Can you afford to defend a third party?

[Captain Matt]

Like I said earlier, I would rather be broke than dead. I would rather be broke than allow a loved one to die. I would be willing to sell everything I own and liquidate all my savings to pay for a heart transplant for myself or a loved one.

But can I afford to protect a stranger?

[DoubleJ]

monetarily, maybe, maybe not.

morally, well, that's something between you and your HP.

[Fangs]

HP? Health Points? Sorry, too many video games... what's HP?

[KC5AV]

Higher Power?

[dewayneward]

I am guessing, Higher Power.

Ah, the land of polital correctness.


Or Highway Patrolman

[treeman]

I realize that every situation is diferent and we may have to make a decision in a matter of moments, but I'm reasonably sure I could not face myself later if I was in a position to potentially keep any person from being hurt or possibly killed and made a conscious decision not to intervene because of "what if".
In my opinion applying for and getting my CCL includes more than just personal protection - it includes at least some responsibilty for those around me. Having said that, it also means my judgement of what is serious enough to become involved in is critical.
Thanks for allowing my 2 cents worth.

[KC5AV]

it also means my judgement of what is serious enough to become involved in is critical.

And always make sure that (if you intervene) you intervene on behalf of the correct party.

[stroo]

It is not the monetary risk that would stop me from intervening. It is the question of whether I know enough to know who really is the party that needs protection. Some situations it may be clear. In many, it won't be.

[WildBill]

It is not the monetary risk that would stop me from intervening. It is the question of whether I know enough to know who really is the party that needs protection. Some situations it may be clear. In many, it won't be.

And always make sure that (if you intervene) you intervene on behalf of the correct party.

Unless you know these people you may have a hard time knowing the BGs from the GGs.

[The Annoyed Man]

I honestly couldn't answer this as a hard and fast rule. In a lot of situations, you don't have to personally know the 3rd party to know if the 3rd party is an undeserving victim or not. In other situations, maybe it will be hard to tell who is the BG and who isn't; but that is not universally true. I like to think two things about my having a CHL: One is that I believe I have fairly good judgment when it comes to these things and that my spidey-senses will appropriate direct my actions; and the other is that the State of Texas has decided that I have good enough judgment (although I didn't mention my spidey-sense on my CHL application ) to be trusted with the concealed carry of a firearm. Since I, for the most part, trust my judgment, I'm not too worried about whether or not my reaction (or decision not to react) will be appropriate. And if my spidey-sense tells me to stay out of it, I will.

[Captain Matt]

Browning Higher Power?

[Pete]

I am all about helping strangers.

I am not all about risking my life for a stranger (unless at work).

Sounds odd, but walking up on a scene you never know who if anyone is the good or bad guy (sometimes they could be both).

No problem calling a cop.

Now some cases would be different, like a man in the act of raping a woman, but two folks shooting it out, I am calling the police.

[Hos]

It is not the monetary risk that would stop me from intervening. It is the question of whether I know enough to know who really is the party that needs protection. Some situations it may be clear. In many, it won't be.

Although knowing me I would get involved even if it wasn't real clear, not the right thing to do but it's hard to stand and watch while the BG (or am I seeing the person who previously was the victim but has just took control of the situation before you got there?) points a gun at the victim ( or was that the BG.)

It's a broad question and just depends on the particular case and what one can live with if it hits the fan since they would respond without knowing the whole story. If it's a large male pointing a gun at an elderly female the percentages are with you, although even then it's not 100%

Ideally I would sit back and let it play out and get more info while talking to 911 over the phone. This was a confusing post, thanks for reading it to the end.

[Plato]

...Ideally I would sit back and let it play out and get more info while talking to 911 over the phone. This was a confusing post, thanks for reading it to the end.

Then there's the even more confusing situation where an employee who has a valid CHL but works for an employer who's given him oral notice of "no firearms at work". Said employee knows he's risking his job and even jail time by carrying concealed at work but the man's gotta do what the man's gotta do...

So the worst case scenario hits the fan and some nutjob is shooting up the place -this odd situation pretty much leaves all third parties on their own