Listen to the Sheriff
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I think the message was succinct. I got nothing else to add 🙂
Hat Tip to Jason K.
Stand Your Ground as Journalistic “Squirrel!”
Trying to keep track with the comings and goins about guns, I have several terms on my Google Alerts, one being “Stand Your Ground. This one was on my last list:
So I click on the link and I found this instead:
The URL still contains the original “local stand your ground conviction overturned” so, What the hell happened? It turns out to be that the conviction was overturned because bad jury instructions.
One instruction said that if Helton was not engaged in illegal activity and was attacked in a place he had a right to be, “he had no duty to retreat and had the right to stand his ground and meet force with force, including deadly force.
However, another instruction read to the jury said deadly force was only justifiable if Helton believed “he was in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and had exhausted every reasonable means to escape the danger, other than using deadly force.”The appellate court ruled that the conflicting instructions about Helton’s duty to retreat constituted a fundamental court error and ordered that Helton receive a new trial for the aggravated assault charge.
Source: Life sentence in pipe attack overturned
The jury instructions mention Stand Your Ground, but they are standard for all cases where Deadly Force is used….even if they do not apply to a case. But since the words are there, there is this Pavlovian reaction to somehow find fault with them instead of whatever went wrong in the case.
Now, is there a case in where wording “he was in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and had exhausted every reasonable means to escape the danger, other than using deadly force” is used? Yes, when the defendant initially provoked the use of force against himself and:
The force asserted toward the defendant was so great that [he] [she] reasonably believed that [he] [she] was in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and had exhausted every reasonable means to escape the danger, other than using deadly force.
The Jury Instructions were revised and published back in May of 2006 by the Florida Supreme Court and it seems that some judges have not gotten the memo yet. This and the apparent need by the media to demonize every single mention of Stand Your Ground keeps giving us these Jewels of Fair Journalism.
You can make money by being legally armed.
WICHITA FALLS, Texas – The victim of a burglary turned down an offer of $10 from an intruder to not call police — and the result was a high speed chase Tuesday afternoon in eastern Wichita County.Sheriff David Duke said a resident was at home in the 2000 block of Highway 79 when two men came in and began taking things. The homeowner confronted them with a gun and the suspects put the property down. One of them threw a $10 bill at the homeowner, told the resident to not call police, then the intruders fled. The homeowner had already dialed 911 and a deputy spotted the getaway vehicle and gave chase.
And we can add, “From the comfort of your own home!”
I figure the $10 bill would become evidence and be retained by the police, otherwise if I were the owner, I would frame it and hang it as a trophy.
See? No need for stupid Hollywood-Type operations.
CEDAR RAPIDS — Four members of a Cedar Rapids family conspired to hide caches of guns and ammunition bound for Beirut among boxes of goods collected in a company’s clothing drive for Syria and Lebanon, authorities said Tuesday.
Federal officials said they intercepted two shipments that had originated in Cedar Rapids, seizing more than 152 guns and ammunition.
It was not disclosed who the weapons were intended for in Lebanon.
A federal complaint examined by The Gazette paints a picture of a conspiracy that came to light last year when an unnamed firearms dealer in Eastern Iowa became suspicious of large purchases of handguns, rifles and ammunition and tipped off authorities.
When you treat people like decent human beings instead of suspects or coerce them into “helping” because you want to be in front of the news cameras or are looking for political brownie points, you get results.
The New Austro-American Jihad.
Even the NSA issued an emergency report after the chatter surpassed ISIS’ “Sexy Goat of the Week” traffic. Salman Rushdie made the comment that “Bob Owens is fu***. I rather walk alone in the middle of Tehran at noon than being chased by that crowd.”
IDPA will get you killed….wait.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Gunmen boarded a bus and killed dozens of members of a minority Muslim sect in Pakistan’s largest city Karachi on Wednesday, in what officials said was an act of terrorism.”Targeting a peaceful community shows the evil intent of the attackers,” said Qaim Al Shah, the chief minister of Sindh province where the attack took place.The death toll had climbed to 44, he added, promising to “not back down and get” the perpetrators.
Source: Pakistan Massacre: 44 Ismailis Shot Dead on Karachi Bus – NBC News.com
IDPA is accused of coming up with “silly” stages that have no “reflection on reality” and that only “real” training is valid. Then again, it is rare to see shooting schools offering a variety of ever-changing scenarios to their clientele as it is not profitable.
In IDPA I shot a stage precisely like the awful situation mentioned above, and it even had a suicide bomber to boot which you had to take first without hitting the vest. Other versions of the bus scenario and variations of the Air Marshall Test have been shot at IDPA Sanctioned matches.
And yes, the picture above is silly in the sense that you are not allowed to carry inside the plane, but boy! you learn how difficult is to shoot from a sitting position with a bunch of crap and people in front of you blocking the shot.
And at the end of the day, we are here for the learning. You go where you can get the most for less since the average gun owner cannot drop a couple of thousands every month to attend established schools.
Personal First Aid Kit/Oh Sh**! Pack
Back on the Garland Shooting post, Exurbankevin made the point that we also needed to be the ones saving lives:
What would have saved more lives in Boston, a Glock, or Quikclot? Have a blowout kit within reach (Todd Green had an article on a very cool one the size of a deck of cards) and be prepared to use it.
What good does it do you to take down the bad guy, only to have your loved one lead out in front of you?
And that kiddies, is a great point.
I asked Facebook friends about what they had regarding First Aid kits that they carried with them or had very quick access. I was glad to see many people did indeed had some form of basic kit and a couple had some serious systems.
I am going to share their answers so you can decide on what to get if you don’t have one.
Mark T. I have a zipper bag about 1/2 the size of a shaving kit that I put together. It has an ‘izzy’ bandage and tourniquet, some duct tape, a venom extractor kit, ace bandage, Leatherman tool, assortment of adhesive bandages, tube of antibiotic cream, some small packages of generic aspirin, ibuprofen, Tylenol, Benadryl, Motrin, Pepto tabs, and some antiseptic wipes. That should cover both major trauma a minor booboos. (I’ve found for personal use if it’s not small enough to be easily carried, you’ll end up leaving it at home.) When I did Executive Protection, we frequently carried a full backpack-size “FAT kit” including a defibrillator and other crap (due to most protectees being in the heart attack zone, age wise). I usually keep it in the car, or if hiking, in my pack Also forgot – compact CPR mask.
Erik O Sealed bag with an Israeli bandage, quik clot, gloves and a tourniquet.
Joshua S It’s got: One 3.5oz QuikClot packet, Two TK4 Tourni-Kwik 40″ Self-Application Tourniquets, Two “H” Compression Bandage w/8″ x 10″ Ab Pad, Two Primed Compressed Gauze 4.5″ x 4.1 yards in size, Five 2″ x 4 1/2″ Adhesive Bandages, Ten 3/4″ x 3″ Adhesive Bandages, Two non-sterile 40″x40″x56″ Triangular Bandages, One 2″ x 100″ Combat Reinforcement Tap, One 4″ x 16″ Water-Jel Burn Dressing, Bacitracin Antibiotic Ointment, One 1/2 floz Povidone-Iodine Topical Solution USP 10%, One 10 pack of Water Purification Tablets, Katadyn Micropur, Sodium Chlorite.
I just keep my IFAK in my car and in my backpack when I’m not driving
Kevin C C.A.T. Tourniquet, Israeli bandage, Quikclot, gloves and a little Coleman 1st aid kit that I’ve stuffed with more bandaids (because young sons). My own kit: Mylar poncho, Israeli bandage, spare glasses, Quikclot, C.A.T. tourniquet, Coleman first aid kit (with a few extra bandaids), zip bag with pain reliever, anti-diarreal, allergy and cold meds.
Robert K Blow out kits in my briefcase, range bag and truck bag. They contain large pressure dressings, CAT tourniquet, clotting agent, etc. Each one if the size of a Tom Clancy paperback.
Jon B Hikers first aid kit with stuff I need added (bandaids and drugs) – this is for boo boos Surplus IFAK with quickclot, tourniquet, etc – this is for OMG gonna die unless this gets done now.
What I lack is current training and practice.
Bradley L Mine is a simple homemade kit. 2 ea 4×4’s, 1 2″ bandage tape, 1 3″ elastic wrap, 4 large band-aids, 4 small band-aids, 4 knuckle band-aids, 4 finger tip band-aids, 1 one hand tourniquet, 2 ‘new skin’ wound covering jells, 2 packs of super glue, 2 army large wound coverings/wraps, and two packs of quick clot.
Every thing is in its own heavy-duty ziplock bag, and all of that is in another ziplock bag, and that is in a heat sealed bag. Nice and tight, and opening it up, does not contaminate everything. In a separate bag I have 12 pairs of sterile gloves, so I can get to the gloves without opening my med kit.
Marco R T I have a Tactical Tailor first responder bag in my truck full of supplies…from bandaids, to CAT’s to SAM splints to decompression needles.
Jim K I’ve built a trauma kit for my B.O.B. and for family trips. Has splints, Israeli combat bandages (I like because they can be tightly applied with one hand) and Quik-Klot, both granules and the sponges. Gloves for applying the granules to larger, gaping wounds. Gloves because when the agent comes in contact with blood, there is a momentary surge of heat which must be compressed in order for the stasis to develop inside the wound. Yes it’s painful to the patient, but only for a moment. But it can cause blisters to form on the hands of the responder. Hence leather gloves, not latex. I also have a portable stretcher that consists of a reinforced canvas pad that folds up and has strengthened hand holds along each side and the head & foot. It’s a pretty comprehensive kit. I can handle most any emergency. I even have an Asherman dressing for a “Sucking Chest Wound.” I also have tourniquet material, more dressings, burn gel, stuff for insect & snake bites, and all our prescription meds. Plus some basic OTC stuff for headaches and common illness, especially for giardia and diarrhea.
Personally, my basic/smallest kit is QuikClot, Israeli Bandage, several sizes of gauze, tape, gloves, bandaids, antibiotic cream, alcohol pads and over the counter meds carried in a yugo AK Mag Pouch. I carried that on my last job everywhere and never had to use it. In the truck I do carry a Cintas First Responder/Trauma Bag with enhancements that I added to treat bigger injuries (staple gun).
So, what should be the bare minimum? That will depend on your needs and I define that as “How long will it take Rescue to reach you or your injured and what do you need to make sure he/she is still alive?” Now, I live in an urban area with a damn decent rescue service and if they are not busy with other calls, they can be in my house in about 6-8 minutes, but since I am a realist I know that somebody will get injured on the day everything is gone to the dogs, so triple that: 24 minutes. Or you can go with the concept of the Golden Hour to be n the safe side.
I want to end with this article from Shooting Illustrated: Shooter Self-Care: Providing Lifesaving Care. It has great tips, being the best of it GET TRAINING.
Feel free to comment and add recommendations in the comments.