how often do you draw your weapon?

[08rookie]

food for thought...

this is my second post and i do apologize if my ignorance or naivety is easy to see. i spend the majority of my time in one of the poorest neighborhoods in philadelphia. the 24th 25th police district frequents my business because of service calls and crowd control. last night there was a shootout down the street from me. ive befriended ex cons and hit men. in my line of work you are forced to politic with the public and the environment that i frequent (west kensington, hunting park, fairhill, tioga, mt airy) you come into contact with characters...

ive been in these neighborhoods for over 10 years. while i do live in a nice suburb in nj, i have never been involved with an argument, conflict or any physical altercation in north philadelphia that would warrant any type of force.

however i personally will torture the cliche by saying i would rather have a gun and not need to use it then need a gun and not have it....i am searching for ways to obtain my permit to carry a concealed weapon.

im just curious as to how often people here have drawn their weapon to defend what they call their own? what was the situation?

some situations concern me....some situations seem open and shut in the book of the law....if you did use force and force was justified, is the law open and shut...if a man enters your house in the middle of the night and he is armed, you draw, shoot to kill, and you walk?!? if you are in a pizza parlor at night and 3 unarmed drunk 25 year old kids come in and instigate an altercation, decide to punch and beat you, you draw only to find out it escalates the matter do you then shoot to kill? shoot in the air? shoot their legs to halt the attack?? then do you face lawsuits and legal expenses out the buttocks???

seems like the use of force is only justified when being drawn upon by a robber or attacker and even in that case you are still subjected to the courts....which begs the question how often are you drawn upon by a would be attacker?

[sjohn26]

I draw everytime I need to stop a lethal threat.........................................

You'd be wise to read up and do the same!

[08rookie]

I draw everytime I need to stop a lethal threat.........................................

You'd be wise to read up and do the same!

i understand the need to protect and the right to bear arms. i plan on doing so when i can complete the requirements. im just curious how often your life has felt threatened and your gun had dissolved the situation? im well aware that it can happen. im well aware that even if you have never ever felt threatened in your life you would rather be safe then sorry....

[PA Traveler]

To begin with, you never "shoot to kill". If you are faced with unavoidable threat of imminent death or serious injury and you have no other choice, you fire to stop the threat. You simply have to recognize that as a result somebody may die. And you hope to hell its not you.

If you ever do find yourself in the position where it is necessary to use your firearm in defense of your life, do not expect anything to be open and shut. You can be one hundred per cent right and still spend time behind bars and tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

And that's before the civil actions commence.

My guess would be most of the folks on here have never drawn their firearm. And those that have can usually count the number of times in their life time on one hand... with fingers left over.

ETA: I am not trying to bust your stones... and I can't seem to make it come out right. EM said it better than I did... I can't even fathom the question "How often?"

Mere defensive "display" of the firearm can leave you in cuffs and up to your ass in alligators. Or irreversibly escalate a situation. Many folks are of the school of thought that you never produce the firearm unless you believe there is no other way out of the situation.

[Emptymag]

I don't think you're going to get many responses to "how often do you draw your weapon".

I can't really even wrap my brain around the question to tell the truth, but OK, maybe there are people who live in really BAD areas that do this more than you'd know.

This should get interesting.



BTW, there are several extensive threads along the lines of "Have you ever had to draw your weapon?", but I'm too lazy to go searching for them at the moment.

[08rookie]

To begin with, you never "shoot to kill". If you are faced with unavoidable threat of imminent death or serious injury and you have no other choice, you fire to stop the threat. You simply have to recognize that as a result somebody may die. And you hope to hell its not you.

And if you ever do find yourself in the position where it is necessary to use your firearm in defense of your life, do not expect anything to be open and shut. You can be one hundred per cent right and still spend time behind bars and tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

And that's before the civil actions commence.

My guess would be most of the folks on here have never drawn their firearm. And those that have can usually count the number of times in their life time on one hand... with fingers left over.

i honestly desire to carry a concealed weapon at my work because it will make me feel a little bit safer. the exposure i subject myself in a neighborhood as such combined with a cash based business warrants protection in my opinion. however, the idea that an incredibly rare justified use of lethal force will put me behind bars and cost me my savings really turns me off lol...but i would rather be judged my 12 then carried by 6 right?!

[Connal]

I draw my weapon once every two weeks. I then tear it down, clean it, and cycle out my carry ammo.

However, I have never had to drawn in defense of myself, or others.

[JayG23]

while i do live in a nice suburb in nj,

...

i am searching for ways to obtain my permit to carry a concealed weapon.

You won't get a PA License To Carry Firearms (LTCF) until you get your NJ Carry Permit:

18 Pa.C.S. § 6109: Licenses
...
(e)(1) A license to carry a firearm shall be for the purpose of carrying a firearm concealed on or about one's person or in a vehicle and shall be issued if, after an investigation not to exceed 45 days, it appears that the applicant is an individual concerning whom no good cause exists to deny the license. A license shall not be issued to any of the following:
...
(ix) A resident of another state who does not possess a current license or permit or similar document to carry a firearm issued by that state if a license is provided for by the laws of that state, as published annually in the Federal Register by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms of the Department of the Treasury under 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(19) (relating to definitions).

Good luck. Until NJ's laws are struck down forcing them to recognize your rights, you are SOL.

[08rookie]

BTW, there are several extensive threads along the lines of "Have you ever had to draw your weapon?",

im sorry i should have spent more time researching this specifically. the forum is very vast and i figured the amount of people that frequent this board will respond timely...

[08rookie]

You won't get a PA License To Carry Firearms (LTCF) until you get your NJ Carry Permit:



Good luck. Until NJ's laws are struck down forcing them to recognize your rights, you are SOL.

i agree...i do have an address i can use in philadelphia. my business is also a home and i can use that. reality is the amount of time i spend there combined with the taxes we pay to the city i feel like it is my second home lol...i was considering getting a non driver ID while keeping my jersey license...dont know it that works. i researched that i can get a non resident florida carry permit that will carry over to philadelphia?! but i dont know how my jersey drivers license/address will factor in. if i need to be a PA resident on paper that wont be a problem. i do have a property there that i work/play/sleep...i would just have to keep the firearm at the business and would not be able to travel to and from jersey