There was a shooter who randomly fired away at a high school basketball game. This made me think what should I do in a situation, if I see that an active shooter is a very young teenager? Yes, he needs to be stopped, but, essentially this is still a child?
Itâs a human trying to kill a lot people. I believe they lose all protections at that point.
When the teen started popping people off the example teen crossed over from being a carefree child into adulthood and in all likelihood will be charged as a first degree murderer.
Not to sound flippant or facetious⊠that is something you must decide for yourself.
There are 12 year old (children) that have tossed grenades into tents of sleeping soldiers, there have been 12 year old (children) that have fired an AK-47 at people.
Are they children or an enemy, a threat?
If you can respond to defend yourself and others, do so. Remember, you fire to stop, not to kill. If the teenager is killed in the process, that was not your intent, even if that is the result. Shoot to stop the threat.
If your children or spouse is being threatened by a âteenagerâ, is it a teenager or a threat? Unfortunately, it is still ultimately your choice and based on your values and if you can take action.
Is anyone less dead if the shooter is under a certain age?
To be honest, for certain levels of fear, I was more afraid of âkidsâ in Beirut, than I was of the adults. As serving members of the military, we are trained to perceive adults as viable threats. Kids, not so much. Serving members of the military, had an almost instinctual reaction to kids, we wanted to protect them. Maybe make life a little more fun. This was the early 80âs, we hadnât had the exposure that the War on Terror taught us.
They learned to use that against us. It is life altering to see some kid who should be in elementary school, look at you with cold, dead hating eyes. To not know, if his hand canât be seen, should I shoot? Do I wait? What if I am wrong?
It is a very real possibility that in self-defense, one might have to stop a person who is very young. In that moment, hesitating could be the difference between you being alive, and many others, or a mass killing. I canât imagine the mental fall out from that event, but, I will just have to pray I am never faced with that aftermath.
It used to be and not even that long ago that criminals didnât use a gun in their commission of a crime or criminal act because they didnât want an extra charge added to their time in jail or prison but the liberal judges dismissing charges put a halt on that because they felt compassion for the criminal they were in and out of Cook County Jail very fast long before their sentences were over. In many cases half the time because of good behavior.
Does this scenario involve bringing a federally prohibited item to a school athletic event? Guaranteed jail and loss of any defence attorney coverage.
Also, is this just a teen, or is it a hardened gang member? Expect the hoods to.find your home address quickly, while you are in jail and unable to protect your family.
Also, there will be a lawsuit from the kidâs family, they will put out his picture when he was 12, and holding a violin, before the jury. Say goodbuy to yours and your children financial future. Will your wife understand?
All in all, this is an excellent philosophical question to anyone who considers being a sheepdog. Are you prepared for this, or would you go to funerals of innocent kids or their parents cut down while you minded your own business?
IL is not progressive enough and needs bail reform! I hear on the news they released a bank robber in NY without bail.
I havenât heard that but Iâm sure you are exactly right. I hope IL can dodge that. Iâm not sure what state youâre in but IL without Chicago, Peoria, and East St Louis is fairly conservative they talk about splitting IL off into two states but that still is up in the air and may never land.
Who immediately went and robbed another bank while he was out on bail.
I am in FL, South of it. I am sure that if you take IL, or CA, or WA or any other state you will find that insane laws are coming from very active prog minority of the population, of dubious mental health.
FL is not well either. You know weâve given voting rights back to former felons. I understand the argument for it, but consider what this segment of electorate will vote with regard to
-bail reform, if one is ever on the ballot
-drug legalization
-shoplifting felony limits
-pro vs anti-police presidential/mayor/judicial candidate
Sorry about offtopic.
Yes I believe that is correct.
IL, well itâs frustrating here being a conservative here in IL I was born in Chicago and in my opinion I donât ever want to be in Chicago again, I was shot in Chicago in February 2016 in Chicago. Lucky for the second time donât ever want to be shot a third time.
Maybe go to MO or a firearm friendlier opportunity like @Michael7 and @Zee says.
I do think in my mind that almost everyone involved with USCCA is very much aware of what is going on nationwide but Iâm not here to start a new separate topic for that. We want everyone who wants to join in and not make anyone standoffish
Exactly. Afghanistan is another example. IraqâŠabsolutely.
Does this teenager ârandomlyâ care if Mom is holding a 3 month old? I can justify stopping him or her. Teenager is irrelevant.
The fact that itâs a teenager shooting randomly at a high school basketball game doesnât make them any dangerous. However, since we are all responsible, law-abiding adults with empathy, the after affect if we had to pull the trigger would be even harder (I think) if we have to shoot a teenager.
I have a friend who is former military and had to shoot a young teenager who was about to kill his unit. It haunts him to this day. He hasnât told me the whole story and never will.
The fact the shooter is young doesnât change the threat, but it makes it harder (IMO) to pull the trigger and a harder aftermath.
To me, there is a difference between a child during a war in a combat environment, and a child in your own community at a sporting event.
I am not saying the required response is different, but it feels that way.
As a vet, I would see the teenager as a dangerous threat-period- and stop the threat. As a human being, it would be hard to swallow once it set in who I had to shoot. But the lives saved once the teen was stopped, would help swallow what I had to do easier.