• We are now running on a new, and hopefully much-improved, server. In addition we are also on new forum software. Any move entails a lot of technical details and I suspect we will encounter a few issues as the new server goes live. Please be patient with us. It will be worth it! :) Please help by posting all issues here.
  • The forum will be down for about an hour this weekend for maintenance. I apologize for the inconvenience.
  • If you are having trouble seeing the forum then you may need to clear your browser's DNS cache. Click here for instructions on how to do that
  • Please review the Forum Rules frequently as we are constantly trying to improve the forum for our members and visitors.

Would you hesitate to use deadly force against a child?

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
The below link is a news story about 4 children, ages 11 to 13, that committed several burglaries and was found in possession of several handguns when arrested. The link below is them robbing an ice cream truck then pulling an air soft gun (I'm sure the trucks owner had no idea the gun was "fake") at the trucks owner when he gave chase. Most always picture the "boogie man" as a grown man, rough looking with a nasty scar on his left cheek. Odds are, non of us would hesitate to use deadly force against such a character. But what about when it's a kid, a pregnant woman or an elderly person that his/her dementia is making them act violently?

I would like to think that I wouldn't allow myself to do a "double take" of a threat, but rather act the same way in the face of any threat. But are we keeping in mind that danger comes in all different sizes, ages and appearances?




http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/Lexington-ice-cream-truck-robbed-268945911.html
 

skidmark

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jan 15, 2007
Messages
10,444
Location
Valhalla
Without reading the linked story I can say that most likely useing deadly force in self defense against those kids (or at lest the one who pointed the gun) would be ruled as lawful. We are not required to distinguish betweem real firearms and toys/replicas. Generally the rule is what a "reasonable man" in that situation would have thought they were faced with.

Some of us have experience (recent or ancient history - "before you were born, youngster") with kids coming up and doing harm. And then there are also the feral yutes out there.

"Be polite to everyone you meet - and have a plan of how to kill them" is not just a cutesy saying.

stay safe.
 

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
Without reading the linked story I can say that most likely useing deadly force in self defense against those kids (or at lest the one who pointed the gun) would be ruled as lawful. We are not required to distinguish betweem real firearms and toys/replicas. Generally the rule is what a "reasonable man" in that situation would have thought they were faced with.

Some of us have experience (recent or ancient history - "before you were born, youngster") with kids coming up and doing harm. And then there are also the feral yutes out there.

"Be polite to everyone you meet - and have a plan of how to kill them" is not just a cutesy saying.

stay safe.

I absolutely agree with what you're saying, but I'm not speaking from a legal standpoint, but rather a "this isn't what I pictured in my mind of one day needing to kill" mindset. No doubt in my mind that under KY. law the use of deadly force would have been justified in this situation, but would a person hesitate to use force based on the attackers age, size, appearance, etc?
 

MSG Laigaie

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jan 10, 2011
Messages
3,239
Location
Philipsburg, Montana
Some of us have experience (recent or ancient history - "before you were born, youngster") with kids coming up and doing harm...........................
"Be polite to everyone you meet - and have a plan of how to kill them" is not just a cutesy saying. stay safe.

A threat is a threat. Some armed people will balk at defending themselves from the BG with the scar as much as they will from the 13 year old gangbanger. All of us, everyone, will react differently. Again, a threat is a threat. It is up to you, the wielder of the tool, to determine if DF is the option.


On a side note........to comment on using DF (deadly force) on a "ute" publicly may not be advisable. Comments can be taken out of context or manipulated into something they are not.
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
I agree, a threat is a threat. The OP is the argument the left tried to make about Treyvon Martin, he should not have been shot because of innocent looking several year old photos.
 

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
Anything that we say on here can be taken out of context. But that shouldn't stop us from having an open conversation and hopefully get others to thinking about the wide range of threats that they may face, and hopefully put more thought into preparing for them. I also agree that LAC's have been killed by the 30+ year old attacker because they hesitated. We all will react differently. But the vision of the "unlikely" attackers probably seldom cross our minds. Had this truck owner been armed and used deadly force on the kid, he may have been legally justified, but the media would have crucified him. But are we willing to let media backlash make us victims? I don't want to be killed by a 13 year old no more than I want to be killed by a 50 year old or a 95 year old granny on a walker.
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
The most I will say is a threat is a threat. If the unfortunate circumstances arise my posts to willingness to do anything other than the pure act of self defense would be used to crucify me.
 

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
The OP is the argument the left tried to make about Treyvon Martin, he should not have been shot because of innocent looking several year old photos.

Not at all. The OP is are you accepting of the fact that you may one day be placed in this situation and can you act appropriately? Not "do nothing if the attackers appears to be under X age."
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
Not at all. The OP is are you accepting of the fact that you may one day be placed in this situation and can you act appropriately? Not "do nothing if the attackers appears to be under X age."

I have answered that clearly, I would treat a threat as a threat, that is all I need to say.
 

ak56

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Aug 10, 2009
Messages
746
Location
Carnation, Washington, USA
Hesitation didn't work out too well in the Tacoma Mall shooting in 2005.

Excerpts from an analysis of the Tyler Texas courthouse shooting and the Tacoma Mall shooting:
A legally armed citizen, Brendan McKown, chose to intervene. He drew his 9mm pistol but did not fire. Instead, he verbally ordered Maldonado to put down his gun.

By his own report, when he looked at the boyish Maldonado, he could not bring himself to take the shot. Instead, he chose to draw his gun and attempt to command Maldonado to drop his gun.

Maldonado responded by firing four rounds into McKown’s torso. McKown survived his wounds but was grievously injured including a hit to the spine which may leave him unable to walk.
 

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY

Great share. This is the point of my OP....does the appearance of the attacker(s) have a physiological affect on us? It seems the answer is yes. I bet that we have all convinced ourselves that we would not hesitate to engage a "rough looking bad guy", but what if the attacker has a "boyish" appearance? (or elderly, in a wheelchair, etc)
 

56brd

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2012
Messages
20
Location
Centertown
I pray to God I am never put in this kind of position. I think I would rather take extra time and hope to survive than to act too quickly and find out some kid was messing around with a toy, and I took his life. But that is just me.

I have lived a long time. NO I am not 100 years old, but I am past retirement age. There is something I have learned over the years, it doesn't matter what any of you think you will do, you won't know for sure until the time comes. After you have acted
then I will pay attention to what you say you have done. I don't know about the rest of you but I have done several things I would like to take back. If I get my wish, this will be one thing I won't have to regret.

I don't even want to think about this sort of thing.
 

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
I pray to God I am never put in this kind of position. I think I would rather take extra time and hope to survive than to act too quickly and find out some kid was messing around with a toy, and I took his life. But that is just me.

I have lived a long time. NO I am not 100 years old, but I am past retirement age. There is something I have learned over the years, it doesn't matter what any of you think you will do, you won't know for sure until the time comes. After you have acted
then I will pay attention to what you say you have done. I don't know about the rest of you but I have done several things I would like to take back. If I get my wish, this will be one thing I won't have to regret.

I don't even want to think about this sort of thing.



I see what you're saying and I also hope that I am never put in any situation that requires any degree of force. But not thinking about it (or talking about it) doesn't make it less likely to happen.
 

rscottie

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2008
Messages
608
Location
Ashland, Kentucky, USA
Children can be extremely dangerous when they start committing crimes. They do not have the maturity to think things through like an adult and are more than likely to shoot first and ask questions later.

I will treat all armed threats as threats...at least that is my intention.
 

solus

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2013
Messages
9,315
Location
here nc
as WW has stated...a threat is a threat and as i have stated previously, if I reasonably believe i am personally threatened with serious bodily injury, death, or sexual assault, i will not intervene in the protection of others, but will appropriately engage in self defence activities for myself and my loved ones until such time as the threat has been mitigated.

and WW you get your targets at the same place as i do...

ipse
 
Last edited:
Top