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Many are unwilling to pull<br />
the trigger on an assailant,<br />
but will not hesitate to tase.<br />
(2) when and to the degree he reasonably<br />
believes the deadly force is immediately<br />
necessary:<br />
(A) to prevent the other’s imminent<br />
commission of arson, burglary, robbery,<br />
aggravated robbery, theft during the<br />
nighttime, or criminal mischief during<br />
the nighttime; or<br />
(B) to prevent the other who is fleeing<br />
immediately after committing burglary,<br />
robbery, aggravated robbery, or theft<br />
during the nighttime from escaping<br />
with the property; and<br />
(3) he reasonably believes that:<br />
(A) the land or property cannot be<br />
protected or recovered by any other<br />
means; or<br />
(B) the use of force other than deadly<br />
force to protect or recover the land<br />
or property would expose the actor<br />
or another to a substantial risk<br />
of death or serious bodily injury.<br />
But in most jurisdictions, harming a<br />
person to save property is frowned on.<br />
You will have to convince a jury that<br />
you used the lowest level of force that<br />
would work.<br />
Talking is considered preferable to<br />
hurting, hurting is considered preferable<br />
to injuring, and injuring is considered<br />
preferable to killing. Even though<br />
it is possible to injure a person with a<br />
gun, a gun is considered a deadly weapon<br />
and, if it is used, you must be able to<br />
justify deadly force.<br />
If the person threatening you with<br />
a blunt instrument is a fit, healthy,<br />
experienced criminal, deadly force<br />
may well be your best or only option.<br />
If the threat is an eighty-year-old<br />
with dementia swinging his cane at<br />
you, you should be able to handle it<br />
with something other than a firearm.<br />
That’s the obvious stuff, most of<br />
it legal or moral. Most of the situations<br />
that most of us will encounter<br />
can be resolved without deadly force.<br />
Realistically, most can be walked away<br />
from.<br />
One less obvious reason is tactical. If<br />
you have only one option, you can only<br />
respond to one type of situation. <strong>This</strong><br />
isn’t limited to guns. Any training that<br />
doesn’t span from observing to talking<br />
and all the way up to small unit tactics<br />
leaves holes in a self-defense plan.<br />
If you can’t tell the difference between<br />
a predator and a potential date,<br />
you’re in trouble. If you don’t know how<br />
to set boundaries or calm people down<br />
(and understand thoroughly when each<br />
of those tactics is likely to work) you will<br />
take unnecessary risks. If you don’t have<br />
MAY/JUNE 2011 n CONCEALED CARRY MAGAZINE n <strong>US</strong>CONCEALEDCARRY.COM<br />
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