I don’t know how many times I’ve heard gun guys say “If I draw my gun I’m going to shoot.” What they’re really saying: I’m not going to unholster my gun unless it’s a life or death situation. If it’s life or death I’m choosing life. I’m going to choose to shoot. Yes, well, no. Self-defense situations are fluid. Like an M. C. Escher drawing, your perspective on what’s “really” going on can change in a heartbeat. Literally. Thanks to adrenalin, when the S hits the F you’re going to be processing information so fast you’re won’t be able to remember doing it. Which is why it’s even more important not to go into a potential defensive gun use (DGU) with a subconscious commitment to drawing and shooting come what may. All that said, it’s true that you should only draw your carry gun to defend innocent life when a threat is imminent. krtv.com tells the tale . . .
According to Helena Police Chief Troy McGee, officers were dispatched to Lyndale Avenue and Jackson Street shortly before 9 p.m. on Monday after receiving a report that someone in a red car had pulled over a blue Ford truck, and the woman in the red car was pointing a gun at the driver of the truck.
Police received another call stating that the woman was pointing a gun at Gary Hansen, who is wanted in Cascade County on charges of incest.
Chief McGee says that officers arrived with guns drawn and ordered Morgan to put her gun down; she complied, placing the 9-mm pistol back into her car.
The officers detained her and the person she had been holding at gunpoint.
The person was not Gary Hansen.
A preliminary investigation indicates that Robin Renee Morgan [above right] pulled up next to the truck believing that the person was Hansen, and pointed a gun at him and ordered him not to move or she would shoot him.
The man indicated he was afraid he was going to get shot.
Ya think? I think that apprehending criminals is a job best left to the police, who have access to all the toys, a bunch of armed BFFs and a union rep with an infinite number of get-out-of-jail-free cards. In this case, the Boys in Blue charged Ms. Morgan with assault with a weapon and carrying a loaded weapon in the city. While she may walk, Morgan’s case reminds us that firearms responsibility depends on sound judgement, not good intentions.