Situational Awareness: Convenience store robber uses customer as hostage

[Manedwolf]

Scary. The perp held a knife to a CUSTOMER's throat and demanded money from the clerk, or he'd cut him.

Storeowner takes bat into own hands to foil man with knife

By CAROL ROBIDOUX
Union Leader Staff
23 minutes ago

Manchester – When a would-be robber walked into Yogi's Convenience Mart Monday night and threw the clerk an unexpected curve ball, Richard "Yogi" Cote came out swinging.

"We were just standing there, chatting. Next thing I know this fella has my customer by the throat and he has a knife, the pointy part, right to his neck. He says, �Give me the money or I'll cut him.' So I picked up the bat and swung it," said the 70-year-old Cote. "I hit him twice in the head. The only one that got hurt was the bad guy."

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Storeowner+takes+bat+into+own+hands+to+foil+man+with+knife&articleId=5869972b-846b-4225-99f7-2e07f3c1c7ff

Thankfullly, this was the clerk's reaction:

Even with that, the perp ran off and robbed another store at knifepoint, where he was caught.

The question is, if something like this happened to you, would you be able to draw and pointblank them quickly enough? Or would you try to distract them first, grab their knife arm and shove off, then draw? Kick them? Shove off and seek cover to draw and fire from?

What would be the strategically "recommended" means to deal with this, I wonder? A pointblank shot, or a physical self-defense technique and attempted breakaway first?

And how many people practice any sort of pointblank shooting, with the gun literally shoved between you and an attacker, being sure that the muzzle is against THEM, not you. Is there a means to train for that?

 

[foghornl]

"I hit him twice in the head. The only one that got hurt was the bad guy."

Smacked the guy TWICE with a bat, and he still ran out? ?

Either the clerk didn't get good swings, or that guy has a head-hardness figure for the Guiness Book of Records....

 

[CornCod]

Most gunfights take place at less than seven feet. A lot of people forget the "less" part of the equation.

I admire that tough old coot. Sad to see such crime in Mancester. I spent many weeks in that quaint, but gritty, old city as a volunteer for the Buchanan presidential campaign, I guess its changed since the nineties!

 

[Manedwolf]

I admire that tough old coot. Sad to see such crime in Mancester. I spent many weeks in that quaint, but gritty, old city as a volunteer for the Buchanan presidential campaign, I guess its changed since the nineties!

Oh, it's mostly still nice. A new apartment building, Manchester Place, has rentals of around $1900 a month for a small 2BR. Lots of upscale restaurants on the main street, lots of renovated Victorian high-rent apartments and condos. The old mills have become upscale luxury office buildings and law firm palaces.

It's the west side of the city that's become a problem. Two words...well..one a number. Section 8. Section 8 housing has utterly devastated those areas with absentee landlords renting anything to any undesirable tenant to get the subsidy money. Result is former mostly Polish-ethnic pretty old neighborhoods turning into 'hoods with Latin Kings tags on houses. This convenience store was in one of those areas...and as in any city, that makes it a stop n'rob, unfortunately.

The police have been moving in with serious patrols there, though, and it's being fixed.

 

[SJG26]

If I were within 10-15 ft.....

as a customer--------would have drawn and placed a head-shot to the perp!

No drop the knife warning required!

 

[Biker]

That's just strange. I've never -*ever*- seen a man hit in the face/head with a baseball bat that wasn't dropped faster than a handful of warm baby crap.



Biker

 

[Manedwolf]

If I were within 10-15 ft.....
as a customer--------would have drawn and placed a head-shot to the perp!

No drop the knife warning required!

What I wonder is, if he had the knife to the hostage's throat, how and if that could be done without him being able to slash the poor customer's throat on the way to the floor.

In other words, how one gets the possibly twitchy and obviously beyond-reason desparate perp to move the knife off the hostage for a split second before you take a shot.

That's just strange. I've never -*ever*- seen a man hit in the face/head with a baseball bat that wasn't dropped faster than a handful of warm baby crap.

My suspicion is that they were likely higher than a kite at the time.

 

[Powderman]

Would'nt even think about it.

Draw sidearm, and tell the perp in no uncertain terms that any move they make will be their last. Tell them to drop the knife IMMEDIATELY, or you will shoot.

If they don't drop the knife, drop THEM. Go for the surgical shot--right above the tip of the nose, which will destroy the nerve center. Puts them out right NOW.

If they do drop the knife--and unless it's obvious that the customer is an unwilling participant--prone the perp out, and tell the "victim" to sit down and stay put. Maintain a good reactionary distance.

Why?

You have no way of knowing if the "victim" is actually an accomplice, and if the whole thing is staged. Keep your distance, get someone to call the police, and let them sort it out once they get there.

If one or both start to run away, let them! It more than likely is on video anyway.