Why I decided to get my CHL

[paulhailes]

Hi everyone,

Let me start out by saying I am so glad I wandered upon this site the other day, there is a wealth of information here and members that seam genuinely interested in helping each other out.

Ok so here is how it starts, two of my friends and I decided to go to iHop after a concert, after arriving at iHop we discovered that every other person in Lubbock had the same late night iHop craving. Needless to say we decided to go the other iHop, on our way back out to the truck a group of hispanics in a wanna be Cadillac SUV, you know the ones i'm talking about where they take a suburban, puts some big rims on it and some shiny bling. Sorry, I just thought the car was ridiculous, but back on topic, so the hispanics say some not very nice derogatory things to my friend, and I tell her to "Ignore them and just keep walking" or something to that effect. When we get in the truck she informs our other friend, who was walking in front of us and did not hear what they said to her. Me I was happy to ignore them and get to the other iHop, I was a bit hungry. My friend however did not have the same idea, so we are pulling out of the iHop and he stops next to the wanna be Cadillac and asks them if they have a problem, to which they respond with some remarks that truly showed their lack of vocabulary. So my friend leaving it at that, pulls out of the parking lot. Unfortunately they decided that they no longer wanted Arby's (they were in the Arby's drive-through) and follow us out of the parking lot. We are driving down the street when they pull up next to us and start yelling at us. At this point they are just being idiots and I figured they wouldn't follow us all the way across town to the other iHop, then things turn for the worst, the guy in the back seat pulls out a pistol and starts waiving it around and pointing it at us. Luckily the guy in the front seat trows a rectangular metal box at us, not sure what it was but anyways it hits my friends truck. I say luckily, because I guess they figured they showed us and the guy in the back seat leaned back into the car and stopped pointing the gun at us. This whole encounter ends when we pull into the left turn lane, and the wanna be Cadillac swerves around us runs the red light and turns onto the next street where they get t-boned by an oncoming car, do a full 180 and almost flip over. My friends and I after seeing that there were other witnesses and that lady in the other car was ok decided that we should probably not stick around as the hispanics were bound to be pretty irritated, and since they were originally upset with us would continue to take it out on us. Yes I feel bad about not sticking around for the cops, but I was not to comfortable with what might happen before they got there.

So this is the reason I have decided that I want a CHL, it made me think, what if this entire scenario had happened before we ever left the parking lot? Now this happened a three or four years ago and I am just now getting my CHL, that is due to a couple of reasons one of which was me getting married. But I am getting one now, and that is what counts, so it's nice to meet you all and hope to join you soon as a CHL carrying Texan.

[carlson1]

Welcome to the Forum. You are right about the wealth of information that is here.

I am glad everything turned out good for you and your friends.

This is a great reason not to be confrontational.

My friend however did not have the same idea, so we are pulling out of the iHop and he stops next to the wanna be Cadillac and asks them if they have a problem, to which they respond with some remarks that truly showed their lack of vocabulary.

[paulhailes]

I completely agree

[sugar land dave]

Welcome!

I do want to point out that your friend made the classic macho mistake of trying to protect the lady's honor when doing so may get her killed, him killed, and you killed. Here on the board, we talk about situational awareness. You did the right thing for the initial situation. Your friend moments later did the absolute wrong thing.

I am glad it turned out well for you, but it did not turn out well for the provoked Hispanics or for the vehicle that T-boned them. I can only hope that your friend is wiser now.

Again welcome, and please do not take this as a criticism of you. You handled the initial problem correctly.

[surprise_i'm_armed]

paulhailes:

As a younger person who will be getting his CHL, you may wish to keep
your status secret from your friends.

Having a CHL and a gun can draw unwanted attention to yourself if your
friends always bring it up, or even initiate contact with troublesome people
because "Paul's got a gun - he can protect us".

Concealment is key to the CHL concept, but if you have friends who continually
talk about it, this could be a problem for you.

Threat de-escalation skills mean that you do everything possible to de-fuse a volatile
situation, including walking away from troublemakers. You don't want to paint yourself
into a corner by having to draw and shoot.

Good luck. Happy Trails.

SIA

[gigag04]

Welcome!

I'll also add you don't need a CHL to carry in a vehicle thanks to MPA.

[baldeagle]

I would like to point out that in the situation that you described, even if the man with the pistol started firing at you, your best course of action is to try to get away. The last thing you want to do is get involved in a running gun battle inside your car. Slam on the brakes, make a quick right turn or take some other evasive action. If the attacker follows you then you may be forced to shoot it out, but your initial action and thoughts should be to get away if it's possible.

[texanron]

Welcome to the forum Paul! Thanks for sharing your story with us.

[MadMonkey]

Honestly, I'd consider getting a new friend. I've kicked some to the curb for less, no use letting someone like that endanger your life. I'm glad it worked out though.

And welcome

[paulhailes]

paulhailes:

As a younger person who will be getting his CHL, you may wish to keep
your status secret from your friends.

SIA

I have no intention of actually telling any of my friends when I get my CHL, well a few but they already have theirs and know I'm getting mine.

I would like to point out that in the situation that you described, even if the man with the pistol started firing at you, your best course of action is to try to get away. The last thing you want to do is get involved in a running gun battle inside your car. Slam on the brakes, make a quick right turn or take some other evasive action. If the attacker follows you then you may be forced to shoot it out, but your initial action and thoughts should be to get away if it's possible.

lol yah, I am happy to leave the driving gun battles to the movies, like the ones where a glock has a 30 round magazine, and your average joe is an expert marksman.

[Hoi Polloi]

paulhailes:

As a younger person who will be getting his CHL, you may wish to keep
your status secret from your friends.

SIA

I have no intention of actually telling any of my friends when I get my CHL, well a few but they already have theirs and know I'm getting mine.

Different people have different expectations on the level of openness they have in sharing their CHL status. Just make sure your friends understand and will respect your expectations. For example, a friend and I were recently talking about random life stuff and the fact that I would be in her neighborhood soon came up. She asked me, in front of everyone, if I was going shooting. Um... not something I wanted to address with the other moms whose eyes were all on me for my response. My husband runs into this a lot more. People share his status because they have no problem sharing their own in the circumstance. Or they share details that make it obvious who they're talking about, but think it is alright because they didn't use his name. They might as well have! So frustrating to have someone else make that choice for you!

[Art S]

Welcome!

I do want to point out that your friend made the classic macho mistake of trying to protect the lady's honor when doing so may get her killed, him killed, and you killed. Here on the board, we talk about situational awareness. You did the right thing for the initial situation. Your friend moments later did the absolute wrong thing.

I am glad it turned out well for you, but it did not turn out well for the provoked Hispanics or for the vehicle that T-boned them. I can only hope that your friend is wiser now.

Again welcome, and please do not take this as a criticism of you. You handled the initial problem correctly.

later,
Art S.

[kjolly]

The knowledge of the power you and possible damage you can do having a CHL makes you more aware of the importance of de-esculation. Hopefully you will find that having a CHL will make you more aware of your surroundings and understand the tremendous leagal and civil liblities if you get caught up in a self defense situation. The more you learn the more you want to avoid ever having to go for the weapon. good luck.

[johnson0317]

Welcome to the forums!

You were truly lucky that it wasn't "gangbanger shoot an innocent as an initation day". People have gotten shot for less, including flashing their lights at an oncoming car that has its high beams on. I know you were not trying to stereotype your antagonists, and it could have been any group of people egging you on.

I think the advice here is spot on. One of the hardest things to do, when you have a gun in the car, is to de-escalate when your entire history and mental make-up has always been to call someone a freaking idiot and give them the finger. They may choose to bring out a gun at that point, and the best part of your defense is up in smoke. The jury will be told that you had knowledge that they did not (that you had a gun), that you escalated the conflict, and then used deadly force to resolve it. Bang goes the jail door.

I am not sure how I would have reacted to someone waving a pistol around like they did. I have to believe the introduction of the weapon on their part would give you a lot of protection as long as there were witnesses to back up your story, if you chose to use a gun. Speaking of which, one of the best witnesses in your cell phone and 911. The first person to log into the 911 service is generally given more benefit of the doubt. The book by Chris Bird called Thank God I Had a Gun has several stories where the aftermath of an incident was influenced by who got on the phone first.

[Thomas]

My friends and I after seeing that there were other witnesses and that lady in the other car was ok decided that we should probably not stick around as the hispanics were bound to be pretty irritated, and since they were originally upset with us would continue to take it out on us. Yes I feel bad about not sticking around for the cops, but I was not to comfortable with what might happen before they got there.

Don't be afraid to call the cops after an incident like that. Just let them know this person was waiving a gun at you and that you're now afraid for the person they got in a wreck with, could they please send police immediately to the scene.