Almost got robbed , i think .

[robodood605]

First of all this happened about a year ago and when i just discovered THR . I have been lurking around for a while but i think its time to tell my event . This takes place in Hollywood Florida at oakwood plaza and im 17 at the time ( 18 now )

A few days before this happened i discovered THR and read a thread about being jumped in your car , Anyhow flash froward a few nights and it is around 1:00 am . I have just got out of a movie with my sister and a friend , the friend goes her way and me and my sister go to my 1989 Jeep Cherokee .

I start driving down the road , but i realise im not sure how to drive back to my house so i ask my sister to get out my gps and plug it in . We stop at a stop sighn at the mall and i let the car idle while i fiddle with the GPS . To the right of me is a high curb with a small bush on it and in front of me is the stop sighn , Anyhow i am playing with the GPS when suddenly out of the corner of my eye i see a person wearing green camouflage and wearing a eye patch . I think to myself how strange it is to see a person here at 1:00 am . Anyhow when i look at him he looks a little surprised , like he thought i would not notice him , then as he is approaching my window he asks me if i have the time (he is about 5 feet away). Well thats when my gut told me something was wrong here . He kept walking towards me and i told him i don't have a watch ( i know stupid ) while keeping the window 90% of the way up ( he is now about 3 feet away) . Then he asks me to roll down the window and asks if i have a smoke , out of the corner of my eye i see another person who moved in front of my car . That is when my alarm bells started going off because the guy in front of me had one hand his hands in his pocket and the other is out . Also he is wearing the same shirt the other guy is wearing . The guy to the left then taps on my window and tells me to roll my window down . While he is saying that i shift into drive and turn the steering wheel all the way to the right were the curb with the bushes are and just as im about to go is see the guy in front me take something out of his pocket but i don't know what is was and still don't it was too dark and i just glanced at it, anyhow i push the throttle almost to the floor and bounce over the curb (this is in a parking lot ) and drive over to the other parking section and get back on Stirling Road then get the hell out of there!

After this my sister says to me "maybe they just wanted the time" i told her she's crazy and well we did not talk about it after that . Really , maybe they just wanted the time and maybe the guy in front of me took out his wallet , i really don't know , but my gut was screaming at me for me to get out of there . I'm not sure . I did not call the police , because of my sisters comment making me second guess myself . I remember this very vidly becuase i replayed over and over in my head . Althoug after that i told myself i love my jeep because it went over a huge curb like a champ and i cant wait to be able to carry in my car .

I know this is long but i tried to include every detail.

 

[Rolando]

Classic mugger routine, "Got a smoke? no? OK, give me your wallet!!"
Good move getting out of there.

 

[armoredman]

You did the right thing.

 

[Fred Fuller]

It was an interview- http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/interview.htm .

Fortunately, you failed...

lpl (also look at http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/five_stages.html )

 

[Carl]

Sounds kind of confusing. To the OP, he passed the interview since he got away safely but to the criminal he failed the interview.

For your safety, you passed the interview.

 

[Carl]

One time at a gas station in a not so great area, I had a scrappy looking guy approach me as I was filling my truck and ask me for a few dollars. I assume he wanted me to take my wallet out so he could snatch it and run. He had a few others watching from another pump and I instantly put my hand on my hip under my shirt (I actually wasn't carrying at the time) and had that leg back to make a quick accessible Isosceles stance and firmly said, "No, sorry."

He was quick to accept my answer and walked off.

 

[scottaschultz]

...I instantly put my hand on my hip under my shirt (I actually wasn't carrying at the time) and had that leg back to make a quick accessible Isosceles stance and firmly said, "No, sorry."

He was quick to accept my answer and walked off.

Personally, I think this was a very bad idea. Something I think people fail to realize is that carrying a concealed weapon is not the sole domain of us honest, law-abiding folks who just want to protect themselves.

In this case, you got lucky, very lucky. Instead of walking off, if this guy was really intent on robbing you, he could have reached under his shirt and pulled a gun on you in which case you would have been majorly screwed!

I do think people adapt their response to a situation like this if they are carrying a gun, but by the same token, you should not respond the same way when you are not carrying a gun!

Scott

 

[skoro]

After this my sister says to me "maybe they just wanted the time" i told her she's crazy and well we did not talk about it after that

You were being "interviewed" prior to the next move, which would be criminal - robbery or hijacking more than likely. You did the right thing by leaving the area ASAP.

The take-away lesson here: dawdling in your vehicle in a mall parking lot draws predators like blood draws sharks. NEVER fumble around when entering or exiting your vehicle. Stop, get out, lock up and carry on. When you return, have the keys in hand, unlock, get in, and go.

Don't make yourself a target.

 

[Fred Fuller]

Carl, please read the links I posted above. Passing a criminal interview means you move forward in the victim selection process. NOT a desireable end... 8^).

Any time I'm pumping gas, I already have a significant projectile weapon ready for use in my hand...

lpl (a snootful of Regular makes the attitude go down... not what Mary Poppins said, I know)

 

[Yosemite Sam]

Lee thanks for that link. I had never heard of that "No Nonsense Self-Defense" website, and it has about a million good articles!

 

[Prophet]

OP, you're basically the same age as myself. Driving back and forth to school and activities/hangouts this year is a major concern for myself and my parents. It's part of the reason I've been doing a lot of reading on this site, learning new and better ways to protect myself.

Definitely read the article(s) that Lee Lapin posted.... Lee, this is the first time I've read an article from this site (let alone hearing of it). I'm still carousing through the other articles. The aspects of defense and complacency discussed in these articles are put in more complex terms than I had ever thought of them in, yet they are written in a way that is easy for my brain to grasp and understand. Thanks for making that site known to me, it'll now go alongside THR for my almost daily self-defense reading.

P.S. The article on fringe areas was particularly helpful.

P.S.S. Though a pistol is no substitute for smarts and awareness, I still can't wait until I can legally carry in a vehicle too...

 

[Sheepdog1968]

You did the right thing getting out to there. Trust your gut. If you were wrong about their intentions, so what. Pepper spray is also a good thing to keep in the car as well.

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

Carl, sorry to be so blunt, but that just sounds like a really dumb thing to do.

Bluffing a draw on a guy for asking for a few bucks?

 

[SFB]

robo you definitely did the right thing. i also live in south florida and there are way to many criminals lurking the streets to second guess your gut reaction. i never loiter in "fringe areas" at night. my answer to street walkers is always a firm and commanding "NO." i'd rather hurt some innocent persons feelings than get robbed or worse.

 

[scottaschultz]

I said it in Post #7, Davidsdivad said it in Post #13 and I will say it again, but robodood605 did THE WRONG THING and got lucky!

Just like playing poker, don't bluff if you are not prepared to lose! If this guy had a gun, what was robodood605 suposed to do, defend himself with his index finger? This putting your hand on your hip motion signalled the other guy that you were ready to use lethal force against him at which time it is perfectly reasonable to expect he would do the same thing as you would do if someone threatened you with a gun; stop the threat!

I see that the OP has edited the initial post to remove the line about placing his hand on his hip, but that doesn't change the fact that it happened. Please learn from this mistake. You are alive because you are lucky, not because you did something tactically correct.

Scott

 

[GLOOB]

I agree it's probably the wrong move in this case (and most all cases). It doesn't sound like he was reasonably threatened. If he HAD been CCW'ing, it would have been a horrible move, because he would have been brandishing.

But if he really felt reasonably threatened by the guy and the other guys that were watching, then maybe, just maybe, it could hypothetically have been a good move. The other guy in this situation would have been the aggressor, and he could have "stopped the threat" by turning around and walking away; he wouldn't have to draw his own gun to protect his life. If this is a bluff or not, it doesn't matter if the other guy has a gun and has already decided to use it. In fact, a bluff here is better than nothing, because the guy might decide he doesn't want to find out who's the better shot.

If criminals are "interviewing" people for a soft target, I think they'd have to deduct a lot of points for someone they believe has a gun and is ready to use it.

BTW, in poker, sometimes a bluff is your best move. But you better have some very compelling reasons and be very desperate to try that kind of a bluff.

 

[Jon Coppenbarger]

can't you feel you heart racing! That feeling of being alive? remember be ruthless and never tell on your self or a story that can ever get back to you. EVEN TO A LOVED ONE YEARS LATER!

 

[travellingJeff]

For the record, in poker, don't bluff unless you're prepared to WIN. Bluffing to lose is a poor mans proposition. If you're convinced your opponent isn't bringing a power hand, then you can bluff. Obviously, the gy didn't get killed, so in that situation, he chose wisely.

 

[GLOOB]

For the other record,

Wow. Where do you live? I've been asked for spare change (more recently "a couple bucks" due to inflation ) thousands of times in my life, and I've never felt threatened. Sometimes I'm annoyed. Sometimes, I'm just not affected at all, to the point of acting like I didn't hear and barely having to pretend. (In this case, not even making eye contact, let alone trying to assess the "potential threat" of an alcoholic bum or the blank-eyed washout asking me if I've found Jesus.) Rarely, there seems to be a genuine predicament, and I respond with sympathy. Threatened by someone asking for change? Not yet happened.

I guess when I'm old and frail and slow and driving a Mercedes, that will change.

 

[scottaschultz]

You should always bluff to win with the understanding that you might lose. If you lose in a poker game, you have lost your ante and whatever stakes you have bet up to that point. When you lose in a situation where there are guns involved, you are dead! Dead is forever. There are no do-overs. There is no chance at getting your winnings back on the next hand.

I can not imagine any situation where bluffing that you have a gun is a good idea. A bluff here is NOT better than nothing because if a guy approaches you and demands your money and valuables and you don't have a gun, the best case scenario is that you lose your Amex card and Rolex. The worst case, of course, is that he shoots you anyway so you can't identify him.

If this is a bluff or not, it doesn't matter if the other guy has a gun and has already decided to use it. In fact, a bluff here is better than nothing, because the guy might decide he doesn't want to find out who's the better shot.

But then again, he might not! Why on earth would you take that chance? It has nothing to do with who is the better shot. I has everything to do with who makes the first shot! Bluffing is like begging the other guy to take that first shot.

Scott

 

[SFB]

you guys are getting carl and robo's stories confused. robo didn't fake having a gun, that was carl.

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

Word up, SFB.

I was talking to Carl, not robo, hahaha.


re-ding comp re hen shun

 

[GLOOB]

It has nothing to do with who is the better shot. I has everything to do with who makes the first shot! Bluffing is like begging the other guy to take that first shot.

I'm gonna continue playing devil's advocate, here, for kicks. Even though, I mostly agree with you, but I'd rather "never say never."

Yes, it's about who would make the first shot. And who is the one that already has his hand on his "gun," ready to draw and shoot in 0.6 seconds? In this case, you're not "begging the other guy to take a shot." In this case, bluffing might be more aking to warning the guy NOT to try anything stupid, cuz you aren't having any. It's STOPPING escalation. It's not like these two guys are in the parking lot swinging dicks in a pissing contest. Shouting, bumping chests, and yelling "you want a piece of me!??! Well do you!?"

If I'm the bad guy:

1. I know that I can turn around and walk away, and the victim is not going to open fire on me, otherwise he would have already started shooting. I turn my back and mutter "what a #$%##$%-#$%#$# #@$%#$" under my breath, and live to rob/murder the next guy. Afterall, I've done nothing illegal so far, at least nothing that will stand up in court.

2. Being on drugs and carrying a gun might make me feel like a big, bad, tough guy, and maybe I had a real bad day on top of it... But when there's a guy staring me down, hand already on his gun, that's gonna take away a lot of my thunder. I'm probably gonna think twice before reaching for anything under my shirt in that situation, unless I'm feeling especially suicidal from the the PCP raging through my blood (sarcasm). Even if I shoot him first, there's a good chance I'll be shot and end up in a hospital... then get caught for this crime or go to jail for my outstanding warrants - or die.

3. So instead of getting shot, I'll walk back to my evil, murderous cronies, and the first one that cracks a smile gets smacked upside the head.

If you really think your life is in danger, and you're alone and outnumbered and weaponless, then there are a number of unconventional things you might try to gain control of the situation. Bluffing strength is one of them. Why dismiss it so readily? Again, I reiterate that this situation didn't sound very threatening (to anyone else, but we weren't there). But I can imagine that a bluff might be a valid option in certain situations. Numerous species in the animal kingdom make extensive use of the show of force that's rarely backed up by actual physical confrontation. There are a lot of animals that mimic the coloration of poisonous species, even though they aren't. That's because sometimes it works. And someday, that might be all you have in the bag. So if you should ever find yourself circled by a pack of hungry predators, what's wrong with portraying yourself as a bitter pill to swallow? At least it's showing the guy(s) that you not gonna lay down and die without trying something.

Ok, you don't think your acting skills are up to the task for this kind of a bluff. Let's blur the line a little, and give you a very convincing prop. Let's say the guy pulls a knife out and you believe his intent is not to take your wallet, but to slit your throat. You draw your Colt Pony, and realize at the last second that it's empty (due to the recent scarcity of .380 ammo). Do you immediately drop it to the ground and say "Don't worry. It's unloaded! Please don't hurt me?"

Anyway, sorry off topic. Yeah, was talking about Carl, too.

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

Gloob, the simple fact is that you aren't 1. 2. or 3. so you can't possibly know what's going through their heads, and to count on scaring them away based on what you imagine they're thinking is, IMO, ridiculous.

 

[rubicon923]

I think Carl's gas station bluff was exactly the right thing to do.

Gas stations are popular venues for robberies. Carl's did not pull out a gun and threaten an innocent panhandler. His behavior suggested to the potential robber that he may not be an easy mark. Does anyone think the robber wants to get shot for a few dollars? Of course not, he disengaged and probably waited for an easier victim to come along.