Question about side-stepping to the left

[rmagill]

A few years ago I read somewhere (I know, not helpful at all ) that if someone pulls a gun on you and you decide to sidestep while you draw, it is generally better to side-step to your left, given the choice. The rational behind this is that most shooters are right-handed and right handed shooters most often miss their left, which is your right (assuming they are not flinching) and, biomechanically, it is harder for a person to swing a gun to their right than their left (assuming an isosceles stance). By moving to your left, you are moving out of the line of fire and away from where they are most likely to miss. You also make it harder for the bad guy to adjust to your movements.

I tried searching several forums and databases, but I came up short. Has anyone else heard of this? If so, is this still seen as a valid course of action or has the tide turned on this idea?

Any "scholarly" documentation would be appreciated. If this is still a good idea, I am going to be swimming up stream with my department and can use solid resources to support my position.

Thank you in advance for your help.

[synergy]

You're thinking like prey, not a predator.

You should be doing whatever gives you the advantage to take out whatever threats you have before you...not thinking "how can I avoid getting shot".

If you are going to move, move to a position that offers you an advantage in the fight.

[dgg9]

You're thinking like prey, not a predator.

You should be doing whatever gives you the advantage to take out whatever threats you have before you...not thinking "how can I avoid getting shot".

If you are going to move, move to a position that offers you an advantage in the fight.

You don't get the chance to be the "predator" until after you avoid getting shot.

[synergy]

You don't get the chance to be the "predator" until after you avoid getting shot.

So your response is based upon the other guys marksmanship then?

[LongOneShortOne]

I had one of his books where he went in to fine detail
about surviving close attacks. Final chapter was all
about doing your "training response" to go tactical, rather
than second-guessing "what might happen" before-hand
in some weird situation. His FIRST instruction is "TAKE
COVER." Can anyone on the site tell me the auto-response
mechanism that might cause a gun-to-the-head-of-hostage
perp to squeeze the trigger after a good head-shot ended the
program? Ayoob advised taking the shot anyway, and try
for the weapon if it is close enough. L1S1

[dgg9]

So your response is based upon the other guys marksmanship then?

No, my response is based on the facts on the ground, which are: the guy has a gun already drawn on you. That's a fact which has to be engaged, not dismissed with rhetoric about predators and prey.

Deciding what to do against a drawn gun is a bad situation. Not getting shot is your primary concern.

[synergy]

No, my response is based on the facts on the ground, which are: the guy has a gun already drawn on you. That's a fact which has to be engaged, not dismissed with rhetoric about predators and prey.

Deciding what to do against a drawn gun is a bad situation. Not getting shot is your primary concern.

No, that's your primary concern.

Winning is mine.

[dgg9]

No, that's your primary concern.

Winning is mine.

In this scenario, I define winning as not getting shot. Any other result is losing.

YMMV.

[dgg9]

A few years ago I read somewhere (I know, not helpful at all ) that if someone pulls a gun on you and you decide to sidestep while you draw, it is generally better to side-step to your left, given the choice. The rational behind this is that most shooters are right-handed and right handed shooters most often miss their left, which is your right (assuming they are not flinching) and, biomechanically, it is harder for a person to swing a gun to their right than their left (assuming an isosceles stance). By moving to your left, you are moving out of the line of fire and away from where they are most likely to miss. You also make it harder for the bad guy to adjust to your movements.

It's not clear that criminals will overwhelmingly use an isosceles stance.

A little bit of staged Force on Force might get you better answer to your question. I predict that it's not going to make too much difference which side you go to. The fact that he has a major head start is the dominating factor; the side you move to is a second-tier factor.

One thing you will find is that when you're in a bad position, there are no magic cures. Even moving to one side or another -- either a single side-step or flat out dynamic movement -- you still have the problem that the assailant starts with his gun pointed at you, and you start with your gun in the holster and your hand not even on it. Rob Leatham, wearing competition gear and standing still, needs at least a second to draw, and nobody here is Rob Leatham. The assailant, even docking him some reaction time, is still going to get to fire, and probably before you. You still have an excellent, probably well above average, chance of getting shot anyway.

Yet another factor is, if you're RH and you tack left, it'll be harder to shoot two handed. The more aggressively you head to your own off-side, the more comfortable you should be with shooting one-handed. Again, try it out with Airsoft.

[rmagill]

Thanks for the replies.

I want to clarify a few things. I understand that the idea is not to get shot, the idea is to stop the threat.

One handed shooting is not just for the movies (but is not like what we see in the movies, either) - it is a very practical skill to have. There are many situations where it can be the best option, perhaps like in this situation.

It is also never a good idea to count on the BG's lack of skills to survive. However, this is a SHTF situation where, for whatever reason, the BG gets the drop on you and immediately decides to shot you. It is for this situation that my question comes into play. If it helps, you can rephrase the question as: "If I am being shot at and moving in either left and right directions provide equal cover, will moving to one side or the other provide a better chance of me getting to cover without being shot?"