I believe that there are a couple of other considerations. Please permit me to follow a bit of a tangent.dewayneward wrote:your quote about shooting someone over a verbal altercation is the thing I find issue with, by this logic, then the only time you would shoot someone is if you were being physically attacked....meaning that you were actually being hit before you shot. quite frankly, at that point, its too late to shoot.kahrfreak wrote:Another option: Simply walk away and shop somewhere else. On the way out, let mgmt. know that you don't appreciate your son being subject to that type of behavior. I've done this before. I simply choose not to engage myself in confrontations unless absolutely necessary, especially when armed.
All this stuff about reasonable belief doesn't counter the fact that if you shoot someone over a verbal altercation, you will most certainly find yourself at trial.
If the guy would have removed the cart as my barrier, I would have felt that the physical attack was imminent and shot him. If he wanted to run his mouth, I wouldnt have shot him.
I used to reasonably "forward" about commenting on people's public use of cell phones. When someone in a checkout line had their cell phone in their ear AND was paying more attention to that conversation than the checkout procedure, I would say "excuse me but would you please finish checking out before finishing your conversation?" I never received less than glare and several times was treated to a verbal "mine your own business" tongue lashing. I don't do that any more. For right or wrong, I feel like I'm putting myself a risk - the exact thing that I wanted to avoid by having a gun available. Whether or not the situation escalated to some sort of violence (most of the cell phone talkers were women and there would have been no reason a deadly violence response from me unless they drew a weapon), I felt that it could put me in compromised situation. Now, I just roll my eyes and let it go. In my opinion, some of the folks who are willing to use a phone in the checkout line are the same ones responsible for road rage. Their tempers are just a fraction below the surface and I don't want to do anything that would trigger an angry response. I felt like I had more of bat man license before I got my CHL than I do now.
We use an RV to visit other States. Our last trip covered 10 States, 8 of which allowed me to carry with my Texas CHL. In preparation, I studied the deadly force and concealed carry statues from all of them. I quickly realized that I was never going to be able to put myself in a "Georgia mindset" where I could specifically recall the differences between Georgia's laws and Texas laws. The only possible solution was for me to determine the most conservative approach to the possible use of deadly force that any of those States require and use that approach wherever I go. Yes, it is more restrictive than Texas but I don't see anyway around it.
Lastly, I've pondered a post-shooting mental state. I absolutely will have no reservations if I'm attacked and will respond to protect myself and my family. I'm not sure that I could live with myself, however, if I felt that I had a hand in escalating the situation. This isn't at all about what is legal but I feel inside. De-escalation of a potential situation, I've discovered, is more about giving me the means to live with myself afterward. I am NOT responsible for someone else's actions, especially someone like the cussing nutjob that you encountered. I would have been more likely to request that he tone down his language if he had been alone or with one other person, especially a woman. Making that request in front of 3 male buddies has a much greater potential for a testosterone fueled response. Some guys feel threatened and would say so in court if they believe that you are challenging their manhood. Think of the speeches of gang members when they feel that they have been "dissed." I'm not saying that feeling is reasonable but it does exist in some guys. Again, I'm talking about my own feelings in a post shooting scenario. I've personally decided to avoid situations where I might play into an escalation to prevent my self recriminations later. When I personally weigh the consequences of listening to a guy cuss in front of my kids (when they were younger - they are both older now), I'd take that over having to go through the rest of my life thinking "I shouldn't have said anything."