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Tactical
Scenario: 03-2005
It is 5:10 PM on Wednesday as you pull up in front of your
sister’s place of employment. You
haven’t seen her for several weeks but this afternoon you called to see if she
had time for dinner with you. You
agreed to pick her up after work at her office and as you park your new Pontiac
G6 coupe, you notice that there are plenty of parking spots in the upscale
strip mall. Your sister works as a
graphic artist for a small company whose office building is at the right end of
the mall. You go inside the building
and note that both receptionists that usually greet you are absent. Assuming that they have left for the day,
you head toward the corridor leading to your sister’s office. Leading off the corridor to the left is a
hallway with numerous offices on both sides, one of which is your sisters. As you approach the corner, you hear what
appear to be very muffled screams and a male voice saying something
unintelligible. You begin to turn the
corner to your left and you see a young female (not your sister) on her back
with a young male straddling her. They
are about 15 feet away and they don’t see you as you stand there. You note that there are a few small, red stains
on the female’s Louis Vuitton blouse and that the male has his left hand over
her mouth and has his right hand raised in which appears to be a fixed blade
kitchen knife.
You are armed with a Kahr P-9 Covert 9mm. pistol loaded
with 7 rounds of Winchester SXT 147 grain ammunition on you strong side in a
FIST kydex IWB holster. You have an
additional 6 round mag in a Sherrick leather mag pouch in the left pocket of
your sport jacket. In your right jacket
pocket is an Ericsson model T-68 cell phone and you have a Cold Steel Recon
folding knife clipped to your left front pants pocket. State what action you would take and why.
Picking Up Sister Response
In reading the scenario, several things come to
mind. The area behind you appears to be
clear of personnel, but before taking action, one would be wise to check their
six. The young woman who appears to be in imminent danger is not your
sister. The fact that she appears
to be in imminent danger results in this being a scenario in which retreat is
not moral option.
As you are at an opening to a
hallway with many offices, the likelihood is great that you sister is in her
office, as may be other innocents. It is also highly likely that the
perpetrator you see before you is NOT alone, based upon the fact that he and
his victim are the only ones that can currently be observed or heard. If others
were present and were in the position that they could assist, it is likely that
someone else would be in the corridor. The possibility is present that other
innocents are being held hostage or are being assaulted in other areas not
visible to you OR they may have vacated the building via a rear entrance.
If I were to come upon such a
situation, my first action would be to seek a position of cover at the corner.
The situation appears to be of such a critical nature, that time spent
attempting to call 911 would result in doddling. At this point in time, to use
the cell phone would waste time and may well alert the perp to my presence.
After checking behind me to see
if I was being stalked from the rear, I would draw my sidearm and confront the
apparent perpetrator by using a command voice. He would be advised that
he is to immediately drop the weapon or I would shoot him. Should he
refuse to immediately follow my instructions, I feel that I would have no
choice but to use morally and legally justifiable deadly force to prevent
him from completing the downward knife thrust into his victim. Shot placement
would be important, as there have been instances in which the 9mm 147gr SXT has
over penetrated. I would not want an over penetrating round injuring the victim
or continuing down the hallway to potentially injure an innocent. In
addition, as the perpetrator is in a position in which he can still cause harm
to the victim, even after being shot once, it would be important to shoot as
necessary to cease all aggression.
After shooting a non-complaint
perpetrator, I would cover the perp and the hallway from my position of
cover in order to determine if other perpetrators would respond to the corridor
upon hearing the shot. Awareness of what was going on behind me would be
important as well, so 360 degree scans would also be required. During this
time, I would be speaking to the victim in order to determine her condition and
in order to determine if other perpetrators or victims were in the
building, and if so, if she was aware of their location. While covering the
perp, I would then use the cell phone to call 911, advising them of the
situation, how I was dressed, where I was located and to advise them that a law
enforcement and EMS response was needed. I would remain on the cell phone
as I requested the victim come to my location, if she is physically able to do
so. In the absence of information that others were present or if further
screams or calls for assistance were not heard, I would remain in my location,
on the cell phone, until the arrival of law enforcement. I would conduct a
tactical reload as soon as it was practical to do so.
While the urge to further check
out the building in search for my sister would be strong, at this point in
time, I am responsible for the victim that is now with me. Without any
indications that others are in danger, I would proceed no further. From my
location, I could monitor the hallway in order to determine if anyone attempted
to leave and could convey this information to officers arriving at the
scene, as they are much better equipped to conduct house/building
clearing exercises than I am on my own.
In the event that the
perpetrator did comply with my instructions. I would then advise him to prone
out on the floor on his stomach, arms out, palms up, and with his feet crossed
at the ankles. I would closely monitor the hallway in order to determine if my
verbal commands had alerted other perpetrators to activities that were ongoing
in the hallway. I would also scan 360 degrees to ensure that someone was not
coming up behind me. I would then call 911 with my cell phone and advise
the dispatcher of the current situation, my description, all known
information gleaned from the victim, and that law enforcement
and EMS were needed at my location. If the victim is physically able, I
would request that she come to my location to create distance and alleviate the
possibility of a hostage situation. The cell phone would be in full use until
Law Enforcement arrived.