If you Conceal Carry a Gun what is Your Personal ROE?

COL Mikel J. Burroughs If I were concealing and carrying, my rule of engagement would be if I'm threatened enough to take it out, I'm threatened enough to fire it because if the threat is that eminent, short of firing will likely result in the perpetrator taking the weapon away and using it against me.

My first rule is don't be there . Then do what Kwai Chang Caine do . Run rather than fight , fight rather than maim , maim rather than kill , kill rather than be killed .

Wow this is heavy! My ROE is simple: only if life is truly threatened.
The circumstances are as varied as the variables in general life. We cannot prepare for it all. I may simply be the first victim shot dead before I knew what happened and my gun did me no favors. So with the assumption that I recognize a situation, I can attempt to assess if possible- how many perps, what weapons, their purpose, are they prepared or is this a crime of opportunity?, my position in relation, cover, and especially escape routes. I didn't come here for combat. I am not hero and I am not the police. Last thing I need is a responding unit to mistake me for a perp as they probably have less information than me. My purpose- get out and engage only if no choice. I have limited ammo, no prior plan, and I don't get respawned ala Call of Duty. Protect innocent life. Get them out. I hope I am not the only one armed. GOODNESS please let me not have to do it. But I will.

Am I prepared to take a life? Yes, for too many reasons than I am comfortable going into. There will be NO warning shot. If I have to draw it is because in the shortest of moments given I had to decide to take action. I will aim if possible for 2 shots center mass. I will not aim at the head since it is a smaller target and with the heightened senses and fears probably more prone to miss and I cannot forgive myself if I injured an innocent bystander.

If the situation was escalating and he was not aiming specifically at someone but I sense he may I would possibly draw and yell, "STOP, PLEASE!" Not because I am actually begging him (though I may be), but because it sounds remarkably like, "STOP, POLICE!" It may be what is needed to bring a moment of clarity to the perp or may cause just enough of distractive pause that provides a slight advantage.

Regardless of what I plan or train for, I doubt that if I had to pull and/or engage it will go according to plan.

For example, I had a situation where two lesbians attempted to attack my adopted son. I knocked one out cold and physically threw out the other. One looked like a girl but acted like a thug. The other was built like a male linebacker and also acted like a thug. If it were not for my training this could have ended badly. My sons apartment, they refused to leave, protecting my family, you get the rest.

Second, a tattooed drunk showing off attacked me through my truck window after asking to turn his music down as it was 1am on a weekday. I just wanted to go inside and sleep. Long story short, I satisfactorily dispatched him and police hauled him away.

Both situations, I was carrying and felt no need to draw. If there were ever a time these are the closest I have come in all my years. Some may have found me justified, some may not. I did not feel in danger except maybe a bit of bruising. They did not know I had it nor should they. The police were informed and I showed my credentials and they said thank you and have a nice day. Again I will draw ONLY if no other recourse.

I have several rules for carrying, which I do everywhere I am able. Living in Montana, I am more likely to have to defend myself against 4 legged furry creatures than the 2 legged kind, but the same principles apply.
The first rule is to practice. I practice drawing, engaging targets, reloading, clearing and re-holstering with the firearms I carry at least monthly. I mainly carry an SP101, but I carry an auto at times as well.
My second rule is never carry condition one. This definitely is fueled by a lot of debate but if I'm carrying the auto, the mag is full but no round in the chamber. The wheel gun is also a pretty reliable way to skirt that issue. I practice drawing, chambering, and engaging the target - with 2 hands, with 1 hand, and with my weak side hand, etc. I was actually undecided on carrying with an empty chamber when I first started carrying concealed. What finally cemented my decision was once during a traffic stop, the officer securing my XD45 seemed nervous and while clearing it, flagged me several times. My philosophy is that I carry a weapon (not just a firearm) for defense. The first tool of defense is the mind. You should always be paying attention to the situation around you and avoid putting yourself and others in a situation where you could avoid resorting to violence. The odds of needing that extra 2 seconds over having a round already chambered, in my opinion, is negligible and should be mitigated by being aware and controlling the situation.
The third rule is, don't ever point a weapon at something you don't intend to destroy. If, God forbid, I ever have to employ a weapon in self defense I am prepared to use it to it's full capacity. I remember one time I watched a video that showed knife attacks caught on closed circuit tv. My adrenaline pinged so hard I had to pause part way through because I was getting light headed. You better know what you can do before push comes to shove.
Finally, never stop learning. Laws change, tactics change, hardware changes. I try to keep learning, comparing my actions against real world encounters, what works and what didn't, and why.

My personal ROE for CCW is , depending on the situation,
1. Do a quick assessment of the situation. Have spare ammo and first aid kit available.
2. Try some diplomacy (If possible)
3. If situation deteriorates,displace to a safe area;ie. behind car, etc
4. If situation is in progress, when arriving on scene, follow step 1. and use the necessary amount of deadly force to defend the victim or your life. Abide by local laws that are tailored to your CCW permit
5. Do a quick (written) AAR when everything is still fresh in memory and stay alert until local LEOs arrive on scene.

Considering im a police officer and carry concealed about 99% of the time off duty, inwould have to say my ROE might be slightly different than as a civilian. Maybe not. A lot depends on what your state and local laws are in your area and might have an effect in your own ROE. I live and work in NY for background. My ROE is simple...protect the lives of myself or any other person from serious bodily harm or death.

1. All predators are always killers. When they attack, your options for self-defense are very limited.

2. The predator is smarter than you. Act and react accordingly.

3. Predators will use all the force necessary (and then some) to achieve their goals, without regard to consequences.

4. Predators evaluate their targets before attacking. If you are attacked, the predator has determined he will succeed without a heavy cost to himself.

5. If you are about to become a victim, you have already made serious mistakes.

6. Believe what you see; don’t go into denial. Your attacker won’t.

7. In a lethal confrontation, you will only have time to choose one course of action- and your life depends on making the right choice.

8. Predators rarely act alone, although the ones that do are the most dangerous. If there’s one, look for two; if there are two, look for three, etc.

9. Fear is the predator’s friend and your enemy.

10. Talk and negotiation rarely work.

11. Predators do not have a conscience. Don’t waste time and effort appealing to any sense of mercy or kindness.

12. Some people cannot be frightened or intimidated. Displaying a weapon may not solve and, in some cases, may well exacerbate the problem. Be prepared for this.

13. “Bullets don’t work.” Gene Zink, Former H&K Law Enforcement Trainer. No hand-held firearm fires a guaranteed “one-shot-stop” round. Anticipate needing follow-up shots.

14. Firearms don’t work all the time and may well not work when you need them most.

15. Carry only the biggest-caliber gun you can control.

16. Don’t be overly concerned about caliber. No one wants to “leak” or have holes put in him.

17. Carry a reload

18. Carry a second gun.

19. Be able to get to both handguns with either hand; and

20. Don’t assume you can prevail in the conflict due to your superior tactics and training. The predator only has to be lucky once. Avoiding him is still the best defense.

21. The honest citizen pitted against a predator is an unequal contest. The predator is a professional. Most honest citizens are amateurs.

22. No competition or training, no matter how well learned or practiced, can equal hands-on experience.

23. Predators constantly validate their training with hands-on experience.

24. Getting hands-on experience can be fatal, but survivors learn their lessons well!

Walt Rausch’s Rules

The consequences of shooting or killing an individual are pretty serious and severe. From what I have read, no personal experiences, police and prosecutors, the press, public, and vic's family will do all in their power to convict you regardless of how open and shut the case may seem to be or is. That's my perception anyhow. They will put you and yr family through hoops of fire and can build a pretty persuasive case of why you over reacted or acted unlawfully,improperly, or did not make every effort to retreat, etc. Even police themselves are being hoist in the air over line of duty shootings, esp if there is either any public outcry or PC considerations. Look at what happened to Geo Zimmerman as one example of what can happen. Just like in combat you can have a good plan, but when the first shot is fired you often have to end up improvising on the fly.

My wife and I are in the carry it with you away, out the window, or whatever; and then last resort. Even if you're in the right, it's a lot more time and paperwork that you have to do vs. having law enforcement do the trigger pulling. That way you're limited to being a witness vs. the subject of Monday Morning Quarterbacks. Carrying is essentially an insurance policy that you only cash in when in extremis. Funny thing, in my neck of the woods, it's more unusual for someone not to carry.

I would use my MP levels of force. They give me ample time to think and walk away, but if required display and use. But any ROE is a fail if it only gives the bearer presentation and use of deadly force in my opinion, but situation dictates.