Self Defense in School Lockdowns

[EricTheBarbarian]

anytime you are at a school you are completely vulnerable and an easy target. you are completely screwed if someone comes in shooting and thats what they want you to be. its not politically correct to defend yourself or carry anything for protection at a school. the police are there to protect you, just like they protected the 32 people who got gunned down at VT. i found out the hard way you dont want to have ANYTHING to protect yourself at a school. the immediate questions are what crime are you going to commit with that. saying there have been alot of armed robberies around campus and were fearing for your life is no defense. you are immediately viewed as a criminal. using boots or textbooks for body armor? i hope youre joking. you might as well be using an assault wheelbarrel. ive got to the point where id rather take my chances with maybe having a psycho shooting the place up than ending up arrested by the campus police and kicked out of school.

 

[kikr]

I had my first Black Belt at 14, my second at 18 I was a senior in high school. Most of my buddies either studied with me or played football, or baseball. None of us would have tolerated some flaming metrosexual pansy shooting up our school.

I know, I know its not cool to say it anymore but the only way out of an ambush is to fight your way through it. Too many people are willing to be good witnesses or dead victims. "Hero" is a dirty word, unless it's applied to dope smoking rappers who just got acquited of their third rape charge, or basketball players who shot a 3 pointer with a broken pinkie.

 

[tepin]

How about attending an online school? that might be better than using a math book as body armor.

 

[helpless]

Shoelaces and a text book.

I would sneak up behind the shooter and choke him out like a silent assassin.

Then I would disappear into the darkness.

 

[Hokkmike]

The easiest and sadiest notion will be for all of the rest of us good guys to not have our guns. See, a law will keep the bad guy from using his! (yeah, right) Now that is incredibly stupid!

 

[Kevlarman]

While I was in college, I had a level II Kevlar panel in my backpack. Sure, it wouldn't do squat if I was shot in the chest or the face, but if I'm fleeing, my backside is what's going to be presented.

I also carried a pocket knife and cellphone, and routinely wandered the school during non-class time to plot out the bes tpossible escape routes.

Sadly, CCW in Riverside County is pretty hard to come by.

 

[geronimotwo]

look for, or keep in your backpack, a heavy rubber door stopper if none available then i would use some wood as a wedge under the door to keep it closed,

 

[cgraham]

CLASSES shuld be discussing responses to such situations, RIGHT NOW!

The best strategy if a barricade is unsuccessful IMO, is to coordinate an attack. Everyone hurls objects at the shooter(s), and under the cover of the barrage, charges. Everyone latches onto a limb and the BG goes down. Forde a finger or pen behind the trigger. Bash head on floor until unconcious.

This approach risks two or three persons getting shot, not necessarily killed, but saves the rest. Since no-one knows if they will be an unlucky one, everyone will have hope.

This approach may work best if 2-3 coordinators are apponted, any of whom can utter code words, e.g. "throw" and "roll". A coordinator who is not under direct surveillance can then choose the psychological moment, which probably should be when BG has completely entered the room, so he can be approached from several angles.

If the BG stands at the door shooting, then the charge may be to force the door closed rather than to drop the shooter.

There is strength in numbers (and more in coordination).
C.

PS: See Post #29 at http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=270675C.

 

[karz10]

Hmmm, if I had the resources... I see a morbid but possibly real opportunity, at least sales to the more affluent parent...

A Kevlar style backpack, possibly reinforced on one side (the flat side) w/ a plate of some type. Then, the zippers unzip all the way around and when you do this, additional material is let loose so you can slip it on as a vest (if you've ever seen any convertible/portable clothing that can be zipped up to be their own carry bag, or temp rain suit for golfers, you'll know what I mean) velcro straps to secure it around the body.

I admit it's kind of out there, but it could be done, so it doent' help the guy getting 'sucker shot' but if you hear gun fire you could drop your bag, unzip it and slip it on if you were in a place where you didn't have a free getaway (otherwise you would have already gotten away) while it wouldn't help at point blank range, it might help if you had to try a counter attack, or had a chance to get away but knew you might still get shot at in the process.

Just thinking out loud. As for practical things you'd already have at your disposal, I can't think of too many things that would help a sitting duck except to not be a sitting duck, move, run, or if your stuck somewhere barricade yourself in the room and/or have a plan to attack the gunman once he enters, grab a flagpole (do they still have those in class rooms?), break a chair leg off, a broom handle, find some glass that's not safety glass (if that's possible) and break it, tie it w/ some clothing around a stick, find a bottle of something flamable in a janitor's closet or lab, and throw a molitaf (spelling?) cocktail at him, find some other chemical and throw it in his eyes when he comes in the room, wet down the floor w/ soapy water and some how encourage him to run into it fall on his ass and jump him or hit him w/ one of the above, fire extinguisher to the face, or if strong enough hit him over the head w/ it as he enters the room, i don't know, still thinking out loud...

Basically think "home alone" w/ higher stakes, since it's not a movie you're in.

Karz

 

[ilbob]

The problem with a lock down is that it assumes that some idiot bureaucrat made the right decision about every possible condition. Keep in mind they are the same people that come up with zero tolerance policies that suspend teenagers if they take an aspirin or a vitamin pill with their lunch.

OTOH, the times when there is any real danger in schools are minimal, so overall, lock downs are probably not harmful. It might be better than having a bunch of students wandering aimlessly around.

Personally, I would try and get the hell out. If stuck, lock and barricade the door(s) to the classroom.

 

[Caimlas]

From what I recall, many/some classrooms have doorways which are recessed into the room several feet to provide an area for the door to open up into (in the hall). Someone or a group of someones could stand beside the doorway (on both or either side, depending on layout) and jump a shooter from the side.

The heavy wood doors could also be used to batter him down w/ the force of multiple people pushing from behind, provided they don't have pistons to prevent them from swinging quickly/slamming.

Fire extinguisher used to spray him and/or as a bludgeon, and possibly spray down the floor (IIRC the stuff is pretty slick) to precede people to throw at him.

Is there a paper cutter in the room? You've now got a badass cleaver.

Crush up chalk and throw the powder at his face to potentially blind him.

Chairs, and maybe those 'chair/desks' (again, depending on how the classroom is laid out) could be employed in a pile in front of the doorway to prevent his entry, or, at least, slow him down or trip him up.

For E&E, things like shirts, belts, and bras could be tied together to provide a rope out of a higher story window.

Any number of (manual) draftsman's tools could be employed as crude swords/knives/shivs. But, unlike the VT situation, it assumes you're going to at least give a concerted effort at fighting back.

Two words: flag pole. Might make an effective pike, or at the least a quarterstaff. And, depending on how big the flag is, it could be thrown upon him to captivate him.

Shoelaces could (I guess) be used as a tripwire - but, if you've got enough time for that, you'd probably think of something else. And who wants to die barefoot?

A lot of it depends on the environmental nature of the classroom and the school.

When it comes down to it, any combined effort from multiple people (say, 3 or 4 or more) against gunman in close quarters is likely to succeed in stopping hte threat. There's only so fast that he can move his arm and pull the trigger. If that's the only option in leiu of being executed, I'll take it - and it'd be something I'd hopefully try and corroborate with fellow classmates as soon as I heard the shooting. If, for no other reason, to help others escape while we distracted and delayed him. But then, I won't find myself in such a situation unarmed, most likely, either...

 

[Caimlas]

i found out the hard way you dont want to have ANYTHING to protect yourself at a school. the immediate questions are what crime are you going to commit with that. saying there have been alot of armed robberies around campus and were fearing for your life is no defense. you are immediately viewed as a criminal. using boots or textbooks for body armor? i hope youre joking. you might as well be using an assault wheelbarrel. ive got to the point where id rather take my chances with maybe having a psycho shooting the place up than ending up arrested by the campus police and kicked out of school.

I'm sorry you had to go through that, but that hasn't been my experience. I personally know at least three guys who carried daily at school, and I've no doubt that there were quite a few more. Granted, this was a school with a high number of Criminal Justice majors, but still... (none of them were cops, though there were cops in attendance)

I guess it depends on how careful you're going to be. Might I suggest: http://www.naaminis.com/index02.html

My personal stance is that unless the facility - the building itself - is secured at every door, allowing only those who should be there at that moment through (due to class or the need to speak to a professor), and secured with multiple armed guards, I'm going to consider the facility insecure and a Victim Rich Environment.

In other words, if a person can go about their day carrying concealed without anyone noticing, then so can someone with malific intent - and vice versa.

 

[Autolycus]

The VT tragedy has been a wake-up call for me, being a university student. For a long time I've planned on getting a small pistol or revolver to keep in one of my boots. As soon as I can save the money, I'm going to do just that. My life and life and the lives of my classmates is more important than any idiotic law!

Its legal in Indiana. Probably against school policy but legal.

 

[Soap]

Its legal in Indiana. Probably against school policy but legal.

I believe you're right, and it is against Purdue's policy.

 

[Autolycus]

I believe you're right, and it is against Purdue's policy.

My sister is a grad student at Purdue. She is worried about this kind of stuff.