Very scary car chase for me

[bigdave238]

A very crazy situation happened to me the other day. I was sitting in my truck with my 3 kids waiting for my wife to come out of the doctors office. All of a sudden i begin to hear a lot of sirens coming up the road (this is a small town and 2 lane highway). I then see a older looking Lincoln town car being chased by an unmarked car with lights and sirens going coming towards me on the highway. I assume they will pass and be no big deal but instead the car being chased pulls into the parking lot right before getting to the lot i was waiting in. As soon as the car gets in the driveway the driver jumps out of the car and begins running away from the police and the 1 cop that was there so far begins to chase him as well but is pretty far behind.

Now the the lot they are in now is just a small parking lot with a small medical building in the middle with a fence separating the properties. Well the assumed bad guy (since he is running from the cops) runs past the medical building as they are on the opposite side of the building to me, i figure he will run in a straight line and keep running past and into the suburban area behind. Instead he runs around the building in a circle, as i see him come around the back of the building coming towards my truck now i grab my gun and pull it out and have it in hand but in my lap. The bad guy runs directly past my truck so close if he simply reached out he could have touched my hood. Now stupidly he runs out into the highway is almost hit by oncoming traffic and is caught in the woods across the highway by about 10 cruisers at this point.

Now it all happened real fast but with my 3 kids in the truck with me i was going to take no chances as i had no idea what was going on with this guy, now when he ran past me he never looked at us like he was going to come to the truck and he just ran past. However, as soon as i saw him coming our way and i pulled my gun from the holster i told myself if the man did turn and come like he was coming to us i was prepared to start shooting at him through the windshield as all my kids were in the backseat and i was not about to let us become hostages or be carjacked.

The police never really said anything to us after just asked if we were ok, and everything turned out fine. My question is if i had been there alone not with my kids, as i was only worried about protecting them at the time, would it have been a good idea to pull on the guy and try to get him to stop running as he came around the building towards me to maybe help the one officer that was there at the time or was staying put the best course an of action. I looked it in the law book and it really doesn't say anything about it. I know we are not cops but do we have any kind of duty as CHLers to aid or assist in a situation such as this. Are we even supposed to help. Just been wondering ever since it happened.

[maddog duck]

My only duty is to myself and my family. And that duty is to go home every night.

I might consider stepping in if an officer is getting pounded on or shot at, but even then I'd want to have a really solid understanding of the situation and possibly be on the phone to 911.

My family has to come first.

[Keith B]

A very crazy situation happened to me the other day. I was sitting in my truck with my 3 kids waiting for my wife to come out of the doctors office. All of a sudden i begin to hear a lot of sirens coming up the road (this is a small town and 2 lane highway). I then see a older looking Lincoln town car being chased by an unmarked car with lights and sirens going coming towards me on the highway. I assume they will pass and be no big deal but instead the car being chased pulls into the parking lot right before getting to the lot i was waiting in. As soon as the car gets in the driveway the driver jumps out of the car and begins running away from the police and the 1 cop that was there so far begins to chase him as well but is pretty far behind.

Now the the lot they are in now is just a small parking lot with a small medical building in the middle with a fence separating the properties. Well the assumed bad guy (since he is running from the cops) runs past the medical building as they are on the opposite side of the building to me, i figure he will run in a straight line and keep running past and into the suburban area behind. Instead he runs around the building in a circle, as i see him come around the back of the building coming towards my truck now i grab my gun and pull it out and have it in hand but in my lap. The bad guy runs directly past my truck so close if he simply reached out he could have touched my hood. Now stupidly he runs out into the highway is almost hit by oncoming traffic and is caught in the woods across the highway by about 10 cruisers at this point.

Now it all happened real fast but with my 3 kids in the truck with me i was going to take no chances as i had no idea what was going on with this guy, now when he ran past me he never looked at us like he was going to come to the truck and he just ran past. However, as soon as i saw him coming our way and i pulled my gun from the holster i told myself if the man did turn and come like he was coming to us i was prepared to start shooting at him through the windshield as all my kids were in the backseat and i was not about to let us become hostages or be carjacked.

The police never really said anything to us after just asked if we were ok, and everything turned out fine. My question is if i had been there alone not with my kids, as i was only worried about protecting them at the time, would it have been a good idea to pull on the guy and try to get him to stop running as he came around the building towards me to maybe help the one officer that was there at the time or was staying put the best course an of action. I looked it in the law book and it really doesn't say anything about it. I know we are not cops but do we have any kind of duty as CHLers to aid or assist in a situation such as this. Are we even supposed to help. Just been wondering ever since it happened.

We are under no obligation to assist in any manner, and for that matter, most of the time you shouldn't get in the way.

In the situation you were in, you were justified in pulling your weapon to be prepared to protect yourself and your family if needed. However, you should NOT try to intervene in a chase like that unless requested by the officer. The only way I would have gotten involved was if the officer had tackled the guy beside your vehicle, then you could possibly assist in helping him with the apprehension, but ONLY after you ask him if he needed help and he indicates it is wanted. At no time in this scenario would you be justified in pulling your weapon on the perp as you do not know what he is being chased for. You would only be justified if the life of the officer was in danger as the guy attacked the officer in some manner. (Not gonna go into the fleeing felon discussion for this scenario.)

[Excaliber]

A very crazy situation happened to me the other day. I was sitting in my truck with my 3 kids waiting for my wife to come out of the doctors office. All of a sudden i begin to hear a lot of sirens coming up the road (this is a small town and 2 lane highway). I then see a older looking Lincoln town car being chased by an unmarked car with lights and sirens going coming towards me on the highway. I assume they will pass and be no big deal but instead the car being chased pulls into the parking lot right before getting to the lot i was waiting in. As soon as the car gets in the driveway the driver jumps out of the car and begins running away from the police and the 1 cop that was there so far begins to chase him as well but is pretty far behind.

Now the the lot they are in now is just a small parking lot with a small medical building in the middle with a fence separating the properties. Well the assumed bad guy (since he is running from the cops) runs past the medical building as they are on the opposite side of the building to me, i figure he will run in a straight line and keep running past and into the suburban area behind. Instead he runs around the building in a circle, as i see him come around the back of the building coming towards my truck now i grab my gun and pull it out and have it in hand but in my lap. The bad guy runs directly past my truck so close if he simply reached out he could have touched my hood. Now stupidly he runs out into the highway is almost hit by oncoming traffic and is caught in the woods across the highway by about 10 cruisers at this point.

Now it all happened real fast but with my 3 kids in the truck with me i was going to take no chances as i had no idea what was going on with this guy, now when he ran past me he never looked at us like he was going to come to the truck and he just ran past. However, as soon as i saw him coming our way and i pulled my gun from the holster i told myself if the man did turn and come like he was coming to us i was prepared to start shooting at him through the windshield as all my kids were in the backseat and i was not about to let us become hostages or be carjacked.

The police never really said anything to us after just asked if we were ok, and everything turned out fine. My question is if i had been there alone not with my kids, as i was only worried about protecting them at the time, would it have been a good idea to pull on the guy and try to get him to stop running as he came around the building towards me to maybe help the one officer that was there at the time or was staying put the best course an of action. I looked it in the law book and it really doesn't say anything about it. I know we are not cops but do we have any kind of duty as CHLers to aid or assist in a situation such as this. Are we even supposed to help. Just been wondering ever since it happened.

As you pointed out, you don't want to be in a position to be taken hostage. You also don't want to be in front of a bad guy who could pull a gun and fire at at officer behind him. This would give the officer the unenviable choice of not firing back because of the danger to you and potentially being killed by taking unanswered fire from the BG, or firing back and potentially placing you and your kids in danger.

You certainly don't want to add an unknown guy with a gun to an already ugly situation, or find yourself in a situation where you're pointing a gun in the direction of an oncoming bad guy with an officer behind him, because your gun would then be pointed in the direction of the officer as well.

Then there are all those other officers converging on the spot you're in, not all of whom may be in uniform.

The more you think about this, the uglier it gets.

When one finds oneself in a situation like that, the best course of action is usually to remember urgent business elsewhere, quickly find another place to be, and be in it.

[Kythas]

Maybe you could have "accidentally" opened your truck door just when the guy was running by you. "Oh, I'm sorry, I was talking to my kids when I opened my door and didn't see you there. Oops!"

Seriously, Excaliber gives great advice, as always. Police in a chase have too much to worry about without someone else injecting themselves in the situation.

[cougartex]

No, let the police handle it.

[gigag04]

Don't pull your gun out and start giving him commands if you haven't been threatened....what defense do you have in the PC?

Good call to the person who said you would be an unknown with a gun in an already elevated situation. If he approaches threatening you, then that is a different story.

I do think a random closeline or smashing with the car door could be acceptable though


Now - if you drive by a see an officer wresting on the ground with someone and the officer is alone...please do whatever you can to assist. At this point a gun may or may not be needed, but there are plenty of videos where armed truckers save an officer's life during a traffic stop gone wrong.

[chuckybrown]

I'm sure this was very scary, but like the previous poster suggested, you could have opened your car door as he tried to run past and used it to smack him to the ground, stepped out of the car and asked "did that hurt? it sure looked like it hurt!".....just like Eddie Murphy in 48 hours....

Glad you're ok....but, again...couldn't resist....

CB

[PeteCamp]

I know we are not cops but do we have any kind of duty as CHLers to aid or assist in a situation such as this.

Having a CHL does not mean you are a cop - as you stated. Maybe it should be printed on the front of the CHL card. Being out of your vehicle and pulling a gun out where responding officers can see you would be inviting disaster. Many blue on blue incidents occur when uniformed officers fail to identify a plainclothes officer and mistakenly open fire. I avoid such situations like the plague.

In addition, you have no idea why they are chasing the actor. It might simply be someone fleeing because they have an expired drivers license. They will be charged for running from police but the charges might just end up being very minor. What would you say to the jury if you kill someone over a misdemeanor? Pulling out your weapon could escalate the situation into a full-blown shootout - with you in the middle. The resulting charges could be catastrophic for you. If you survive.

I think you did right to remain in a locked car with a drawn weapon, protecting your kids. As others have stated, I would go to the aid of an officer who is fighting with an actor, but there is already one weapon in the fight. Bringing mine makes it much more difficult.

And no, I would never open my door and try to let the actor run into it. Being on an adrenaline charge, he would probably crush you between the door and frame. That tactic is for Hollywood.

[texas1234]

You did what I would have done if my child was with me. If my child was not with me I would not have assisted, unless the cop was being assaulted and was losing. If the cop is winning I personally would stay out of it. In order for the LEO to get my assistant he would have to ask for it and/or he has to be losing the battle and be the only LEO in the area, if he has assistance from other cops I would not mess with the situation.

[KD5NRH]

would it have been a good idea to pull on the guy and try to get him to stop running as he came around the building towards me to maybe help the one officer that was there at the time

Have you ever seen a cop that wouldn't be helped a lot by a few extra miles of running?

If you could find a way to make them do some sit-ups too...

[Gearheart]

The bicycle cop at the university looks pretty fit.

The rest look like they would die if they had to run a few miles.


I like Excaliber's answer best.

[stroo]

You did the right thing whether or not your kids were in the truck with you.

[srothstein]

You did the exact right thing, especially with your kids with you. You are under no legal obligation to help the police as a general rule. Your moral obligations are a separate, personal issue. As a general rule, I will stop to help an officer but I would never do it with my kids anywehere nearby and I do have a little more training than you (I think).

For all of those who think you are never under any obligation to assist the officer, I will point out that there is still a law requiring you to assist if an officer requests it. Article 2.14 of the Code of Criminal Procedure still allows for any peace officer to call a sufficient number of citizens to assist him in his legal duties and places a legal obligation on you to obey. Article 2.15 says the officer shall report anyone refusing to assist to the DA for prosecution, but there is never a defintiion of the grade of offense or punishment.

[Kythas]

In addition, you have no idea why they are chasing the actor. It might simply be someone fleeing because they have an expired drivers license. They will be charged for running from police but the charges might just end up being very minor. What would you say to the jury if you kill someone over a misdemeanor?

Typically, though, anyone who runs from the police would be charged with a felony charge of resisting arrest by flight or evasion.