Can you believe this?

[fastscooby01]

I am sorry for such a long post, but I did not want to leave out details.

I have always liked the idea of carrying my trusty 1911 in the vehicle with me. But after all these years of driving I have never really encountered a situation that would call for its need. Although due to the constantly rising crime rates and ridiculous situations that keep occurring I decided to go ahead and get my CHL. This story took place last Saturday, and me and my brother were on our way to a gun show in Ft Worth. Naturally we had several weapons in the back seat and my 1911 in the glove box. We live a little ways outside of Dallas so we were heading down I-30, and about the time we get into Rockwall we get behind a slow car. It was a white dodge Dakota and they kept speeding up and slowing down, and we were in a hurry. So shortly after following them in the fast lane they moved over and we began to pass. Bear in mind that I was the passenger and not really completely paying attention, but apparently they nearly got completely all the way over and my brother had already started to pass and just moved slightly into the shoulder to get around. (We did not force them off the road or anything, or even pressure them for that matter) Well neither one of us thought much about it but then they started to tail gate us. I absolutely hate when people tail gate so I glanced back a time or two and they were just constantly eye balling us. We kept moving down the road and shortly after this Dakota started to pass us, except they pulled right up beside us and the punk in the passenger seat pulled out a handgun and pulled the slide charging the gun. Then they started pulling forward. I barely caught a glimpse of the gun myself and I immediately looked to my brother and asked if that was a gun he pulled out, and he said it was. At this point the Dakota was not completely passed us and was not moving forward very fast. So I immediately grabbed my gun from the glove box (keep in mind that I used a very fluid motion and did not make my movement obvious at all.) At this point in time I am thinking holy crap we are about to get in a shoot out going down the freeway. After discussing it very quickly with my brother we decide to just slow down a little bit but not to come to a stop because I did not want them to try and corner us. As we slowed down they did to but they stayed in front of us. But did not make any notion to fire on us or pull back beside us. So with a safe distance between us I call 911 because I am furious that he pulled a gun on us for absolutely no reason. I tell 911 exactly where we are and what happened, and even gave them the guys license plate number. The operator tells us that we are about to be leaving Rockwall and she will transfer us to the next city. Well she transfers us to the next city and quickly explains the situation to the next operator and they tell me that officers are dispatched to our area. Right after that we hit a dead stop traffic jam and I tell the operator that the vehicle is directly in front of me and we are at a dead stop. (At this point I am extremely worried because the guy is right in front of us which granted I am prepared but still do not want to get in a fire fight.) So the operator tells me officers are on their way and they will be there shortly. Well after being grid locked for a bit and then travel for about 15 more minutes no officers have arrived, and I am even more angry that after about 25 minutes no officers have come to this situation. I call 911 back again tell them the story and they transfer me to another city –again-. They tell the next operator and then they tell me officers are dispatched again, and once again no one shows up. And after traveling for a good distance further the Dakota exits off and I tell the operator. The end result is that no officer ever showed up and this situation could have turned deadly so fast that it is not even funny. Thankfully I was more than prepared and held my composure. I am absolutely dumb founded that after probably half an hour or more and such a far distance that no officers ever showed up.

[Estand]

wow, good to hear that you are safe. Sounds like you handled the situation well too.

[C-dub]

How's that saying go? "When seconds count the police are only minutes away."

This is a bit disappointing, though.

[dihappy]

My only concern is why you didnt call the police right away, instead of talking about what to do, slowing down, grabbing your gun, then deciding to call.

At least your ok.

[frazzled]

[quote="fastscooby01"] It was a white dodge Dakota and they kept speeding up and slowing down, and we were in a hurry. So shortly after following them in the fast lane they moved over and we began to pass. Bear in mind that I was the passenger and not really completely paying attention, but apparently they nearly got completely all the way over and my brother had already started to pass and just moved slightly into the shoulder to get around. (We did not force them off the road or anything, or even pressure them for that matter) quote]

Sounds like you tailgated the wrong guys. I get mad myself when someone comes up behind me and won't give me decent time to switch lanes. Road rage exists and you should drive accordingly.

[carlson1]

Welcome to the Forum. I am glad everything worked out and no one was hurt.

[A-R]

Why did you continue down the same road with the "gun car" in front of you for 25 minutes after initial call? Surely there was some place to exit or turn right (not clear if this was an expressway with exits or a highway with stoplights and turns in each town you passed). By my count you were transfered to at least three different PDs on the trip, why not turn off this main road in one of those towns. "Gun car" is in front of you, so you could exit/turn at last second and they would have continued on until they realized you had turned. Gives you time to avoid/detour and you likely couldve been on your way again shortly. Also, did you give the "gun car's" license plate number to any of the PD's you talked to?

[wford]

Its amazing how many incidents start out, we were in a hurry.

Glad nobody got hurt.

[Abraham]

If I understand this correctly you stayed in traffic with the BG's, when you could have presumably, at many different opportunities, simply taken a quick right or left off your route, letting the BG's go on ahead?

Is that the case?

If so, why didn't your driver do so?

[ELB]

My only concern is why you didnt call the police right away, instead of talking about what to do, slowing down, grabbing your gun, then deciding to call.

At least your ok.

When facing a threat, calling 911 should NOT be your first thought or action (and this situation well-proved that, with no cops responding). Dealing with the threat is the first priority. If you can do both simultaneously, that's good.

Keeping in mind Scooby and his buddy had a perfect right to be where they were, in hindsight, turning off on an exit would have been a good tactic -- assuming the other car didn't follow -- but since it was an interstate highway, not sure how plentiful exits are between D and Ft W.

I especially would have worked hard to not come to a stop in traffic with the other car, to the extend I would have done something mildly illegal to do so -- e.g. drive across a sidewalk or median, for example.

Glad you made it thru intact.

[bdickens]

Your brakes and steering wheel should be the first tools you use in a situation like this.

[Purplehood]

So you sat in a traffic jam directly behind the guy for minutes and none of the other guys in the car got out to mess with you? Weird.

[Keith B]

Why did you continue down the same road with the "gun car" in front of you for 25 minutes after initial call? Surely there was some place to exit or turn right (not clear if this was an expressway with exits or a highway with stoplights and turns in each town you passed). By my count you were transfered to at least three different PDs on the trip, why not turn off this main road in one of those towns. "Gun car" is in front of you, so you could exit/turn at last second and they would have continued on until they realized you had turned. Gives you time to avoid/detour and you likely couldve been on your way again shortly. Also, did you give the "gun car's" license plate number to any of the PD's you talked to?

I think in this situation there may be several reasons to stay on a heavily traveled highway vs. off at an exit.

1. There are a lot of witnesses on the highway and staying in close with other vehicles and people around may deter the assailants from actually doing anything further.

2. Exiting off can sometimes put you in a bottle-neck if you are unfamiliar with the streets and area you are traveling. It may also potentially put you into an area where the suspect vehicles occupants have additional 'friends' they can get to help engage you.

3. A four - six lane highway may offer the opportunity for you to put some distance in between you and the suspects, depending on what you are driving and your driving skills. You have to do it safely, but there are also various maneuvers you can perform to place obstacles in between you and the potential shooter.

Every situation is going to be different, so it will all depend on various things, but the big thing is to keep a cool head and think quickly. Anything you can do to distance yourself form the other vehicle and allow you an escape path is your best option.

[fickman]

I wonder what the story from the other car sounds like. . .

"This maniac pulled up behind us and was tailgating us, essentially threatening our lives with a deadly weapon (vehicle). They were driving aggressively and forcing us off of the road. I felt like I had to draw my firearm in case they swerved into us. (OR: I thought I saw one of them with a firearm, or saw guns / gun cases in the backseat and knew they were armed.) We never tailgated them. Traffic was heavy, so all of the cars were close together. After they pulled over and let us by, they stayed behind us for another 30 miles, trying to intimidate us."

THIS IS NOT my version of the events or an accusation that you are lying.

I'm trying to point out that a road rage incident will never be clear to decide who the instigator was. You never know when the witnesses started paying attention and what their interpretation of events might be. If they reported that you had a gun (either seeing what you thought was hidden, seeing the cases of the other guns, or just happened to guess right). . . this could have turned ugly.

I'll echo the responses that encourage avoidance and deescalation. Even if they do something irrational to force your hand towards self defense, your version of the story sounds like a lot of witnesses will say that you had a hand in escalating the chain of events.

Your car is not a time machine. . . it shouldn't be used to catch up when you're in a hurry. Ultimately - while I do practice highway courtesy and allow people to pass on the left - if everybody's going the speed limit, there is no "fast lane".

Glad nothing bigger came of the event.

[Purplehood]

I thought it strange that they essentially backed-off. MIght have forgotten about the OP.