Have YOU ever had to use your concealed pistol in self defense?

[NikeBauer21]

Originally Posted by son of the revolution

3 times in the last 6 years, all three in Florida....I'll finish the third one tommorrow, its so damn late the letters are getting blurry.

You never finished the 3rd one SoR!

[Kaos]

There's a story to go with it, but in a nutshell it was a false alarm. Kids screwing around with m80s in the middle of the night decide to hide out behind our house and I heard them.

I don't think they ever saw my gun really...surefire lights are really bright at 2-3am...they took off as soon as the light came from my deck (second floor) to the driveway where they were (basement level).

[D.Hamilton]

I had to draw once and had just barely cleared leather when the situation ended.

This was back in '96 and I had gotten my NC CCW just a couple of months earlier. I was going home over the weekend and I only had a three hour drive and should have filled up before I left, but didn't and it bit me in the ass.

It was probably about 11 PM or so and I stopped for gas, looking back I was so in Condition White it was not funny. I was dreaming of getting to my go to girl when I was home.

As I was filling up, back to the pump and facing my car, a voice from my right startled me. A kid in his teens, was walking straight to me ask was asking if I had a couple of bucks for gas.

Now as this was a smaller gas station, with only pumps on one side of the store and there was not another gas station in sight, something set off the warning bells. Now as a Marine I had been in a couple of gunfights already so I think I was able to get back into a decent mindset rather quickly.

As a turned to him, he was really close to the magical 7 yards and even though I saw no weapon in his hands, I knew this was going to shit in a hurry.

I had a Beretta 92 in a Blade Tech IWB and started my draw. I had just cleared my pistol from the holster and from my six I heard another voice yell "HE'S A COP!!!". By the time I finished my draw, the first guy was nothing but asses and elbows running away. I never saw the second guy.

Well I had the clerk inside call the local LEOs, and waited. They were there in a couple of minutes, and after the (in NC) mandatory announcement of my CCW and possession of a firearm, which the deputy waved off and could care less, I described what happened.

Turns out that these guys had done this a couple of other times in the county. The first guy was the distraction and the other guy would walk up with either a large knife or machete.

Well after about 10-15 minutes and the arrival of a couple more deputies, and telling my story to each. I was free to go and was told that I might be needed to ID them later. Well I never got the call to come back and never heard anything more about it.

[bigandy1966]

I have had to display my holstered weapon twice, both in Chester Park. The first time was in '97 when I first began to carry, I was walking my wife's chocolate lab up the road past a car that was parked in the side parking spaces. The driver was smoking crack. I wasn't staring or anything, when I realized what he was doing I averted my eyes but he kicked open the car door and yelled something like "what the are you looking at?" and started to get out. I thought he might have a gun, but I knew he was high on crack, and pulled back the sweat jacket just as the lab went into attack mode, She was a big alpha bitch that was really aggressive and weighed in at 125 lbs. She almost got up to ol cracky when he slammed the car door shut and peeled out of there in a hurry. I don't know if he even saw the pistol, those white teeth probably scared him enough.
The second time was a couple of winters back I was walking my other dog, a Viszla, when this young guy comes up to me and says, "There's 2 guys that want to beat me up over there can you walk with me to the bus stop?" I said "What 2 guys?" he said "theyr'e over there by those bushes, I see one guy but not the other. I said "I have a cell lets call the police" I pull back my jacket and he sees the revolver. He says "Nah just forget it" and runs up the hill twards the 2 guys, jumps into a car with them and drives off. I didn't realize until later that these 3 guys were going to ambush me and try to rob me. Just trying to be a good samaritan.

[NikeBauer21]

Originally Posted by bigandy1966

... I didn't realize until later that these 3 guys were going to ambush me and try to rob me. Just trying to be a good samaritan.

Which is what makes me so leery of helping strangers these days. I'm usually very polite, and courteous... but with things like this going on, it makes you not want to help anyone, unfortunately. I know that isn't exactly a good mindset, but it's true. The cases where a good looking girl is the bait,and you end up mugged. The cases where you pull over to help someone with a "broken down" vehicle, and you end up beaten. etc. It truly is sad that these dirtbags have resorted to unfortunate situations for political/financial gain instead of working for anything in life.

It's a shame, because there are people out there everyday who actually need help, but never get it because people are afraid it's a trap..

[driven5950]

Originally Posted by reverserboy

I've never had to deploy a gun against another person. I once had a situation where I put my hand on it but did not draw.

I do however know of 2 permit holders who drew on people in downtown Scranton.

I am also a LTCF holder from NEPA, and had to draw, but didnt point in downtown scranton. A date and i were leaving the Marquee theater, and went to my car in the parkade, where we were approached by two gentlemen who asked "got any cash?" i replied "not much" and the asked "mind if we check?" as the stepped closer. i stepped back and drew, while my date called the police. with the description, we gave they were later aaprehended. It pays to carry.

[wa3ra]

Twice in 25 years. First in Philly, 3AM, gassing up a car with the filler behind the license plate. BG came up behind me, but I saw him approaching in my rear window. I carried a GI .45 in those days, small of back, condition 3. I turned, drew and racked the slide in one motion, and he ran away immediately.

Last year, hospital parking lot in south central PA (big hospital, the lot I was in is an easy 1/3rd of a mile from the entrance.); dude steps out from between two vans, says 'tengo una suprisa' and snaps open a large switchblade. No cranking a round in this time; I carry in condition 1, no thumb safety...its come out of the holster ready to breathe fire and spit lead. As I'm drawing, I said, "No, YO tengo una suprisa: and planted the laser dead center on his breadbasket. I was actually surprised how steady the beam was, and he looked at the dot, whizzed himself, and ran away screaming in a little girl voice. There was NO DOUBT whatsoever that the trigger was being pulled if he did anything else other than back off. I was cool, calm, and collected during the incident; not so much after dialing 911 and the rest of the adrenaline rush kicked in.


I've never had occasion to draw in Scranton, but I did experience an attempted robbery. Back in the old days, there was a bank named First Eastern. They had an ATM in a little side vestibule on North Washington Ave, just off of Lackawanna. I went in at night, and withdrew the very last $10 that I had in the account at that moment, as I'm opening the door, this guy runs around the blind corner from the room blocks the door, holding a knife. I was pissed, and my SA was not what it should have been. He ended up with a nasty bleeding compound fractured right arm and a dropped knife; he ran away; I ended up with a whole bunch of stitches, since he got me as I was smashing his arm sideways against the doorframe( I grabbed his forearm with both of my hands and slammed his arm into the frame...it snapped like a dry twig). The cops got him at the hospital later, luckily not the one that I was at at the time. The gun never even entered into the picture; good thing, because all I had was a small revolver in an ankle holster at the time. The entire altercation was over in less than 15 seconds.

[HiredGoon]

Originally Posted by wa3ra

... dude steps out from between two vans, says 'tengo una suprisa' and snaps open a large switchblade.

My bold... I guess that translates to... "I'm a stupid idiot, please shoot me".

[ddefazio]

I recently was backpacking around Worlds end State Park. While I was sleeping in my ENO Hammock I heard a what sounded like someone walking through the branches towards my spot. It was getting louder and louder and it was about 4:00 in the monring. I pulled my gun from my side and opened up the hammock. I am now in a sitting position when I hear a loud grunt. It is a good size bear that is about 40-50 feet from where I was. I drew my gun and stayed as still as possible. I probably watched the bear for about 5 minutes and finally it got tired of our site and walked away. The next morning my buddies woke up and they never even knew anything was going on. The only reason they believed me was that there was fresh scat on our site. Never had to draw on a person though and I hope that I will never have to.

[scott_hess556]

I have not, My father-in-law has. Up at his cabin in pike county, there was a string of robberies at the surrounding cabins, he heard a vehicle coming up the driveway when nobody should have been, he turns the corner with his S&W 686 in hand to see 3 men of hispanic origion getting out of a truck, they seen him and hi tailed it, long enough story short, he got there plate and were later apprehended with stolen stuff. mission accomplished