Is there a duty to report a crime?

[Owen Sparks]

A buddy stopped by the house visibly upset with story that I would like to relate here. This was his first time out with his CCW permit and new Glock, the first gun he has ever owned. He went to the city and was confronted by a very aggressive panhandler who would not take no for an answer. He never actually threatened my friend but his demands became increasingly more insistent and as he followed my friend back to his car as the situation escalated. My friend swept his Hawaiian shirt back to reveal his CCW as he retrieved his keys. This caught the man’s attention and he backed off. The friend got in his car and drove home. That is all there was to it.

This seems to be a grey area between begging and robbery though this panhandler was obviously getting close to crossing the line. Then again my friend was careful not to cross the line either as all he really did was get his keys out of his pocket. He did not make any verbal threat to the panhandler or acknowledge the fact that he was armed.
My question: Did a crime take even place?
And if so was my buddy required to report it?
Suppose things went a little farther and he had to draw but the man backed off and fled?

Then what? He certainly could not chase him down and hold him at gun point until the police arrived because he could not back up his threat by shooting the man.

Would there be any point in him calling the police and filing a complaint? They would probably never catch the guy and being that the city is over 100 miles away he poses no future threat to my friend so he just let it go.

 

[NavyLCDR]

In some states, your buddy would be guilty of brandishing a firearm if the panhandler pushed the issue. This hardly rises to the level of needing to defend oneself from grave bodily injury or death, IMHO. I don't buy the "gun was accidently exposed" story.

Of course we don't know what state this took place in, so we can't intelligently discuss the laws that would be involved.

I would not exactly call the police and report that a panhandler was harassing me, but he took off when he saw my gun.... unless, the gun is always open carried anyway in a state in which open carry is lawful.

 

[mljdeckard]

Not necessarily a duty, but I think he should report it for a few reasons.

The first one to call the police is the victim. If he showed a gun, took off, and the OTHER guy called the police, he would be on the defensive.

It is possible that the other guy has a track record and has been warned about bad behavior before, and he is under suspicion, and the police want to know if he has been harassing people, and they might be trying to put together a case against him because of OTHER incidents, and they need to be able to establish a history of aggressive behavior.

I started a thread in here once, asking; "If the gun comes out, do the police get called, period?" I think that if an incident occurs where you are in enough fear that you drew or almost drew a gun, it needs to be reported.

I don't think your friend 'brandished' criminally. He had a legitimate escalation of force and when he showed the gun, it made the threat back down. But the definition for brandishing may differ from state to state.

 

[Strykervet]

I think brandishing is loosely defined as showing a firearm in such a way that a normal person would be intimidated by it. An action to show the firearm is usually needed (just having it on your hip when open carry is okay is not brandishing). Pulling back the shirt, whether to get keys or not, could be viewed as such because of the situation. It obviously intimidated the guy or he wouldn't have left, no? Now he could call the cops first and your bud could be arrested for brandishing. If he called the cops first, it may or may not get ironed out. The cops could turn on your buddy, depending on whether or not he gets a sensible one. If somebody else saw this and called, flip a coin.

As far as duty to report, in WA you have to report seeing a crime in progress against another, or someone in danger; you can be charged for failing to report a hit and run, shooting, robbery, etc., if you see it happen. I think there has to be a victim, criminal or otherwise.

Best advice is to run the bum off first I guess. I carry in much the same fashion, when the wind blows and it shows, nobody makes a deal out of it. Usually nobody even notices it. But I try not to reach for that side during a "problem" unless I'm reaching for it for real.

 

[friscolatchi]

Put keys wallet watch on weak side. He probably should have reported it.

 

[MedWheeler]

I don't think a crime took place here. However, if the beggar had actually gone and told police that someone "pulled a gun on me", and they caught up with your buddy, it would be hard to dispel that story since he would actually have a gun on him (in the minds of the cops, how would the beggar even know the subject had a gun if it hadn't been "brandished"?)
I don't know what your buddy looks like, or how he carries himself, but it's possible the beggar may have actually thought he was a cop himself.
If your friend thought a crime had taken place (only he knows what the beggar said), it would have certainly been in his best interest to report it of he felt it was necessary to display his weapon. As a rule, if you draw or otherwise display (or announce you are in possession of) a weapon, you should be the first one to call it in. As has been said, this prevents the other guy from getting his side of the story, which will, of course, be markedly different, in first.

 

[Owen Sparks]

It sounds like my friend did the right thing by "accidentaly" exposing his Glock and then getting out of town. This individual is not really a wimp but he is what I would call mild mannered and soft spoken as well as middle aged and only stands about 5'8" and weighs about 150 pounds. He has never played sports or set foot in a gym. According to him the panhandler was "a big black guy" and conciderably younger. Probably jonesing for a fix and thought he found an easy mark.

 

[hermannr]

If your friend was in fear for his own personal safety (not an unbelieveable situation), it was justified. Do you remember Bernard Goetz? He shot 4 agressive kids trying to rob him. He shot them (yes, in NYC) with a concealed pistol. They tried him, and all they managed to convict him of was possession of a firearm without a permit (BTW: "a firearm" in NYS legal lingo means pistol.)

 

[Art Eatman]

Enough.