It happened to me, Carry stories

I've been "mugged" twice. Once at knife point, once with an "alleged" gun I never saw. I wasn't carrying either time. The crook wound up leaving the scene without any of my property both times, once with good chunk of his scalp missing after getting knocked down and banging his head on the sidewalk. I'vd gotta aggree with RonAmok:

7- a gun is a tool. Just because it is the easer tool to use does not make it the best tool.

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Folks,

If you have a story of your own to tell, then tell it.

If you have a question to clarify in your own mind some detail or details in a story that was told here, ask it. If you want to discuss aspects of a story that was told here in a constructive manner, feel free.

If you want to natter, nitpick or criticize in a nonconstructive manner... please don't waste your time posting.

lpl

Here's mine

Just leaving fishing with my best bud and his little brother. Were on a rather rural street that doesnt see much traffic, this chopper style motorcycle is behind us reving and reving. Me and my friend are tired and not talkative(didnt catch anything). The motorcycle rider is apparently upset with the speed of my friends driving, so he pulls up next to us doing the old "shoot you with the finger routine". My friend whom is army was suprisingly calm and so was I. The guy gets in front of us on the road looks back and does the same gesture again. At this point Im thinking he wants trouble. I go fishing with my g26 for one reason and one reason only Gators. So we slowly come to a red light the bikes pulls up next to us in the oppsite lane on the wrong side of the road . He motions as if he is about to draw a pistol from his bag or satchel , I quickly pull my glock chamber a round and point , my friend moves his seat into the recline position with great speed, his brother who is in the back seat lays flat. The guy on the bike realized he messed with the wrong fisherman and speeded off like bat out of hell.

I didnt call the police because no one got the tag number. I know I still should have, at least I could have gave a description.

This type of stuff is why I carry.

trigun87 said:

Here's mine

Just leaving fishing with my best bud and his little brother. Were on a rather rural street that doesnt see much traffic, this chopper style motorcycle is behind us reving and reving. Me and my friend are tired and not talkative(didnt catch anything). The motorcycle rider is apparently upset with the speed of my friends driving, so he pulls up next to us doing the old "shoot you with the finger routine". My friend whom is army was suprisingly calm and so was I. The guy gets in front of us on the road looks back and does the same gesture again. At this point Im thinking he wants trouble. I go fishing with my g26 for one reason and one reason only Gators. So we slowly come to a red light the bikes pulls up next to us in the oppsite lane on the wrong side of the road . He motions as if he is about to draw a pistol from his bag or satchel , I quickly pull my glock chamber a round and point , my friend moves his seat into the recline position with great speed, his brother who is in the back seat lays flat. The guy on the bike realized he messed with the wrong fisherman and speeded off like bat out of hell.

I didnt call the police because no one got the tag number. I know I still should have, at least I could have gave a description.

This type of stuff is why I carry.

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So he didn't actually pull a gun but you did and pointed it at him?

I think you're lucky he didn't call the cops.

There is no right answer, and you don't want to be put into the position of someone getting the drop on you, but.....some DA could look at the facts and see a different picture.

"So he didn't actually pull a gun but you did and pointed it at him?

I think you're lucky he didn't call the cops.

There is no right answer, and you don't want to be put into the position of someone getting the drop on you, but.....some DA could look at the facts and see a different picture."

He was making furtive movements towards his waistline, any police officer would have drawn on him as well. If someone is gesturing and threatening shooting you, you do not want to be the last one to pull out a weapon.

I understand your point, but the guy made not one but three threats to me and the other occupants of the car. In some respects you are right. I cant help but wonder what if I didnt draw my firearm? Would I still be here today? Im no lawyer but I had two other witness view what happened. Its amazing that Im the only one that got a negative response when protecting my life and the life of those I care about. I do believe there are several other post on this thread, in which other individuals drew there gun when the other party didnt even show any indication of a gun or even violence for that matter. Example: the alleged car jacking scenario.

That was the first and last time I hope ever have to draw down on someone.

trigun87, I can't see a thing wrong with what you did. The biker told you with gestures that he wanted to shoot you. Twice. Then instead of continuing on his way he goes out of his way to pull up beside you and makes a movement like he is reaching for a real gun (presumably to shoot you.) I'm a reasonable person and I would be in fear for my life and my friends lives at that point.

I can't help but wonder what might have happened if you didn't draw first.

avdrummerboy said:

"So he didn't actually pull a gun but you did and pointed it at him?

I think you're lucky he didn't call the cops.

There is no right answer, and you don't want to be put into the position of someone getting the drop on you, but.....some DA could look at the facts and see a different picture."

He was making furtive movements towards his waistline, any police officer would have drawn on him as well. If someone is gesturing and threatening shooting you, you do not want to be the last one to pull out a weapon.

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"any police officer would have drawn down on him as well."

Very true. However there are generally different standards for police and non-police. Most (not all) states require non-police to back off from a threat, not confront it or escalate it.

My intent wasn't so much to criticize his actions as to make it clear that the possibility exists that a DA who does not like guns could very well make you the next poster boy in his anti gun campaign.

True, the best corse of action is to get the heck out of dodge (since were not paid to go after bad guys,) but in this case the biker went out of HIS way to put trigun87 and his friends in danger. At that point you have a right to self defense, same reason a police officer carries a gun.

I don't know if drawing the weapon and having it "high an ready" intead of pointed at the guy would help in court if you were accused of brandishing, but that might have been a better route.

One more time-

Tell your own story

Or

Ask questions if you need clarification regarding someone's story

But

Continue with the nitpicking and the woulda-coulda-shoulda, and this thread is going to be closed...

lpl

BTW- generally the first one to dial 9-1-1 gets themselves put in the 'victim' block on the police report... just something to keep in mind.

I was returning home from an IDPA match with my IDPA gun holstered in my truck. It's a little late (before midnight). At a stop light, I notice that there is a young girl in the car next to me sticking her head out of the window and intently staring at me. There are two large, but young, males in the front of the car, and the girl is leaning out of the window from the back seat. I then made my first mistake. I rolled down the window, and gave her a questioning look.

She said something rude back, and the male in the seat closest to the window asked me to provide him a sexual favor.

I rolled up the window and as the light turned green drove away. As I turned into my neighborhood, I noticed that the car had made a sudden lane change to follow. I made a couple of turns to discern whether I was, indeed, being followed. The car flashed its lights and kept close.

I reached for my cell. It was not there. It was in the trunk. Second mistake. My perception was that these were some kids out looking for a little trouble. Probably the two guys wanted to show off for the girl and were looking for a little dustup, which I was not interested in having. I was not scared, but was tired, and really not in the mood to shoot anyone.

So I am considering my options as they follow while making a couple of turns, and then fortune smiles upon me as I spot a police vehicle in an upcoming intersection. I flashed my headlights and captured the officer's attention.

At this point the pursuing group realizes that it has a problem, and pulls up next to me, telling me that they were just messing around. We turn and the cop pulls up next to me and rolls down his window. "They are tailing and harassing me." I say, and the cop pulls them over. I pull up a distance behind, unholster the pistol, and put it on the passenger seat. Cops goes and talks to them, and comes and talk to me.

I keep my hands in view and tell him about the pistol. Tell him about the situation, and explain that I was glad to see him, since it means that I am not going to have to rely on the gun, with the aftermath that could occur. The cop is really cool about, as are his partners who pull up shortly. While one took the gun for a little bit, they returned it to me, fully loaded, a short time later.

Cops tell the idiot kids that they almost picked the wrong guy to harass, that I am armed, apparently a good shooter, and that they should consider that before doing something stupid again. We all go home safely.

Nice catch on finding a police officer. One thing I always try to be aware of is the quickest way to a police station. If I'm ever being followed and having problems I always would consider driving through a police station honking my horn or something like that to get their attention. The other thing is you can just continue to drive...hopefully they'll get bored eventually and leave you be.

Good lesson learned there pittspilot.
I'll have to remember that sort of thing considering all the 'silly' people that I have to deal with during large events here in town

Here's mine:

Back in '04 or '05 I had just been hired on with a new company. I was sent from the midwest to upstate you-know-where to retrieve a vehicle owned by my employer. Another new guy was sent with me to bring back the other vehicle, but he was from east-europe(nothing against that region, you'll see why later), and was a little shy of any common sense. We were given the description of the vehicle and directions as to where it was located.

Now, as we drove down the road to the area where the vehicle was, I look over to my right side and see a prison facility, in the dead of night all lit up in all of it's glory. Yep, a max-security penitentiary. Great, just great, I think to myself. For the next 45 minutes, we drive up and down a dirt road behind a state pen looking for a vehicle that just doesn't seem to be there. We break out the laptop with GPS/map software...nothing. We make emergency calls to higher-ups, and they say "You're in the right spot, it's gotta be there."

So, this Slavic dingbat sitting to my right looks at me and says, "Stop, I go look for it." I tell him it's not safe, and he says, "No, it ok." So I stop, he jumps out, and heads down the side of the dark rural road behind a state prison.

Let me just say that as soon as we got close to the area I had a bad feeling. I've always trusted my gut, and I believe it's kept me alive at least a few times (I've travelled a lot, in Europe and East Europe, and have had my share of danger avoidance situations...just ask me about Budapest, Belfast, Moscow or Naples, I have a story for each...can't carry over there). I immediately grab my big, nasty gerber lmf II infantry knife from my duffel and stuff it in my waistband and also, more importantly, I grab my CZ 97B, with all of it's double-stack .45 goodness, and lay it on my lap while I sit in the driver's seat, parked, idling with lights on, on the side of the dirt road.

30 minutes go by and I am worried for "Sergei". No sign of him or the vehicle that he was supposed to have found. Two cars go by and don't stop, obviously minding their own. 45 minutes, and no sign of my partner. Tension is building in me.

Headlights come up from behind me, and I have hope it's "Sergei". The vehicle slows down as it reaches the vehicle I'm in, and as it pulls up next to me, I realize it's not my partner, but rather a ****ty, compact 4 door with four rough-looking guys in it. The front passenger window is down and the guy looks at me for a second and says, "Are you lost?" And I very calmly reply, "Nope."

The guy takes a few seconds, looks at my truck and says, "Wow, that's a nice truck." I just look at him and didn't reply. By now I have the safety off on my trusty CZ 97B, and I had it pointed towards this guy, however it was just below the door of the truck, my window was all the way down. All I would have needed to do was raise it a few inches to clear the barrel from my door and put him in the line.

I'm not really sure if he believed my calm and confidence and suspected that I had something in my hands, but I was bluffing, at least the calmness, because I was scared, make no doubt about it. I had no idea if these guys each had an assault rifle.

Ok guys, you know when just before you get into a fight there is a pause, and it seems like an eternity, time slows down? There was that "thing" between me and this guy. He looked at me, in my eyes and sized me up... and I just stared back as if I didn't care whether I lived or died. Then he asked me, "Are you cool, then?" And I said, "Yeah, I'm cool."

There was definitely that split-second where he made his decision. The car slowly drove off. Minutes later I see a vehicle coming up behind me, I get ready again, and it turns out to be my partner. Sorry to ramble & thanks for reading, but that was a close one for me.

Gee. None of these stories end in wild west gunfights and the writer standing in a pile of empty brass with dead bodies all around. In fact, in 99% of these the threat was neutralized without a shot being fired. I'm sure the leftist, anti-gun, state-run media wouldn't deliberately LIE to me. That would be unethical! I guess they are just WRONG!

Hmmmm , don't often relate this one.

I was stuck in New Orleans for a period , working down on Napolean amd living up on St Anne in the quarter , due to parking factors at work and the fact that I enjoy walking I was walking back and forth to work most of them time , those of you familar with New Orleans will understand that it's a bit of a distance. And you'll also be aware that on the north side of Quarter ,Rampart is the dividing line , you do not go north of Rampart after dark , you do not go into The Park , not ever , they're much more pleasant ways to expire.

So I get off work at 2 am. , I'm walking home enjoying a July night such as you can only find in New Orlean , thinking about reheating Jambalaya and a steak that I'll broil when I get home. When I reach the stretch of Rampart opposite the Park opposite the park I notice two young gang types across the street , they cross behind me and fall in maybe a hundred feet behind me
pacing me , at this point I knew something was up and knowing how things work I fully expected the three that showed up in the next block lounging against the building ,I just kept walking towards them , there were no other options , maybe fifty feet before I get to them the three of them come off the wall and spread across the sidewalk in front of me and the center one pulls up his shirt to show me the typical cliche 'pimp gun' fake pearl handle grips and all , his mistake and my luck was that he didn't immediately draw it ,keep in mind I could hear the ones behind me speeding up their pace towards me , my reaction was to yank a legally carried (ccw holder) crossdraw rigged model 24 Smith from my left side and move close to the wall on a slight slant so I could see the ones coming from behind me and point out to the one with the pistol that if he touched the pistol I would shoot him , if his buddies continued up on me from behind I would shoot him FIRST , he screamed at them to stop , I then required him to remove the pimp toy from his belt and lay it on the ground and made them retreat across Rampart to the north side of the street. I picked up the pistol and proceeded down Rampart , went all the way past my street down to Dumaine before I turned and down and back around to St Anne to make sure I wasn't followed home.

Next morning I went down and turned over the .32 acp pistol I took from him and reported the incident. The reaction of the fine gendarmerie of N.O.?

A direct quote.


" Why boy , why dincha shoot da scumsuckers , you? Ya had the perfect chance ,you/ Now we mos likely gots to be doing it.

And strangely enough , whether you believe it or not I was at no time scared , it was like I was inside a rather calm bubble , I was even able to assess the others for possible weapons , none visible , and quite frankly the fact that I was so calm and matter of fact coupled with a very large snubnosed revolver appearing out of nowhere completely rattled them, I really never even thought , it was pure reflex as pounded into me at Gunsite
"threat"..."assess threat".." draw to neutralise threat".

And I have very little doubt that had I been unarmed they'd have found my dead , robbed ,abused and possibly burnt body across the street in Louis Armstrong Park the next morning ,just as they found several others that summer.

And yes I can safely say that had he attempted to draw and shoot me I'd have shot him , and quite likely any of the others that moved on me too.

It was a very odd feeling.

Place: Detroit
Time: Mid-90s, summer, 3am
Situation: Just finished work at a local dive that paid well enough and allowed for my school schedule. Since the neighborhood was one of the highest concentrations of crackheads in the city, I decided that my life was more important than following the letter of the law, so I carried a 1911 on me when driving to or from work. During work hours it resided under the bar. On this particular night, I was on the way home at about 3am. Alter Rd. is the dividing line between Detroit and Grosse Pointe, and both PDs ignored it unless something catastrophic happened. I stopped at a red light and, while sitting there, I observed a local youth walking towards me. Since it was about 85 degrees, I had my window down. The aforementioned youth noticed this and changed course towards me while scanning for witnesses. Mind you, I knew what was about to happen and, instead of driving away, I decided to stand my ground. When the young man (who, by this time, was revealed by street lights to be somewhere in his late 20's) was about 10 feet away, I simply raised my 1911 above the door line and pointed at him while shaking my head. His expression indicated that he was aware that he had mistaken me for someone else (someone who was afraid) and made a hasty retreat back down the street from whence he came. Light turned green, I drove home and got some sorely needed sleep.

Same time and place, same bar. I had just started what was going to be a long night. One of the regulars was Dan, an electrician that lived in the apartment building behind the bar.

On the day in question, Dan was quietly drinking a beer and, I thought, talking to one of the bar stains that frequented the place. Dan catches my attention and says, "Will you tell this guy to quit bugging me for drinks?"

I look at about 120 pounds of alcoholic nuisance and ask him, "Do you have money?"

"Man, I know this dude. Remember? We was at that other bar and talkin'?"

I look at Dan who states, "I've never seen this guy in my life."

I ask Mr. Stain, "Do you want a beer?"

"I wants one, but I ain't got no money!"

"Well, no money, no reason to be here. You'll have to leave."
After a couple of references to my race and ancestry, he says, "MAKE me leave this bar!"

I start to come around the bar when he scurries out the exit. About 5 minutes later, another regular comes in and says there's some guy outside waving a gun in a holster around saying that he's gonna shoot me. At this, I call the police and let them know what's up. In the meantime, Stain leans in the door and asks me outside saying, "I gots somethin' to show you."

I indicate that anything he wants to show me, he's going to have to show me in the bar because I can't leave. Another familial reference and he's out the door.

Now business has begun picking up and a few minutes later, I hear the door open. I look to see Mr. Stain coming in again. I pick up my 1911 from under the bar and point it towards him below the bar, out of sight.

Now Mr. Stain is apologetic and asking my forgiveness. Knowing this to be a diversionary tactic, I keep my distance and keep the pistol pointed in his direction. About that time, 2 of Detroit's Finest walk in and I point them towards Mr. Stain. They brace him and go through his pockets. I hear one of the cops say, Do you know how stupid you are? That man was going to kill you (meaning me)."

The officer then proceeds to show me a semi-realistic squirt gun that Mr. Stain kept in an eyeglasses case, and a pint of Mohawk Vodka that he had in his other pocket. Handcuffs, apologies, and big thanks to the officers, and another night is off and running.

This summer my wife and I were in Sundace Square in Ft Worth. We both have CHL's and are both carrying. It was late and we were making our way to our car which was park out aways. We were getting farther away from the crowds into more isolated spots as we moved toward our car. Then my wife uses our security word. I go on alert, which I should have been on anyway. I turn to her and she says we are being followed. Sure enough some guy is following us because when we turned, he turned. When we stopped he stopped. We turned a corner and stopped where there were some people around. This time he caught up to us, but was suprised. He turned one way and turned back toward us. Stumbled with his words and asked if I had any change. With my wife behind me, gun drawn, and my right hand on my holstered gun I told him in a very loud voice "No and you need to move along." He states I just need some change. I repeat myself a little louder and then he sees that I am prepared to draw my weapon. His eyes got big and he just walked off in another direction. He did not have the appearance of a homeless beggar. Thanks to my wife for being the alert one. I made sure that I kept eye contact with him the entire time. And we watched him ultil he was out of sight. We made several "Crazy Ivans" as we made our way to our car. We were both shook up and later thought that we should have called the cops.

This is the best thread on this forum!! Thanks to all that have shared thier stories.

Kevin77 said:

This is the best thread on this forum!! Thanks to all that have shared thier stories.

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+1
I'd love to hear more. It helps my think through scenarios that may occur.

If you are going to carry a firearm to protect yourself why not carry it in ready to use if needed.

I was hiking into the backcountry a few years ago to scout some territory for elk hunting. I do this every summer, and I'm most always alone. And I hike deep into the wild.

It was opening day of Colorado's archery season, and I was headed up to the western slope of a particular string of hills early in the morning. After hours of hiking, I reached the mountainside, and I hiked uphill several hundred yards and found a well used game trail. I followed it laterally for several hundred yards more before it began to fade away in a boulder field. I decided this would be a good place to rest and have a sip of water. Little did I know that I was seconds away from an encounter that I remember to this very day.

As I was standing there, listening to the sounds of the forest, I heard something that usually gets me excited. Twigs cracking, sticks breaking, and hooves thundering. It all happened pretty fast. I spun around to the direction of the sound. There was a moose charging right toward me with a few elk in tow, all stomping straight downhill from above me. Like I said, it all happened pretty fast.

All I could figure was that I was being charged as they were coming right for me. So I pulled my Blackhawk from my shoulder rig and...




When they got down to me, there was a cow moose, a cow & calf elk, and a bull elk running single file, straight downhill. I was on the well used game trail I mentioned earlier. Just as they reached the game trail, the moose turned straight away from me, and headed down the trail, the same way I had come from. All the elk followed.

They were running as though they had been spooked out of their spot up above, but I have a hard time imagining that hunters had made it that far in, up that high, that early. But maybe. Anyway, there have been several instances in the backcountry when I've pulled my .357 on a rogue moose, but luckily I haven't had to fire on any of them.


I know this story probably wasn't the type of post this thread is looking for, so I tried to dramatize it as much as possible for effect. I posted it because it falls under the title of "It happened to me, Carry stories", and for fun. Otherwise, it's just another one of my moose stories where I almost had to kill one of the stupid beasts.

I like your story none the less CoRoMo....

I grew and and now play in some of the most remote woods in the US, I always carry in the deep woods... I have never had to use it.... wish I could say the same about the city...