Fortuitous Outcomes
I came across an article today in which the author shares a grocery store confrontation which he was involved in, and the lessons he lessons learned. Before going any further, I’d ask you to go read the full article here.
Now that you’ve read the article, I’d like to share that despite the incident ending without injury to either party, I believe the author made some poor choices and took away some incorrect lessons. I also believe that he was very lucky that it didn't go the other way. Since luck is not a plan, let's learn:
- When the angry customer says, “You are a f****** a******. All that for a dollar," might it not have been better to simply reply, "I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to cause a problem"? Or maybe to say nothing at all and keep walking? Now, he may have been physically blocked from proceeding, but he didn’t indicate that was the case. At any rate, why not swallow your ego and apologize, and keep walking if that’s an option? Engaging in banter is no way to deescalate.
Just walk away.
- He is correct that retreat would have been a better option. His hypothetical, "what if one cannot retreat?" is a valid question, but he doesn't imply that he couldn't have...in fact, he explicitly states that he could have. So why didn't he? He even acknowledges that his state does not have a “stand-your-ground” law, yet does not look for an opportunity to leave. He continues to argue with the other man.
- He is flat wrong to state that calling law enforcement was not an option. He absolutely should have; if not during the incident, then immediately after. What happens if his antagonist calls police and informs them that "some a****** just threatened to pull a gun on me"? He's lucky he didn't find himself subjected to a felony stop on his drive home, after the cops receive a "man with a gun" call and his license plate and description. You should 100% call the police after any confrontation such as this. If you make the call, you are the "complainant"...if he makes the call, you are the "suspect." The bottom line is if you don't have time to wait for the police, you don't have time to engage in confrontation.
If the bad guy calls her first, you are no longer a victim. You are a suspect.
- The author doesn't indicate that he had any force option available other than a gun, for what would have...at least initially...have been a fistfight. This is not to say that fistfights cannot have lethal implications, but the fact is that you and your lawyer are going to have a much more difficult time explaining why you killed someone over the threat of a punch in the face than if you had pepper sprayed them. And mounting such a defense is going to be much more costly than a $12 canister of OC.
Probably a lot cheaper than mounting a legal defense from a lethal force incident.
- He admits a lack of proficiency with his chosen holster, and then chooses to replace it with an even poorer choice. The Wilderness Safepacker is an OK holster, but it has limitations and takes a little training to become proficient with it. Apparently, he didn't even do that. Replacing it with a cheap Uncle Mike's Sidekick nylon holster isn't a solution...it's going backwards. DO NOT use one of these holsters for carry. Just don't.
This is NOT a good choice for a carry holster. There’s a reason I’m not linking it.
- He completely misunderstands Cooper's color codes. Condition Red DOES NOT (necessarily) imply the need to use defensive lethal force. It doesn't even carry the implication that a gun is involved at all. Can you be in Condition Red if you don’t have a gun? Of course you can. Condition Red is simply a state of awareness which reflects that you have identified a specific, immediate threat which requires a response. It DOES NOT require a particular response. It DOES NOT even imply use of force at all. The response could be shooting the threat. The response also could be to run away.
I'm glad things turned out OK for the author, but as the saying goes, "fortuitous outcomes reinforce poor tactics." I'm sorry, but he made several poor choices and appears to have learned some incorrect lessons from what was in this case, little more than just such a "fortuitous outcome."
