award waiting for them. Quite often the best (and only) thing you can do is be a good witness.
 
By shooting into the air, he is shooting at me and everyone else around, gravity. I'd probably tell the girl to get in the dang car and haul butt while calling 911 and giving them a good description. Then there's plan B that involves getting behind the car and getting a clean shot.

Mainly, I wouldn't even be thinking of my cab driver job, I'd be worried about not getting dead. I'd probably be more concerned about stopping him or getting away than getting everyone else to take cover because that could draw attention to you and possibly get you in the sights. And if they are (insert whatever adjective you want here) enough to just stand there while some guy shoots rounds into the air then I'm not taking responsibility for them anyway. Sorry if that sounds cold but it's the truth.

Tough situation, I'm glad no one got hurt. I'm also they caught him. I hope he actually does some time for it but I won't hold my breath. Way to be a good witness.
 
thats what I should have been thinking

Mainly, I wouldn't even be thinking of my cab driver job, I'd be worried about not getting dead
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It's weird, the last thought if he had shot me was about my job.:barf:
 
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I would've just floored it and gotten out of dodge......I'm no cop,and my loved ones wern't around......if I was on the street or in the line of fire,that's a different story...but if I was in my car,I'd be gone.And THEN call 911 and be good witness.
 
Tony

I had an open door and an undecided pretty young women about to step in, a taxi behind me and a car with gang bangers in about to be in front of me....When they circled around I ducked down to the seats...

Also, Tony,...great sig, made me laugh!
 
What else do you think you should have done? By pulling your gun and shouting at them to stop, you probably would have started a gun fight!:eek: The guys were caught, no one was hurt, sounds like a win-win!:p With results like that, you sure can't complain!!!!!
 
Rest easy, you did what worked. These things happen fast and your first thought was not to become a target. Makes sense to me.

Sometimes, being a hero just complicates things. I think ya did right.

Biker
 
You need to remember that you have not drilled on this since you were in the Guard. What did they do to you in boot camp? They drilled you everyday. My ccw instructor said that we should drill on drawing our firearm for 15 min. 3 times a week. Figure out what you did wrong then spend some time drilling on it. Live, learn and move on.
 
Hitting the gas and getting out of there is the only thing I can think of that you could have done that may, and I say may, have been better.

As it is no one was hurt, the situation wasn't escalated into a gunfight and the BGs are headed to jail.
 
Funny how that woulda, shoulda, coulda thing works. The only thing that counts is results. Lessee, hmmm, nobody went to the hospital or morgue, nobody got in any legal trouble except the ones that needed to, nobody lost their job... seems to me like you came out waaaay ahead. Sucks to feel helpless and that seems to be the biggest thing you're dealing with right now. It happens to all of us at some point. You had no control over events and I can't really think of anything that you could have done that would have made things better except for maybe getting out of the car and going for cover for your own safety. There was no reason for you to clear leather, so it's a good thing you didn't. Count yourself lucky and stay alert.
 
what you did worked, no body got hurt and theBG got nabbed. I would venture had they been shooting at you you would have acted differently, and properly for that situation. You were ware and that is mission critical you identified the risk. review the action learn from it and move on, do not beat yourself up
 
Funny how....

the mind works under the pressure of stress. As you stated, you are just coming off a year-long ordeal that obviously had u under a great deal of stress. And now someone's popping caps right beside you!! You're ok and everyone else is ok, don't sit and beat yourself up. If your employer prohibits ccw on the job, then it's a natural concern that you might lose your job. Out of place at the moment, but understandable. Many cops hesitate to shoot for fear of being sued, libeled in the press and worried about losing their job if involved in a shooting. Some die because of the hesitation.
Play the "what if?" game often. It doesnt take the place of training but will help you to form the mind-set of how to react when presented with a situation in the future. (What if...insert scenario...how would/should I react?) Believe me, it will shorten your reaction (lag) time.
stay safe, keep ur head down
oc71
 
I did write a very accurate police description of the driver for the police though, when I drove by after they caught them I was pleased at how well I described him.
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That is the best thing you could do under the circumstances. That was at least the most important, by far. If they were shooting directly towards you, then other actions would have been necessary. Since it played out like it did, your eye witness testemony will be more than enough.
 
The manner in which you reacted is not strange at all. Just because you have a CCW permit and own a firearm and perhaps practice a bit with it, does not make a tactical operator out of you. We live in a country where violence rarely intrudes upon us. Therefore we are not necessarily as prepared as we would be if we lived in Ramadi or Baghdad.

Your reaction was more normal than not. But you have learned a lesson: When violent things happen suddenly, do something immediately to mitigate danger to your self. If you think about what happened and keep it in the back of your mind, perhaps the next time you'll react better. In this case, perhaps unfastening your seatbelt and exiting the vehicle to keep it between you and danger rather than sitting there with a stunned look on your face. Which is probably what 95% of everybody here would also do, possibly including myself, but I hope not. Who knows?

Well it all worked out and you didn't cause yourself or others harm by doing something stupid. Good on ya for that.
 
Getting out of the car and drawing a CCW would have been a poor choice and accomplished nothing good. Sometimes, there is no clear "correct" thing to do...and doing nothing (besides ducking and staying alert) is fine until new data necessitates a change in course of action.

With gang bangers ruthlessly targeting the nuttin' but sky....what action other than getting to cover or driving away would be necessary? Those idiots can shoot the sky all they want for all I care!
 
Drawing would be a bad choice from the sound of it, like others have said, it would have possibly made you a target. I think you did fine, and if I had to do it all myself, I would do exactly that (I would say drive away and circle around once the coast is clear, but you had your reasons, of which I'm not exactly clear BTW).

I think you did fine. Also, I don't envy you in your job, hanging around clubs at closing time, I'll bet you encounter stuff like this more than the cops...
 
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Not only would drawing before being targeting by the bangers be a bad idea in terms of drawing fire, but it would be drawing fire from either a subgun or a bump-firing idiot, and possibly his buddies in the car. They were being stupid and reckless, but you were probably close enough to be out of danger of falling bullets (if it went STRAIGHT up and down onto your car, it would probably only dent the roof...if you were a half-mile away, then you'd be in trouble).

Another thing to bear in mind: If you had peeled out of there at max acceleration, laying rubber, etc...that in and of itself could have conceivably made you a target. You definitely made the right decision about not driving forward if what you say about the layout is true. I don't want to maneuver anywhere NEAR a carful of people randomly shooting guns. Best option: take cover, lay low, and if local legalities permit, draw and hold in a covert manner (don't show them the gun, but have it out in case they actually do start shooting AT people).

They handed you a surprise sh-t sandwich, and you managed to avoid taking a very big bite. You did well.
 
Misses chances. You could have shouted to the girls to hop in, then drive off. Who knows, the girls might have though you were their hero!

Well, look on the bright side. Your learning curve kicked in and I bet next time you WON'T STAND THERE AND DO NOTHING! If there is a next time I bet you will dive for cover and tell others to get down to.

Just keep your roscoe handy. No need to shuck it unless they are shooting at innocents. Keep it handy and keep your head down.
 
have you considered having one of these installed in your taxi?

Here

:D


Like others said, sounds like you didnt have any direct action taken against you, so the fight or flight instincts were on deck, but not in action yet.

and like others said, now that this has happened, you will be better prepared for next time, hopefully there wont be one though.
 
I did write a very accurate police description of the driver for the police though, when I drove by after they caught them I was pleased at how well I described him.
Click to expand...
Shows you kept your head!

I don't think anyone outside of Iraq can go from zero to ten in an instant. You perceived only the noise of gunfire, not directed at you specifically. You didn't perceive a direct threat to yourself so you didn't run for cover. Only upon reflection did you realize what could have happened, which required thought, hence time, in this case a half hour. I think you exercised proper restraint in not escalating the situation.

Sleep well, stay vigilant.
 
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