Special Report: Trigger Women
A symphony of shots, a parade of pops and a booming battery of stocks, locks and barrels echo through the ranges of Sugar Ridge Rifle Range in Pike County.From the isolated lanes to the confines of a classroom in Vanderburgh County, more and more people are choosing to exercise their Second Ammendment rights.
"Gun ownership has continued to increase at record levels every year for the last 10 or 15 years easily," said Brent Weil, the chairman of the local Friends of NRA chapter. "It's a matter of people starting to realize that law abiding citizens carrying guns are not part of the problem. They are part of the solution."
Part of the solution to a rise in property crimes, Weil says. But the most trend features something -- or someone -- different behind the sights of a loaded gun.
Experienced Local Officer Performs As Expected!
My friend and ex-partner, Sergeant Scott Hurt, of the EPD was on vacation when he had to put his training and years of experience to work so his family was not harassed, robbed, injured, or killed by some Texas scumbags. Trust me when I say, these guys are so damn lucky. They had no idea who they were dealing with. Here is Sergeant Hurt's story, I have only removed his family members' names. Please take the time to read this real life story of an encounter that could have turned ugly in a heartbeat. Keep in mind that he sent this email to me and I asked for his permission to send it out to my email database because I think there are several valuable lessons to be learned. Scott was gracious enough to consent.Are You Prepared?
My friend and law enforcement colleague, Mike Hendricks, asked me to write about this topic. I gave it some thought and I came up with the following information. This ties in with the Terrorist Attack: Do's & Don'ts Seminar that I conducted last year. I think this information is so important that everyone should at least hear part of what that seminar covered. The ingredients that are needed for this recipe for disaster to come about are pretty simple. You need a group of people that large sums of money presents no object. You need a group of people that has a profound hatred of the USA and wants to destroy the USA. This group of people has to be internationally connected with no central command structure, by that I mean there is no one country that you can retaliate against, they are everywhere. This group of people also need to be able to display great patience and planning.Females are Targets for Sexual Predators
Women have been and still are particularly vulnerable to the predator types. Because the male "wolf" is bigger and stronger than the female population the male predator does not always have to have a weapon. Therefore, these males are opportunists. They just so happen to be at the right place at the right time and WHAM!!! There you are, walking, driving, or jogging and the urge hits them. If no one else is around when this urge comes on, you may become their next female victim.The Fight is On!
Okay, you have used your knowledge, your appearance is correct, you were aware, you tried your best to avoid the situation, you were vigilant, and diplomacy failed. The FIGHT is ON!!! What do you do now? When everything else has failed and you find yourself in a situation where you are going for your gun and the decision has been made that you have to shoot . . . what do you need to do at that precise moment in time? Are there things that you can do that will help your odds? How do you win the encounter and go home when it is over?How to Avoid Becoming a Victim
None of us want to end up looking like the victims in the photos above or worse. So how do you go about avoiding problems in an ever increasing dangerous world? What skills can be put to use to avoid problems and stay out of trouble? It helps to be 6'9" tall, weigh 350 pounds, be solid muscle, and have a really mean looking face. For some reason, bad guys do not want to pick on people that look like this. Unfortunately, for us mere mortals we do not look like that, and we have to figure out some other way of not ending up at the bottom of the food chain.How often do I need to practice to get really good?
I have been asked several times how much practice is needed to get really good with a handgun. Obviously, "really good" is subjective at best, but let's try to define it as best we can. I consider "really good" to be good enough to defend yourself under all sorts of circumstances. "Really good" is better than average accuracy at speed. Most any of us can come close to hitting what we are trying to shoot if we take our time and execute the fundamentals of marksmanship, but at speed it is a different story. What I mean by "at speed" is simply this, very quickly with no wasted motion, quick enough to get the job done in a self defense shooting scenario.Mindset - Part 2
Do you have any idea what happens to your body and mind when you are suddenly placed under extreme high stress? By extreme high stress, I mean the kind of stress that you would be under if someone suddenly charged at you with a large knife and screamed like a madman, "I am going to KILL you!!!" You might be surprised what all goes on inside of your brain and body. Understanding what happens and mentally preparing yourself for this kind of situation can make the difference between you ending up in the morgue looking like a carved up Thanksgiving turkey, or staying alive and winning the lethal encounter.Mindset - Part 1
Mind set encompasses several different things, but first and foremost, mind set has to do with your mental attitude toward using a firearm for self defense. By this I mean, you must be willing and able to kill a human being if necessary. You cannot just give this lip service, you must really think your way through this most basic principle of mind set. None of the other principles will mean anything if you cannot pull the trigger when the trigger needs to be pulled.The Aftermath of a Self-Defense Shooting
I covered this information in the Deadly Force Law Seminar earlier this year, but there are a whole lot of you out there that were not able to make it to the seminar so here is part of what that seminar covered. One of my students recently asked what he should do after the police arrive if he was involved in a self defense shooting?The Unarmed Attacker vs. The Armed Concealed Carry Citizen
If I am armed and I am attacked by an unarmed attacker, can I use deadly force to stop his attack? There are several factors that must be considered before this question can be answered, but in short the answer is "Yes" in some instances. Here is an example of a situation. After you read this description, you make the call.Bank Robberies & Concealed Carry
Thanks to a couple of HARD TARGET students, I am writing another commentary on another topic of interest to my students. What is the best thing to do if you are inside your bank conducting business and suddenly a bank robbery goes down? Well this is an easy one, you just whip out your old trusty pistol and fill the air with lead and gun smoke, RIGHT? I know you guys are a whole lot smarter than the average bear and you are not falling for that one. But take this one to the bank (no pun intended), bank robbers are a special breed. They are usually very different from the average stickup artist that knocks off a liquor store, but they are every bit as dangerous and in fact can can be far more dangerous.Understanding the Castle Doctrine
Many of you came to the Deadly Force Law Seminar in January of this year and those that did are more familiar with this concept than maybe some of you that did not attend that seminar. I just read an article in the June 2010 Combat Handguns magazine. I know it is only March, but that is what it says. The article starts on page 81 and is entitled, "Castle Doctrine and Home Defense." This article is very appropriate considering that I just conducted the Home Defense Seminar on Saturday, March 20th.No Duty to Retreat
One of my students asked me to apply the "No Duty to Retreat" doctrine to a scenario involving a convenience store. First, let's be absolutely clear what is meant by "No Duty to Retreat." The State of Indiana is a Castle Doctrine state (see the previous commentary I sent out on March 25th). As a Castle Doctrine state, Indiana also abides by the "No Duty to Retreat" standard. No duty to retreat is also known as "Stand your ground" and this pretty much explains what it means. If you find yourself being accosted by a group of individuals, the first thing you should do is run away according to some states. Obviously, this is not possible for those that are lame or older, but when you get right down to it, why should you have to run away?I Only Hang with Sheepdogs
On Sheep, Sheepdogs, and WolvesBy Dave Grossman
One Vietnam veteran, an old retired colonel, once said this to me: "Most of the people in our society are sheep. They are kind, gentle, productive creatures who can only hurt one another by accident." This is true. Remember, the murder rate is six per 100,000 per year, and the aggravated assault rate is four per 1,000 per year. What this means is that the vast majority of Americans are not inclined to hurt one another.
Address:
Guy Minnis, Director of TrainingHARD TARGET Firearms Training5610 Creekstone DriveEvansville, Indiana 47711Email:
gminnis@hardtargetfirearms.comPhone:
(812) 483-5443
