Case Study: Reporter pulls Glock on crowd, crowd not impressed.

[techres]

For your consideration as a carrying person, watch this video. Ignore the full political realities behind it, but pay attention to a few points:

1. Does the drawing of the firearm de-escalate the situation or escalate (given what video we have which is limited)?
2. Once deployed, does the crowd scatter, go docile, or does it merely draw attention and challenge?
3. Look at the eyes of the guy after he has drawn. Is that "I just effed up fear" or overload from the situation at hand?
4. Is this how you thought of self defense against a crowd to look?

Here is the video:

[video=youtube;FH7aTp8DsVI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FH7aTp8DsVI[/video]


Yes, the reporter, Michael Strickland is in jail after being originally bailed out. He is facing multiple charges that are felonies.
I am only partially interested in the case itself. I am mostly interested in the assumption that many have which is how a crowd will react to a firearm and what you start once you draw it.

 

[Bill of Rights]

Seems to me that it goes back to what we all learned early: If you're going to draw, you better be ready to fire. What that means is that you use verbal de-escalation and other tactics, rather than go to the gun. Unless your life is in imminent danger, whatever the question is, your gun is not the answer.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[The Bubba Effect]

Looks to me like when he drew, he bought some room and some of the crowd bolted and some of them stopped in their tracks until he reholstered, then the crowd started posturing at a distance, like they were working up the nerve to move in on him. I did not watch the rest of it past him reholstering because they were yelling and yelling gets on my nerves.

Once he had the gun out, it looked like he had a "what now" moment.

I have seen lots of dumb, aggressive crowds in bloomington, that is about what I would expect you would get if you drew on a crowd and then reholstered.

 

[techres]

He had no plan. He quickly found out he could not walk away because he feared turning his back on the crowd. At best be froze a moment, no more. I think the crowd was emboldened as soon as he did not fire. Reholstering or not, I don't think it would have changed much. They understood he was not going to fire and that was all the more aggressive members of the crowd needed to go in with challenge. Heck, even in a far worse circumstance, if he did fire, the crowd still would have had him. The draw marked him and ruined his most vital protection in a mob - the invisibility of being no one.

 

[The Bubba Effect]

I disagree with one point, I think if he started shooting the crowd, the remaining crowd would have split, but both sides are just conjecture. I agree that he had no plan and once he pulled his gun, he either had to **** or get off the pot and he did neither, he just dithered.

 

[cbhausen]

Anyone who thinks a handgun is some kind of talisman is sorely mistaken. That crowd would have descended upon him like a school of hungry piranha on a wounded floundering bird.

 

[STEEL CORE]

It seems he feared for his life and the safety of his cameraman, nobody it appears to me messed with them after that, he and his crew are home safe tonight. If the video was of a news crew getting beaten or shot or whatever, some would have said it sucks they were not armed.

Good taste in firearms.

 

[KellyinAvon]

Note to self, never go to Portland. That was a get the hell out of Dodge situation, not a confront with firearm situation. Do all reporters look like hipsters? Oh wait, Portland.

 

[DRob]

What an idiot! He belongs in jail and the guy who is trying to save his sorry a$$ deserves a pat on the back.

 

[rhino]

1. I'm amazed that a reporter is "allowed" by his employer to carry.
2. It would be difficult to make good decisions in that situation -- which is yet another good reason to avoid crowds, especially one that is or is about to become a mob.
3. The people who assisted him and urged the crowd to let him leave were brave and I am impressed by their good will.
4. Those white guys who accosted the person speaking/trying to save the reporter are a special breed of sanctimonious, self-righteous a**holes that make life worse for everyone, including those they claim to support.

 

[T.Lex]

Interesting case study.

At the risk of a "wonder what she was wearing" perception, I wonder what he did to **** the people off? I mean, he went into an emotionally charged situation, but I doubt the people were angry because he was filming/reporting. From what I could tell, even in that clip, protesters are more than happy to be filmed and to get their message out.

As with police video, it seems like this only shows part of the situation.

 

[miguel]

Does anyone know why he was being sent away from the area? Seems like if he was "a reporter" they would want the coverage?

 

[ghuns]

Crowd was obviously full of right thinking 1911 fans.

 

[DFu4ever]

The interesting thing is that while the crowd was obviously angry with him and calling him out, it didn't really look like he was in any actual danger until he pulled out the gun. Then things seemed to start getting worse (not unexpectedly).

I did like moment later in the video when the guy running the camera is talking to the cop, who then walks away. Camera guy just looks at one of the completely armored up riot cops and gives him a completely relaxed, "Sup?" I chuckled.

 

[GunSlinger]

The idiot is very fortunate to still be alive. In that crowd there had to have been someone else carrying....undercover cop, FBI, etc., or a legally licensed citizen. The guy is lucky...he very easily could've been killed.

 

[Dosproduction]

First off you need a much larger gun with more ammo for large crowd. He probably could have dispersed the crowd with some shots but then he would have a long way to run to get to safety. Next a lot of you have said "this is why you avoid crowds" and I agree BUT that is not always possible. Imagine getting out of work and for what ever reason BLM is protesting right there blocking all routes. Or maybe you are driving home and they block the road as has happen many times already. What is the best thing to do. I know you should pull when you are ready to use but is there a way to help deter without shooting? What if you where the guy armed in the crowd and they started to turn on you? What do you do? run? draw? shoot? lay on the ground in a fetal position? What do some of you cops and lawyers recommend? I would be scared to when a crowd of angry people start heading my way.

 

[DFu4ever]

Has anyone revealed what it was he did that pissed off the crowd? My guess would be that he was repeatedly asking loaded questions, and word got around. That seems like a very reporter-like thing to do.

 

[jamil]

I guess I'd kinda rather discuss it in the political forum. I don't see much value in discussing a mental case's strategy. A sane person would probably have handled that situation much better than he did.

Dude goes by the name "laughing at liberals"? Antagonizes the BLM crowd and then gets scared?

Of course the guy in the video makes the most stereotypical comment. I mean, it could have been satire it was so good. "It looked to me like he had a Glock 18 with an extended clip!"

Lot's of fodder for a political discussion.

 

[jamil]

Has anyone revealed what it was he did that pissed off the crowd? My guess would be that he was repeatedly asking loaded questions, and word got around. That seems like a very reporter-like thing to do.

He probably did whatever people do that like to go by the name, "laughing at liberals".

 

[Bfish]

Wow apparently the guy filming knew the guy more in some way. However, if the guy didn't know him I don't know that I'd have done that. It's hard to say but if I saw something like that I wouldn't try and keep people back to let him get out of there I'd just be out of there myself. I wouldn't want to be around if it turned into a situation where shooting started happening.