Category: Self Defense

Record-Setting Interest in Self-Defense

Two trend lines related to our issue have diverged in a remarkable way that indicates that firearms and the 2nd Amendment are fundamental American mainstays. We’ve covered the string of record-breaking NICS background check numbers since the onset of the pandemic, and July NICS data continues that trend. New data from Gallup shows that gun control has slid further down Americans’ list of most important issues, and a deeper dive into NICS data suggests that new gun owners and the need for self-defense are driving the 2020 surge. Continue reading “”

WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM PANDEMIC PANIC?
ABOVE ALL ELSE, IT SCARED THE GUN CONTROL CROWD!

Want to frighten the gun prohibition lobby?

Declare a pandemic and watch legions of fence-sitting non-gun owners scramble to be first in line at the nearest gun store, then watch their facial expressions when they discover buying guns really isn’t as easy or haphazard as they’ve been led to believe.

Disappointment and worry are great motivations to change one’s philosophy, especially when it might involve personal preservation. Every new gun owner can translate to a new rights activist, which means one less gun-control extremist. Continue reading “”

Readers respond: Gun rights aren’t ‘so-called’

A recent letter writer believes Americans’ “so-called ‘gun rights’ ” should be included in the national conversation on violence. (“Include gun control in the conversation,” Aug. 3). The right of Americans to own and carry guns is far from “so-called.” They are enumerated in the U.S. Constitution and in Oregon’s Constitution and have been recognized and upheld by the Supreme Court with the Heller decision in 2008.

As of this writing, Portland has recorded its deadliest month in the past 30 years (“Portland police record highest number of death investigations in single month in more than three decades,” July 30). Stabbings, shootings, assaults and home invasions are a regular occurrence. There is a call for law enforcement to be defunded, and ineffectual leaders have hobbled the police bureau for their own political gain. Gun sales are at an all-time high, background checks take many days instead of several minutes, and ammunition is in short supply. This is a result of concerned Americans wishing to protect themselves from violent criminals when local governments refuse to.

One can be displeased by the fact that Americans enjoy a unique right to self-preservation, but to deny the Second Amendment and falsely claim the right to keep and bear arms as “so-called” is intellectually dishonest. Law-abiding gun owners have every right to arm themselves. Thankfully, the Founding Fathers added no provisions in the Bill of Rights protecting the timid from never encountering things that make them uncomfortable or that offend delicate sensibilities.

Norwood Paladin, Portland

Florida Pasco County Sheriff Nocco

Florida homeowner utilized Second Amendment right when he killed intruder

LAND O’LAKES, Fla. – A Pasco County man is dead after breaking into the home of a family who was supporting his estranged wife during their divorce proceedings, according to Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco.

Authorities say 55-year-old Ronald Fleet broke into the home in the Sunset Lakes subdivision in Land O’Lakes just after noon on Saturday.

Fleet, armed with a handgun, was able to kick the door open and enter the house. The homeowner and Fleet exchanged gunfire which initially caused Fleet to leave, though a short time later he charged back inside. At that point, the homeowner fired again, killing Fleet.

When Government Encourages Victimhood, You Have an Alternative

According to a report from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the number of officers in the Minneapolis Police Department has been reduced 10 percent since May and the department “could lose as much as a third of its workforce by the end of the year.” Some on the city council have sought to abolish the police department.

With this development, there has been a corresponding spike in violent crime. Minnesota Public Radio reported that as of August 4 Minneapolis had experienced more than twice as many homicides in 2020 as during the same period in 2019. Local CBS affiliate WCCO reported that through July 26 robberies in 2020 were up 36 percent over the same time period in 2019.

The situation has become so dire, that on July 28 Minneapolis issued a warning to city residents in the 3rd precinct. The missive read,

Robberies and Carjackings have increased in our Precinct. Cell phones, purses, and vehicles are being targeted. Some victims have been maced, dragged, assaulted, and some threatened with a gun…

100 Robberies and 20 Carjackings have been reported to the 3rd Precinct Police in July Alone. Downtown and Southwest Minneapolis have seen an increase as well.

As part of a set of “Robbery Prevention Tips” that accompanied the alert, the city encouraged the targets of violent crime to acquiesce to their attacker. The document advised “Do not argue or fight with the criminal. Do as they say.

Despite the proclamations of governments that have neglected their most fundamental responsibilities, Americans need not be victims. When presented with a reasonable threat of death or grievous bodily harm, free individuals have the right to defend themselves with deadly force. This right is inherent to all people, preexists any government, and is not dependent upon the Second Amendment – which codifies the right to armed self-defense in the U.S. Constitution.

In his book, Armed: New Perspectives on Gun Control, Florida State Professor of Criminology Gary Kleck addressed the efficacy of armed self-defense. Citing crime victimization data, Kleck determined “[v]ictims who used guns were less likely to be injured than crime victims who did not resist.”

The practical ability of average Americans to meet violent crime with armed self-defense has improved substantially since Professor Kleck first began his research. Continue reading “”

More Americans are realizing government and the police can’t, or won’t  protect you.

Although I have always been a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, I never advocated that everyone should get a gun. I did support and continue to support freedom of choice in owning and possessing firearms. But now, it is time for every law-abiding American citizen to be armed. Learn how to properly use a gun and how to safeguard it.

Our Country is at a crossroads. We stand to lose everything near and dear to us if we don’t pay to heed to the threats directed against us, bearing down relentlessly on all of us.

It is the responsibility of all citizens to safeguard their own life and safety and that of their families, and to preserve our Republic as the founders intended; to protect it from the insinuation of tyranny that the Radical Left would dare impose on Americans.

THE GOVERNMENT CANNOT PROTECT YOU! YOU MUST PROTECT YOURSELF!

As a NYPD veteran police officer, and Adjunct Professor/Lecturer of Police Science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, National Rifle Association Certified Firearms Instructor (pistol, rifle, and shotgun), and Training Counselor, and active member of the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, and lifetime resident of New York City, I have dedicated my life to the preservation and strengthening of our cherished Second Amendment. This is no easy task, especially today, as we see constant, concerted, vigorous attacks on the fundamental right of personal defense with firearms. Continue reading “”

Security guard shoots man who attacks him at Greyhound Bus Depot

DENVER — A security guard at the downtown Greyhound Bus Depot shot a man who attacked him with a metal pipe and knife-like object early Friday, according to the Denver Police Department (DPD).

Denver police officers responded to the incident at 2:35 a.m. Friday at 19th and Curtis streets in downtown Denver.

A DPD spokesperson said that a man stabbed a security guard at the bus depot and the security guard shot him.

Two unidentified security guards were patrolling the area around the bus depot when they spotted a man standing behind a concrete post connected to the bus terminal parking garage on the west side of Curtis Street, according to a probable cause statement for the man’s arrest from DPD.

One of the security guards approached the man, identified as Adell T. Phillips, 30. Phillips hit the guard with a metal pipe and then stabbed at him with a knife-life object, according to the statement.

The security guard suffered stab wounds to his neck and left arm, then drew his gun with his right hand and fired several shots, the statement says.

Both men were taken to a hospital. The security guard had minor lacerations to his neck and arm, and Phillips had gunshot wounds to his back and leg, according to the statement.

Phillips was booked into the Denver jail without bail on suspicion of attempted first-degree murder.

Suspect shot in home invasion dies; police seeking accomplice

Tulsa police are searching for a man with a gunshot wound after a homeowner reportedly shot two men who broke into his home early Friday morning.

Officers responded to the home in the 800 block of North New Haven Avenue about 1:40 a.m. Friday and found the homeowner bleeding from the head after being pistol whipped.

Another man — believed to be one of two who entered the home while the homeowner, his wife and child were sleeping — was found on the floor in a bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head.

The homeowner said his dog’s barking alerted them to the intruders’ presence. Despite being pistol whipped, the homeowner told investigators he managed to take the gun away and shoot both intruders.

The man found in the bedroom, who remains unidentified, was taken St. John Medical Center and was pronounced dead later Friday morning. The homeowner was reportedly hospitalized with head injuries.

The second man remains at large after fleeing the scene before officers arrived. Police say they have checked local hospitals unsuccessfully.

Not a lot of detail is there? But it appears a woman might be involved?

Shooting that killed man, injured another ruled self defense

CONNELLY SPRINGS  [North Carolina]— A shooting that left one man dead and another injured has been ruled self defense.

Robert Winston J. Perkins Jr., 45, 6937 Knob Ave., Connelly Springs, was killed in a shooting at the address, according to a previous release from the Burke County Sheriff’s Office.

His brother, Christopher Ronald Perkins, 43, of the same address, was shot and transported to an area trauma center. He has since been released from the hospital, said Sheriff Steve Whisenant in an email.

The men were found after deputies responded to their home for reports of yelling, screaming and gunshots around 12:27 a.m. July 29, according to a previous News Herald article. Robert Perkins was dead at the scene, and Christopher Perkins was transported to a local hospital.

Deputies also discovered that a man involved in the shooting left the scene with a woman, the article said. That man turned himself into Cleveland County sheriff’s deputies. He and the woman with him have been interviewed by Burke County sheriff’s detectives, the release said.

Detectives met with the district attorney who ruled the shooting was in self-defense after a review of all the evidence presented, according to a Thursday release from BCSO. No charges will be issued in the case.

Pulaski man cleared of murder, attempted murder

PULASKI COUNTY, Ky. (WTVQ) – A Grand Jury decides a Pulaski County man acted in self defense when he fatally shot one man and wounded another during an altercation on his property in the Sloans Valley community in the southern part of the county on July 2.

A Pulaski County Grand Jury returned a “No True Bill” Wednesday against 65-year-old Bobby Ross, of Incline Road in Burnside, according to his attorneys, Jeremy A. Bartley and Kerri N. Bartley.

Ross originally was charged with murder, attempted murder, and wanton endangerment in an incident that took place on his property at about 9:20 p.m. on July 2, 2020. In that incident, 47-year-old Estle “Toby” Ridner, was killed, 45-year-old Danny Ridner, of Waynesburg, was wounded and shots were fired in the direction of Sharlene Helton, 46, and Tony Ridner, 43, investigators said at the time. Continue reading “”

Elderly man shoots woman during burglary

PORTLAND, Ore. — An elderly man opened fire Monday morning on a woman suspected of burglarizing his home in Portland, Oregon, according to authorities.

Police responded to a report of a burglary in progress just before 7 a.m. Monday at a home in the 1300 block of Northeast 81st Avenue.

“Officers were advised an elderly male homeowner was associated with the residence and a female was involved and may still be in the garage,” police said Monday in a news release. As officers were responding, police said they learned that the homeowner had shot the woman.

The woman was transported to a hospital for treatment of her injuries, which did not appear to be life-threatening, according to the Portland Police Bureau.

Authorities said the homeowner, who was not identified, is cooperating with investigators.

Yesterday, Senator Ted Cruz held a hearing on the threat antifa  poses to this country.

This is not the first time this bit of information has been noted.

That is 40% of all officer injuries were laser eye injuries.

Laser eye injuries are permanent.  The laser burns the retina, causing partial to total vision loss.  A laser pointer of only a couple of hundred milliwatts can cause permanent eye damage in fractions of a second.

The general standard for the legal use of deadly force is to defend against “death or grave bodily harm.”

I would absolutely consider permanent injury by having your retinas burned with a laser to be grave bodily harm. 

This is real a question? Of course they are.

The Concealed-Carry Revolver: Is It Still Relevant?

Examples of small-frame revolvers

 

For no really good reason, there seems to be an attitude among prospective handgun buyers that holds the revolver in low esteem. In a majority of jurisdictions, Americans are legally permitted to carry firearms for personal defense and have long gravitated to the small, light, short-barreled revolver to play this role.

But times have changed and continue to change as I hunt and peck my way through this story. Shooters look into hideout guns of a different sort, largely because we now have hideout guns of a different sort. The short, light, flat, powerful and reliable defensive semi-automatic pistol is now a practical reality. They’re selling a lot of them, and they are crowding out the wheelguns. Continue reading “”

Feast or Famine, it seems.

Brownsville Woman Shoots, Kills Intruder Climbing Through Her Window

Miami-Dade police are investigating a shooting that left one man dead early Friday morning. He was shot by a woman who says the man was climbing into her apartment through a window.

Wentzville man killed after stabbing driver in the neck in Lincoln County

ELSBERRY, Mo. (KMOV.com) — An investigation is underway after deputies said a man shot another person to death after being stabbed in the back of the neck in Lincoln County.

The sheriff’s office said three people were in a car driving along Highway W just west of Elsberry on July 28. Around 9 p.m. the car stopped and the two passengers got out.

Law enforcement said when the driver tried to get out of the car, one of the passengers allegedly stabbed the driver in the back of the neck. Deputies said the driver then grabbed a gun and fired one shot at the passenger who stabbed him.

The man who did the stabbing, who law enforcement later identified as 54-year-old Stephen Johnson, of Wentzville, died at the scene. The driver was taken to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

The prosecuting attorney will review the case.

Security guard shoots, kills knife-wielding man in midtown Saturday

TUCSON, Ariz. — Police say a man is dead after he was fatally shot by the security guard of an apartment complex in midtown Tucson over the weekend.

According to the Tucson Police Department, it happened at a building on the 3800 block of Fort Lowell Road, between Dodge and Alvernon.

Officers arrived at the scene just before 9 p.m. There, they came to an apartment where they found 49-year-old David Reed, who had been shot. Officers rendered first aid to the man before Tucson Fire Department responders took over. They took Reed to the hospital, where he later died, Police said.

Police say they later learned an armed security guard hired by the apartment complex was conducting a check of the building when he heard noise inside a vacant apartment. He spoke to two people inside — Reed and a woman. As he was detaining the woman, police say Reed took out a knife and the guard shot him. The security guard also suffered minor injuries.

Detectives have not made an arrest in the case and are continuing their investigation.

Off-duty Troy cop fatally shoots man to stop stabbing, victim in critical condition

TROY NY (WRGB) – An off-duty Troy police officer jumped into action Thursday night, attempting to stop a stabbing in process, according to Troy PD’s Deputy Chief Dan DeWolf.

According to police, the officer was off-duty Thursday night at his home on 17th Street in Troy, when he heard a domestic incident upstairs. He went to investigate, and discovered a 26-year-old man in the process of stabbing a 25-year-old woman.

Police say the officer repeatedly told the man to back off, before eventually firing a shotgun, stopping the stabbing.

Police say multiple people called 911 for reports of the stabbing.

Graves man arrested after home invasion

A Graves County Kentucky man was shot early Thursday morning after reportedly kicking in a door and breaking into a home.

Graves Sheriff Jon Hayden reported that at about 3 a.m., a homeowner called 911 to report that a man wearing a mask forced his way into his home while armed with a shotgun. The home is on Ky. 1710 just south of Ky 58 East. The homeowner met the suspect, later identified as James Page II, 19, who reportedly fled the area after getting into a small vehicle. Continue reading “”

Homeowner shoots home invasion suspects near Ithaca

Enfield, N.Y. — A Tompkins County homeowner stopped an attempted home invasion by shooting two men who tried to break into his home, according to the New York State Police.

Troopers responded to the home on Rumsey Hill Road in Enfield at 7:21 a.m. Saturday, police said in a news release Wednesday.

Two people broke into the house, police said. The homeowner told them to leave but shot them when they refused, police said. Continue reading “”

SPLC’s New Attack on Gun Owners

The nonsense from the Southern Poverty Law Center continues. The SPLC, which doesn’t actually do poverty law because it’s too busy labeling everyone with insufficient melanin in their skin as racist, would like to turn back the clock on Stand Your Ground laws. In a new report, they claim with no real evidence or analysis, that the laws promote killings of blacks by whites. This is nonsense, and they know it. But it comes at the perfect time: with police running from constant assault and the rest of the country being told that only black lives matter. You almost have to admire their moxie.

To understand the situation with Stand Your Ground laws, it’s important to understand how these laws came about. As part of the backlash against the “anything goes” wild west, legislatures adopted laws regarding self-defense that had the admirable goal of reducing violence. They imposed on everyone a duty to retreat rather than engage in violence. At its core, it had good motives, but it amounted to a “shoot first” directive to criminals. Some states, like the state of Massachusetts with its antediluvian policies, still has not modernized its law with respect to self-defense. Continue reading “”

Americans Turn To 2nd Amendment For Protection From Radical Left

Help Us Safeguard the Second Amendment
You’re not paranoid: Democrats do want to take your guns away.

There are many great reasons to contribute to the National Review webathon, but I believe that none is more important than the publication’s steadfast defense of the Second Amendment.

After the outbreak of the coronavirus, millions of Americans, feeling helpless and besieged by forces outside their control, began purchasing firearms to protect their families, property, and community. Once the lawlessness and fanaticism of the Antifa protests began spreading across the country, the number of gun owners continued to climb. When Democrats began embracing the notion of “defunding the police,” even more citizens saw gun ownership as a necessity of contemporary life. Continue reading “”

Deputies investigate after homeowner shoots, kills uninvited visitor in Lancaster County

INDIAN LAND, S.C. (WBTV) – Deputies are investigating a shooting death after a homeowner fatally shot an uninvited visitor in Lancaster County over the weekend.

Deputies responded to a burglary call around 3:30 a.m. Sunday at a home on Fox Ridge Lane in Indian Land.

Officers said a 37-year-old man drove to the residence uninvited where his ex-girlfriend was visiting.

Deputies said the 37-year-old man, identified as Anastasio Kroustalis, from Matthews, NC, upset that the woman was there. The homeowner, a 40-year-old man, allowed Kroustalis to come inside to the downstairs kitchen.

The homeowner went upstairs to talk with the woman, who was in a walk-in closet in the master bedroom suite. Soon after, Kroustalis made his way upstairs and confronted the homeowner and the woman at the closet door.

Officers said a disturbance ensued and the homeowner fired a handgun at Kroustalis, who was shot and died at the scene. The woman was taken to a medical facility to be treated for injuries and later released.

A search warrant for the home and the Kroustalis’s automobile was obtained, and evidence was collected.

There have not been any arrests.

Butte woman holds intruder at gunpoint until police arrive

BUTTE MT- A Butte woman returned to her home on Florence Avenue Friday evening to find a strange man asleep on her couch.

She held the man at gunpoint until police arrived and arrested Michael Berberick of Billings, who was found with a pistol and brass knuckles.

Berberick allegedly told police he thought he was in Billings.

He remains jailed and faces charges, including a parole violation.