over 10 years ago i drew my weapon (sig p228 9mm) to intervene on behalf of an innocent person who was in the process of getting killed to death by a pretty ruthless gang of youths. i had a valid ccw for the state at the time.
this was on a subway train on the border of large liberal (= extremely anti-gun) northeastern
city X.
by the time i lawfully stopped the attack (without firing a shot), the train stopped just over the town line in
'burb Y.
transit cops from
city X and
'burb Y swarmed the train.
the transit cops from city X were looking for an excuse to charge me with attempted murder. transit cops interviewed all the passengers on the train to see if my muzzle crossed any of them. thank God my muzzle went straight up to the perps!
the 'burb cops from town Y (where I happened to reside at the time) talked the transit cops from city X out of charging me with anything. They pointed at me, shaking (adrenaline dump, and it was cold!) on a station bench beside the track. I remember the words very clearly by cops from 'burb Y: "Look at him! Does he deserve to be arrested?"
transit cop from
city X was understandably wound-up. i was courteous to the officer and explained to him that the young victim, who was beaten to a bloody pulp, was going to be killed by this group of thugs (which, incidentally, I had allowed to rapidly retreat when the train operator finally had the presence of mind to open the doors after I drew my weapon.) transit cop from
city X put my CCW under a microscope and checked every fact (name, addy, occupation, occupation, occupation, occupation!) to look for inconsistencies. there were none. he was finished with me, warned me that he would be talking to all witnesses again, and said he would have me charged with attempted murder IF HE DETERMINED THAT MY MUZZLE CROSSED ANY INNOCENTS. i rather vapidly said "yes sir, thank you officer" and shook his hand. (you know how you say thank you after you get a speeding ticket? LOL).
the watch officer from
town Y (the nice cops) came up to me and firmly lectured me about the risks and complexities of CCW on the train. he asked me "what if they were ahmed?"
i explained to him that the bad guys were armed (brass knuckles or similar). in fact, before i got involved, i saw a number of very large guys who tried to stop the thugs get knocked out by these punks with well-aimed shots to the temple. i think a few of them sustained skull fractures.
beat cops from
town Y then gave me my weapon back and gave me a ride home, not far from the train station.
i couldn't thank cops from
town y enough for being friendly, courteous, professional, and above all, FAIR.
they stuck up for me knowing that i was a good guy.
fast forward a year later. county prosecutor from
City X tracks me down by phone after I've moved to a mega city (end of three letter abbreviation rhymes with "Z"). i was surprised at the call. the d.a. told me they caught the perps, that they were going to be charged with felonious assault/battery, and that the victim was going to be okay, and just asked me more details on the case so they could proceed with prosecution. of course i was courteous and helpful, but mindful of the fact that i could still be charged by that state.
so my experiences with LEO's are colored by this one unforgetful event. i try not to criticize LEO's, who have to put up with this kind of crap every day. they have my complete respect
