I registered JUST for this post
I lived in Philadelphia's University City section for about five years. Gunfire was a constant thing but after a few months of living there, I stopped hearing it. It's not that it went away, it's that I simply became that used to it.
About two years ago I was doing my normal jogging circuit which took me from my apartment, over the Spring Garden bridge, and to the art museum. It was a 1 mile run from my doorstep to the Museum, so figure about two miles a day running which is just enough to keep me from getting fat sitting in Drexel's classes. Drexel's firearms policy is "forbidden". You're not allowed to have them in class, you're not allowed to have them in the dorms, and you're not allowed to have them on Drexel's property, which is why the area is enjoying a resurgence in the crime rate. Drexel's idea of "safe" is to put those useless blue security poles up everywhere and put cameras up. As far as I'm concerned, I know that will make for some interesting viewing at my funeral. But that's beside the point which is that the University City area is becoming more dangerous. It's actually quite sad since I've seen the "DMZ" expand out past 40th and Lancaster, only to be met with in upsurge in crime as wealthier (and possibly more naive) people move into the recently improved areas.
About two years ago, I was doing my normal route and 'in the zone' which means 'not paying attention'. My Spider Sense went off and I realized I was being followed by someone wearing dark clothes and a dark puffy jacket on a bike (in summer). I'm wearing jogging shoes, a tee shirt, and shorts and not carrying a wallet or cellphone which means it's going to be hard to placate a potential mugger. I was smart enough to run up the steps and into the well lit area but unfortunately for me in this time of the afternoon, the normal doormen to the museum had left and no-one was around. I sat on the steps for about 20 minutes and no-one came by, and I couldn't find the guy. I started my jog back and realized he was behind me again. I happened to have my BS folding multitool on me, which has an all-but-useless small folding blade. I went into my pockets, pulled out the blade, and held it out beside me to let him know I wasn't going to go quietly into the good night and he decided to turn down 32nd st. Which was good enough for me to set the land speed record for running all the way back to the apartment.
That night I applied for a CCW and now carry any time I'm in Philly. It's simply not worth your life. While I feel for your friend in his situation, I think the solution is not wearing body armor but having a more proactive stance. Your friend might be hit by stray fire, but then he's just as likely to be hit in the head or thigh as he is in the chest (probably moreso on his legs considering he's probably sitting high on the bike and shooters are probably aiming for the center of mass and bullets drop). On the other hand, if he's being robbed and subsequently shot, there's a darn good chance someone is going to shoot him in the face or at least realize that he's not bleeding. The inexperienced violent criminal might let him go with a few rounds to the vest but the face-to-face robber is going to get on him, ask for his wallet (or not -- dead people don't say no) and put the clip in him. I think much better advice is to tell him to spend his money on a gun first, then a vest. At least then if he goes down, it'll be shooting, and he might get lucky and be able to kill the bad guy before he's dead.
Now, getting your CCW in Philly is a hairy matter. He's going to have to make a LOT of noise to get it pushed through or use an alternate address outside of Philly. Street has raised the signal-to-noise ratio on getting a permit and I've had friends who have had no trouble and friends who have had to call the station to raise hell before the paperwork was pushed through. My advice is to use his parents address or a relative who lives outside of city limits. To be honest, they don't check the address too hard and give your references just a passing interview of "Is he an alcoholic? Does he have a history of violence? Would there be any reason not to arm him?" They didn't even call one of my references. To quote the Philadelphia police for for college students wanting their CCW, "Please apply for a permit using your permanent address" which I've taken to mean, "Don't feel like you can't have this, but make our lives easier and register for it somewhere where the mayor isn't an idiot about gun policy".
But any further questions, feel free to check my profile and send an e-mail or IM.
