Recently one of GSL’s former board members became the victim of a strong-arm robbery. The man (we’ll call him Fred to protect his identity) is now in his 70s and increasingly frail. He was at home when three individuals showed up. They tried to steal some of his property.
Fred politely declined their offer to submit to the theft – or a beat down – and told them to get the Hades off his property. As he did this, Fred reached into his pocket and gripped a small pistol “just in case.”
“Any one of those three people could have rolled me in about two seconds,” Fred told me.
He says the gun never left his pocket, but given his description of what happened, it probably would have been justified given the overwhelming disparity of force at play.
After that, things went sideways for Fred when one of the trio decided to call the cops and allege that Fred pulled a gun on them for no good reason.
When the local constabulary showed up, our guy Fred refused to say anything without an attorney present. Just as he’d heard some attorneys and reps for US Law Shield say.
The deputy said, “Okay. Then you’re under arrest.”
Now Fred is a member of US Law Shield, but unfortunately the number he saved in his phone wasn’t the emergency number for them. He had fat-fingered it when he saved it a few years before. And Fred, short of friends in his new city of residence, didn’t know who to call. Fred spent eight long days in the county jail there until they released him.
Upon release, he contacted counsel. Initially, he was told that the complainant(s) told the prosecutor that they had left the state and wouldn’t be coming back to pursue criminal charges. So it’s almost certain that the charges will be dropped.
Since then, the complainants have filed for an order of protection against Fred. He believes it might be so they can return and loot his residence while he’s at a court appearance without fear of getting shot.
So what went wrong?
Well, Fred made multiple mistakes that together, cost him dearly.
First off, always call 9-1-1 and report an attempted crime against you, even if the suspects are gone. That puts you on record as the presumed victim.
Secondly, when cops show up, don’t just say “I wanna talk to my attorney.” That leaves the cop with just one side of the story and a trip to jail is very likely at that point unless your attorney is standing beside you.
While “I want my attorney” is better than most things you might say to police, there is one better response – if you can remember it.
Identify the offender(s) and the crime committed. Tell police you’ll cooperate in the bad guy’s prosecution. Then point out the evidence and identify any witnesses. At that point, you then ask for an attorney before you answer any further questions aside from perhaps your name, address and date of birth.
Furthermore, grab your phone right now and double-check that you’ve saved the correct emergency number for your self-defense “insurance” company.
US Law Shield: [Check your membership card… Again…]
Armed Citizens Legal Defense: [Check your membership card].
USCCA: 800-674-9779 then press *.
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