MT: Armed Butte Woman Holds Armed Intruder for Police

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

TX: Another Attempt at Mass Murder Stopped by Armed Defenders

He then opened fire into the sports bar.

One of the victims was reportedly shot in the arm, another suffered non-life threatening injuries, while the other victim who was shot was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.

Police said the shooter went to the back of the sports bar, where he was "confronted by armed partrons," and they exchanged gunfire.

The shooter fled before police arrived, and remains at-large.
More Here

As NYC Crime Rates Skyrocket, de Blasio and Shea target "Gun Violence"

 Image a screenshot of Youtube video FDRV, 30 May, 2020, cropped by Dean Weingarten

In response to a skyrocketing violent crime rate in New York City, Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner Shea have proposed a package of responses. One of those is to institute more gun "buy backs".  Here is some background leading up to this proposal.

In 2020, New York City has instituted controversial reforms in their criminal justice system. One of the changes is the elimination of cash bail for most "non-violent" criminal offenses.  The law also released information on witnesses before trial. Most Democrat politicians were for the law, which was touted as a way to treat poor people more equitably.

Disorder and illegitimate violence in the city has significantly increased with the riots/protests and a mixed response by Mayor de Blasio. The Mayor and others have blamed the "catch and release" bail system.

Bail is supposed to guarantee the defendant will show up for court appearances. In much of the country, it is used as punishment by process, where politically incorrect defendants sometimes sit in jail for months or even years at a time. From politico.com:

Mayor Bill de Blasio and the NYPD reported a major spike in crime for the second straight month and doubled down on blaming the jump on bail reform — even as public defenders charged police may be manipulating the stats to push their agenda.

Major crime jumped by 22.5 percent in February compared with the same month last year, police said. For this year so far, crime is up 21 percent over 2019.

Mayor de Blasio has lost the confidence of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), although he increased the  NYPD budget from 5 billion to 6 billion dollars, while hiring 1,300 more police since 2015.

The peak numbers for NYPD were in 2000, at about 40,000 police. Most of the money goes to salaries. The $6 billion figure does not include benefits.  In 1990, at the height of the crime wave, there were about 33,000 police in the NYPD. Today there are about 36,000.  About 5,000 of those are school officers, who are generally unarmed.

The crime spike has more to do with how the police believe they are supported, and how they are characterized in the far left New York media, than exactly how many they are. From the leader of the Sergeants Benevolent Association on Facebook:

All of my criticism of Mayor de Blasio is well-deserved and will not cease until he abandons the policies that are placing all members of the SBA and the NYPD at greater risk of injury and death while making it more difficult for us to do our jobs. I am confident that my comments enjoy broad support among the SBA membership and members of the NYPD overall – you have repeatedly told me so – and I will not be intimidated by the coercive tactics employed by City Hall. I assure you a “retaliatory targeted investigation” by the Department will be met with quick legal action by the SBA.

Mayor de Blasio was elected by the far left in New York City. He is kowtowing to them.  He has switched from supporting the police to calling for a cut of 1 billion dollars to their budget.  Crime in NYC is, unsurprisingly, on the increase.

One of the units disbanded in response to the far left Black Lives Matter riots/protests has been the Anti-Crime Unit. Police Commissioner Shea announced the unit would be disbanded for about a year. The unit consisted of undercover officers in unmarked cars patrolling and actively looking for suspects to search for weapons. From cbslocal.com:

Police Benevolent Association President Pat Lynch said in a statement Monday, “Anti-Crime’s mission was to protect New Yorkers by proactively preventing crime, especially gun violence. Shooting and murders are both climbing steadily upward, but our city leaders have clearly decided that proactive policing isn’t a priority anymore. They chose this strategy. They will have to reckon with the consequences.”

Police will now be required to collect racial and demographic data on all low-level offenses.

What seems to be happening in NYC is a replay of the Ferguson Effect. As police become reluctant to risk careers and lives in no-win situations, crime numbers skyrocket.

Mayor de Blasio is caught between what his perceived base, the far left, demands, and what will has been shown to work to reduce violent crime in NYC. The far left agitators will not accept previous solutions. The actual numbers of agitators/protestors are small. They are a few thousands out of eight million people in New York City.

The far left media magnify the importance of those numbers far beyond any reasonable measure. The inability of the police to deal effectively with them, because of the Mayor, leverages their illusory power.

Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner Dermot Shea have reacted to the crises, created primarily by the attack on the credibility of the police, with a package of responses said to target "gun violence". From nyc.gov:

Shift patrol resources to areas with high shootings:
The NYPD will increase foot patrols to proactively deter crime and enhance deployments in high violence areas to increase deterrence and closer engagement with the community.

Enhance shooting investigations:
The NYPD will shift detective and investigative resources toward areas that have experienced increases in shooting incidents.

Reorganize the Community Affairs Bureau:
Under newly appointed Chief of Community Affairs Maddrey, Community Affairs Officers will be deployed proactively to areas that have seen increased violence, focusing on areas with the highest need.

Organize gun buy-back events:
The NYPD will be organizing additional gun buy back events in communities with recent upticks in gun violence.

Work with Community Partners:
The NYPD will increase coordination with Cure Violence to better focus resources and hold multi-agency commander council meetings in communities with recent upticks in violent crime.

Omnipresence:
Officers from the Critical Response Group and Strategic Response Group will be deployed across the city. Many of the locations where they are typically assigned remain closed and do not necessitate the same level of resources.

The most blatantly ineffective of these actions is the gun "buy-back". No one believes they actually reduce crime. The academic studies show they have no measurable effect on crime. The only purpose of gun "buy-backs" seems to be propaganda, to demonize guns and send the message: Guns Bad. Turn them in to the Police.

Both "gun violence" and gun "buy backs" are Orwellian terms designed to mislead. Guns don't commit violence. Violence is neutral, like gravity. You cannot "buy back" a gun you never owned in the first place.

As Second Amendment supporters have organized and pushed back against the propaganda, the number of gun "buy-backs" has dwindled. They are now a rare occurrence, seldom happening outside the few states where private sales of guns are banned.

In most states, when a "buy back" is organized, private purchasers show up to buy the best guns from willing sellers. Instead of having the guns being destroyed, they are placed with responsible owners. This destroys the propaganda message of "Guns Bad. Turn them in to Police".

What is needed to restore order in the city is improved confidence in the police, not to demonize them for imagined "systemic racism".

The purpose of the agenda driven BLM riots appears to be to demonize the police, make them less effective, to increase disorder in the cities, at least in cities controlled by leftist mayors.

Another change that prevents the police from being effective have been signed into law by Mayor de Blasio. From dailymail.com:

NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan, who was injured in an attack on cops on the Brooklyn Bridge this week, has also taken issue with the law banning pressure on an individual's chest or back.

'Anyone who has ever arrested anybody who has fought and struggled knows that there is a good chance that your knee may end up on someone's back,' Monahan said earlier this month, according to NY1. 'It's a big issue to our cops.'

Monahan called the new law 'insane' and predicted that crime would continue to rise if police were barred from using force on suspects who resist arrest.

The head of New York State Police union has called for the withdrawal of New York State Troopers from New York City because of the new law.

There are always elements of truth in propaganda. New York City tramples on Second Amendment rights far more than most of the rest of the country. NYC police are not known to be the most concerned with respecting the Constitution. About 37% of the residents of New York City were born outside the United States, agravating the problem. There is always room for reform. Reform is not what BLM is about.

Some pushback is happening. There have been counter-protestors, mostly ignored by the Leftist media. From silve.com July 11-12:

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- A crowd of hundreds of mostly white pro-police supporters -- led by elected officials, all Republicans -- marched from Miller Field to the 122 Precinct Saturday to show their support for the NYPD on the heels of nationwide anti-racism and police accountability protests.

“They refer to them as the police and then they have other derogatory terms, these are men and women, these are husbands, wives, fathers, sons, these are brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, who do this job to be a public servant,” said “Carmen,” who leads the pro-cop group, Blue Ribbons, and helped organize Saturday’s march.

 Two black Christian activists bravely protested the far left Black Lives Matter "revolution". They publicly painted over BLM lettering in the streets of NYC. They say the police who arrested them "treated them like royalty".  They loudly proclaimed "Refund the Police" "Take Back Your Country". From the gateway pundit:

“While they were detained, Bevelyn and Edmee were treated like royalty! This was the BEST experience they have ever had with any police department,” the statement on Beatty’s Facebook page continued. “During their time with the NYPD, the Lord moved mightily. The police expressed their HIGH APPRECIATION for what Bevelyn and Edmee stood up for today. They expressed their concerns and fears for their city. They are in fear for the sake of NYC and voiced that they need MORE people like them to help and stand up for what is RIGHT! They even asked for PRAYER!!”

Gofundme has shut down their page.

The vast majority of people do not want a revolution. They respect and appreciate the police.  The question is, can the far left media keep the momentum against the police going long enough to affect the elections in November? Can they reverse the reforms pushed by President Trump? Can they stop the appointment of judges who are willing to enforce the Constitution as written?

 The current power elites are terrified of President Donald Trump. The elites, BLM, and Antifa, all believe they are using the other. The power elites have much more practice at manipulation, but cultural revolutions often end up destroying the elites that enabled them.

We live in interesting times.

©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

NM: Son of Albuquerque Shop Owner Shoots two who Attacked him

The owner said he told the man that he could help him but that he needed to have a mask on and the man became “extremely irate.” The owner told deputies the man crashed into his son’s vehicle and tried to run him over before driving off.

As deputies searched the area for the vehicle, they received a call from the auto shop owner saying the vehicle had returned and his son had shot someone. Deputies went back to the auto shop and found two men on the ground; both had been shot, and one of them didn’t have a pulse.
More Here

WI: Sawyer County Adopts 2A Resolution

In a 9 to 6 vote, the Sawyer County Board of Supervisors on Thursday, July 16, approved a non-binding resolution to “reaffirm” a “commitment to the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution and the right to bear arms under the Wisconsin Constitution.”

More Here

CA: Black Felon Shoots Man in Self Defense, Is Freed

On 2 July, at about 9:40 a.m., Mark Anthony Nelson Jr. shot an apparent armed robber as he exited the Patriot gas station where Nelson worked as a clerk. It would seem to be a clear justified shooting. 

Nelson did lied to police, probably because he is a convicted felon. He was convicted in 2011 of shooting a woman who rammed his vehicle. 

He denied shooting the robbery suspect, Jeffrey Allen Kirwan. He denied having a firearm that was found hidden in the store. The firearm had been reported stolen. Nelson had a bullet in his pocket. 

He was arrested on 2 July. From kymkemp.com:

Nelson Jr. was arrested and booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of murder (PC 187(a)), possession of stolen property (PC 496(a)) and convicted felon in possession of a firearm (PC 29800(a)). He is being held without bail pending arraignment.

The community started speaking out in defense of Nelson. He had a great reputation. An attorney agreed to represent Nelson pro-bono. On 7 July, 2020, Nelson gave a different statement to investigators. He is reported to have admitted shooting and killing Kirwan, but said it was self defense.

His second statement was consistent with the physical evidence and witness statements. From nothcoastjournal.com:

Mark Anthony Nelson Jr. — a 39-year-old gas station clerk from Eureka — has had quite a week.

A man came to rob the gas station where he worked.

He shot and killed that man, prompting his arrest on suspicion of murder, possessing stolen property and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. He was booked into Humboldt County Correctional facility without bail, and quarantined there for five days.

Then yesterday, in a stunning reversal, the Humboldt County District Attorney’s decided no charges would be filed in the case. Nelson walked free, and joined his partner Cynthia Shelton and their 14-year-old daughter for a quiet night at home.

Some claimed that "systemic racism" exists such that a white man wouldn't have gone to jail, in the comments at kymkemp.com:

I have to ask the question. If this man was white (like me) would he be arrested?

Other commenters contest the conjecture, saying that many white men are arrested in similar circumstances.

The discussion about the case shows the ability of the far left to control the narrative is failing in the face of facts and people's experience.

One comment claims there are numerous studies that show how poor people and black people are treated differently than other people in the criminal justice system.

They do not address the problem of systemic bias in academia in favor of leftist narratives.


A reasonable question, given the facts of the case, and the current climate:

Would a white man in the same circumstances been treated as well as Mark Anthony Young?

Convicted felons still have the right to self-defense. A clear, easily followed mechanism should be in place so that they can legitimately regain there Second Amendment rights, as protected by the Constitution.

Mark Anthony Young has gained the trust of the local community.

Perhaps prosecutors are starting to reconsider the common procedure of charging felons with illegal possession of firearms, even when they have been involved in justified self defense shootings.

It should, at least, be a mitigating factor.

©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

LA: Armed Victim Stops Robber Armed with Knife

A man facing armed robbers on Magazine Street pulled a gun and forced them to flee, New Orleans police say.

The men met around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday in the 3200 block of Magazine Street. Police say at least one of the suspects pulled a knife "during transaction of purchase."
More Here

Another Armed Samaritan stops Active Shooter In Indiana

Image from Google Maps, text, and yellow lines, cropped and scaled by Dean Weingarten

At about 1:15 p.m. on 14 July, at the Brownsburg Cemetary in Brownsburg, Indiana, two men were working  A 20 year old black man, attacked them, in something out of a horror movie.  Joshua Christopher Hays drove to the cemetery, parked, approached the two men, and started shooting.

The two victims separated and ran. Hayes pursed 36-year-old Seth Robertson, catching him at 56th and Grant streets, and executing him with several shots to the chest.

Hays then pursued the second victim, who was able to physically engage Hays. The second victim was wounded. A bullet from Hays gun hit a nearby car stopped at the traffic light (presumably at 56th and Grant street) and wounded a third victim with shrapnel. The third victim was armed. From wishtv.com:

Police say 22-year-old Joshua Christopher Hayes launched an unprovoked attack against two men working in Brownsburg Cemetery Tuesday around 1:15 p.m. Hayes first chased 36-year-old Seth Robertson to a nearby intersection before he fatally shot Robertson.

Hayes then chased after the second man and shot a third man who was stopped at a traffic light nearby. The third man was legally armed and fatally shot Hayes.

“This tragic event could have been much more disastrous. So, victim three not only saved victim two’s life, but he saved potentially the lives of many others,” said BPD Capt. Jennifer Barrett. “Victim three did exactly what anybody would have wanted him to do at that scene that day.”

The life-saving gunfire was dramatic. Hays had the second victim down and was pointing his gun at the victim's head when Hays was struck by the bullet from the third victim, the armed Samaritan, who had witnessed the struggle between Hays and the second victim.

Hays is reported to have turned his attention to the third victim, who fired additional shots to stop the attack.  From yournews.com:

The unidentified licensed shooter’s lawyer Guy Relford explained, “The scenario was fairly clear to him in that the one person was chasing the other and the other was saying, ‘no, no, no, no please don’t shoot me, please don’t shoot me.’ And my client, under incredibly stressful circumstances, took aim, took his shot [and] hit the gunman.”

“The gunman stood up and was looking around and still had the gun in his hand, appeared to clearly intend to continue the attack at which point my client fired another two or three shots and the gunman went down,” he continued.

Hays was black and the known victims are/were white. The police say they have no evidence the attack was racially motivated. From wyrz.org:

Currently, police do not believe that the attack was racially motivated. Hayes, who is black, opened fire on the two victims who are white.

Brownsburg Police Department Captain Jennifer Pyatt-Barrett said, “At this point in time in the investigation, we have no reason to believe this was a racially-motivated crime. We’re leaning more towards evidence suggesting there was mental illness on behalf of Mr. Hayes.”

This is another instance of an active murderer being stopped by an armed Samaritan.  The Indystar quotes the armed Samaritan's attorney:

"So there's no question he saved at least one innocent life and perhaps multiple," Relford said. "Because police said he had a drum-style magazine in his handgun that still had a couple of dozen rounds in it.

"So who knows how much mayhem could have resulted if my client hadn’t been the brave hero and good Samaritan that he was."

It does not appear to have gathered national attention. Why isn't it as much news as when a police officer shoots a person who was resisting arrest?

That is a rhetorical question. It isn't national news because it does not fit the anti-Second Amendment narrative of guns being useless for defense of self and others.

©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

CO: Pueblo Home Invasion Stopped with Gunfire

The two residents told officers that a white car pulled up and parked in front of the home. Three men exited the vehicle and entered the home through the front door. A physical altercation followed and one of the residents fired a handgun at the intruders. The three intruders quickly left and the residents said they believe that two of the three suspects were hit by the gunfire.

More Here

The Charge agianst St. Louis Couople for Defending their Home

Screen shot from Fox story, cropped by Dean Weingarten

Kim Gardner, the radical St. Louis prosecutor, has asked for and obtained a warrant to seize the rifle and pistol used to defend a St. Louis couple's home, where hundreds of protesters trespassed and screamed at them on Sunday, 28 June, 2020.

Link to video

It appears the charge used by far-left St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, to confiscate McClosky's firearms, is Missouri statute 571.030, Unlawful use of weapons. Bold added for emphasis: 

*571.030. Unlawful use of weapons — exceptions — penalties. — 1. A person commits the offense of unlawful use of weapons, except as otherwise provided by sections 571.101 to 571.121, if he or she knowingly: 

  (1) Carries concealed upon or about his or her person a knife, a firearm, a blackjack or any other weapon readily capable of lethal use into any area where firearms are restricted under section 571.107; or
  (2) Sets a spring gun; or
  (3) Discharges or shoots a firearm into a dwelling house, a railroad train, boat, aircraft, or motor vehicle as defined in section 302.010, or any building or structure used for the assembling of people; or
  (4) Exhibits, in the presence of one or more persons, any weapon readily capable of lethal use in an angry or threatening manner; or

There are exceptions. Number 5 seems to apply. 

  5. Subdivisions (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (10) of subsection 1 of this section shall not apply to persons who are engaged in a lawful act of defense pursuant to section 563.031.

Section 563.031 specifically allows the use of deadly force, not just showing a weapon, against people who have entered private property unlawfully.  In order to be justified, the person using the force must reasonably believe  such force to be necessary to defend themselves or a third person from the unlawful use of force.

  (3) Such force is used against a person who unlawfully enters, remains after unlawfully entering, or attempts to unlawfully enter private property that is owned or leased by an individual, or is occupied by an individual who has been given specific authority by the property owner to occupy the property, claiming a justification of using protective force under this section.

There is no question the rioters unlawfully entered private property, which makes this charge very unlikely to stick.

The only serious question would be if the McCloskeys could be shown to be "unreasonable" in their fear of the angry mob who had entered their private property unlawfully, and by their account, threatened them, their dog, and their home with violence.

The left is pushing that narrative.  At a left-wing site, the fact that the angry crowd entered unlawfully, and were reported to be shouting threats at the McCloskeys, is ignored, and the crowd is portrayed as "peaceful protestors" "walking by" the McCloskeys' house.  From lawandcrime.com:

Here is some of the video. The crowd does not sound "peaceful".  300 or 400 loud "protestors" certainly constitute disparity of force.

Link to video

The video, obviously taken and posted by those on the side of the BLM activists, shows the need  to record incidents on media the defenders control.

Video from the McCloskeys perspective would be powerful evidence in court.

Prosecutors have absolute immunity, granted to them by the Supreme Court in the 1970's and 80's. Kim Gardner has little to fear. She can take the McCloskey's guns and claim the mob was peaceful, without fear of lawsuit.

The McCloskeys are likely to prevail in court. But Kim Gardner can inflict considerable punishment by process.

The situation shows the importance of strong Castle Doctrine laws. Without the clear Missouri Castle Doctrine law, the McClosky's would be in serious danger of going to prison, merely for defending themselves.

All it takes is a political prosecutor who is on the side of the mob.


©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

LA: Man Threatens Clerk wtih Machete; Armed Customer Stops Threat

A man who entered a Metairie convenience store armed with a machete and threatened an employee fled after he was confronted by a customer who was armed with a gun, according to authorities.

The blade-wielding suspect was later identified as Robert Merritt, 37, of Metairie. He was taken into custody after returning to the store while deputies were still investigating, a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office arrest report said.
More Here

Head of "Moms Demand Action" : "Police Violence is Gun Violence"

Moms Demand Action has joined the anti-police witch-hunt. 

I have long written that armed citizens and police are natural allies. It is because both of them have strong incentives in enforce order and prevent crime and violence. Two years ago, I wrote:

An armed people and local police are natural allies. When locally controlled police and a population who trust them work together, crime rates plummet to very low levels.

Officers on the street have generally had a positive attitude toward armed citizens. 

I did not expect the Bloomberg funded group, Moms Demand Action, to come out strongly against police.  I should have, as the orientation of the group was always on the far left.  David Horowitz said it this way. On the left, the issue is never the issue. The issue is always about getting and keeping power.

We should anticipate that a far left group like "Moms Demand Action" would support other far left groups like BLM or Antifa.

Emma Hinchliffe, the writer at Forbes, frames the issue this way. From fortune.com:

There was already a strong connection between the movement against police violence and the movement against gun violence; some “Mothers of the Movement” like Rep. Lucy McBath have devoted their efforts to the broader gun violence prevention movement. How has the recent movement for racial justice affected the movement against gun violence?

Moms Demand Action founder, Shannon Watts, answers:

Police violence is gun violence and that’s why our movement must be responsive as well. We’re partnering with leaders and organizations who are experts against policing. We’re committed to working with them to address white supremacy and racism at its roots. We are seeing an appetite among lawmakers to push through anti-police brutality legislation.

Orwellian word usage is how the Left gets and keeps power. "Gun violence" is an Orwellian term used to conflate all uses of guns in defense, police work, and especially suicide, with murder and violent crimes committed with guns.

The new Orwellian phrase is "Police violence". Police, by definition, cannot maintain order without the use of violence. Violence is necessary and good when it is used to defend either individual persons or society as a whole.

The Left redefines words and creates them to destroy their opponent and justify violence against them.  Conservatives, by their nature, prefer fixed meanings to words. Without agreed upon meanings, no debate is possible.

Now Moms Demand Action are "against policing"? It appears so.

We are seeing the results of reduced or no policing in Seattle, Washington, at the CHAZ/CHOP debacle; in Minneapolis, Baltimore, Chicago, Portland as well.

You get horrific property destruction, violence, and skyrocketing murder rates when you pull back police from heavy crime areas.

You don't need as many police in areas where residents have a high trust factor, and police themselves. Those are areas where police and armed citizens work together.

Armed citizens create police and sheriffs to be the backup, so a single couple or homeowner does not have to face the mob by themselves. The ordinary homeowner does not have to do the critical investigative work police do. They do not have to take time from their productive lives to track down criminals and arrest them. It is the productivity of specialization of training in action.

Mob action is now supported by the media, as lefists see they are losing the power to direct the vote.

I do not expect Moms Demand Action to gain followers with this anti-police rhetoric. But they have sent a message. They are against both self defense, and the police.  That is called mob rule.


©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

CA: Man who was Shot may be Connected to Home Break In

A man was found shot in Pasadena late Monday following what he told police was a robbery, but investigators were looking into the possibility the shooting was connected to an incident in which a resident shot a home intruder in the neighboring city of San Gabriel a short time earlier, authorities said.
More Here

TX: Woman Shoots Man who Entered her Apartment Nude

PORT ARTHUR, Texas — A man is expected to survive his injuries after Port Arthur Police say he was shot when he entered a woman's apartment without permission and completely nude Monday afternoon.

More Here

MS: Resident Shoots, Kills Intruder who Broke into Home

According to the Biloxi Police Department, they received a 911 call at 1:10 a.m. from a Biloxi resident who shot an intruder at their home located on Old Bay Road. When police arrived, they found the alleged trespasser in the backyard of the house with a gunshot wound, later identified as a 15-year-old.

The investigation is initial thus far. But at the moment, investigators say the deceased did break into the Biloxi residence and the homeowner shot the intruder during a confrontation.

More Here

NC: Man Shoots, Wounds, 1 of 3 Home Invaders

The man told investigators a woman knocked on his door and when he answered a man tried to force his way inside.

The homeowner shot the male intruder in the arm and the suspects escaped in a car.

Three suspects, identified as Natasha Kerberg, Carmalita Pike and Kenneth Lawrence were later arrested.
More Here

CT: Rabid Bobcat Attacks Dog, then Runs into House

Bettini said he and the other troopers were in the basement with flashlights when he caught the reflection of the bobcat’s eye after shining his beam onto it. “I was fortunate enough to see the reflection of its eye before the other troopers got too close to it,” he said. “I happened to shine my light to a corner and it was on a shelving unit. And the (other troopers) were walking toward that direction and I told them to stop and back up.”

He said troopers then secured the basement and waited for DEEP officers to arrive.When the officers went back into the basement to again approach the cat, Bettini said it had changed location and was clinging to the side of a punching bag hanging in the basement, where it was then killed with a .22 rifle. Its body was removed to test for rabies, which came back positive the next day.
More Here

AL: Man Shoots two Pit Bulls Attacking his Cats

Upon arrival, officers spoke to the victim and he stated that there were two pit bulls in his backyard attacking his cats. The victim also said he shot both dogs, killing one of them. County Animal Control responded and took control of the animals.

More Here

Michigan Deputy Shoots Suspect who Attacked with Knife and Screwdriver (video)

At about 6:47 a.m., a suspect identified as Sean Ernest Ruis was in a confrontation inside a Dimondale Quality Dairy store. Ruis was refused service for not wearing a mask.  He allegedly stabbed a 77 year old man while they were inside the store.  Then Ruis drove off.

At 7:13, a deputy with the Eaton County Sheriff's Office pulled Ruis over. The veteran female officer had 22 years of experience.

Ruis got out of the vehicle and moved toward the officer with weapons in his hands.


Link to video on instagram


The officer attempted to increase distance, but Ruis acclerated toward her, and she fired shots to stop the attack.  The officer continues to fire at Ruis as she attempts to increase the distance, and he attempts to make contact. Ruis uses a toe to heel advance technique, which is taught in some disciplines to close the distance quickly, without appearing to do so.

It was a very close thing. It appears Ruis and the officer made breif contact as she was firing at him.

 Screenshot from police body camera. Text and arrows, cropped and scaled by Dean Weingarten

From the video, it appears Ruis has a screwdriver with about an 8 inch blade in his left hand and a knife or scissors with about a 4 inch blade in his right hand.

It seems likely contact between the officers gun and Ruis' hand caused a failure to feed in the deputy's sidearm.  The sidearm looks like a Glock 19. 

The impact of the bullets had an effect.

The officer cleared the malfunction and continued firing.

This is a classic example of the necessity of training in the Tueller Drill. Assailants with contact weapons can close the distance very rapidly. Even after being shot multiple times, attackers can have sufficient energy and will to close and make a deadly attack.

If, instead of a screwdriver in his left hand, the attacker had an edged weapon, the officer very likely would have been cut, and possibly lost control of the pistol.

Skilled knife users know to go after the weapon hand. It is the primary target to disable.

But bullets beat blades, if the gun weilder has the skill and time to use them. In this case the deputy made the right defensive moves. It was barely enough.

Ruis appears to have had some training, or to have studied knife techniques. Still, displaying a contact weapon and then attacking an opponent armed with a firearm,  smacks of desperation or, possibly suicide by deputy.

 This tragic situation could have been avoided if the suspect had been able to control himself a bit better. It is unknown if intoxicants were involved.

©2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

FL: Domestic Defense? Shotgun Fired inside Garage as men Struggle for Control

A fight between two men inside a garage at a local house led to a shotgun going off and an arrest for home invasion.


Citrus County Sheriff’s Office authorities on July 15, 2020, arrested 30-year-old Justin Lee Sanchez, of Wesley Chapel, on a charge of burglary with battery, following their investigation into the Pasco County resident’s alleged altercation with a Homosassa homeowner.
More Here