VIDEO: Carjacking caught on video

[Bark'n]

we have to realize we don't walk around on high alert 24/7/365...

Very true. However, we can be on high alert when walking to our vehicle. Especially when in dimly lit parking garages at night.

At no point did I notice the woman stop and look around on her way to her vehicle. It appeared she only looked straight ahead in the direction of her car.

She did not stop and look around after unlocking her car or opening the back door to place the packages.

She did not stop and look around when she finished placing packages in the back seat and before opening her front door.

She did not immediately lock her car upon entering.

By then it was too late. The attacker had already observed her actions enough to profile her as an easy target. So he pounced!

some bad guys are very good at what they do.

Absolutely, and like a predator animal, they almost always profile their targets! They do not want to be tangling with someone who is going to offer resistance or fight back if they can successfully avoid it. They are all about easy scores.

Had this woman carried herself differently. Had she had been watchful both going to the car, and while at the car, he likely would have avoided her as the victim and waited for another easier score. Not once did this lady scan the garage and look over her shoulder. Not once!

Yes, we can't all be on high alert 24/7/365... But there are critical times when you need to at least be looking around. Walking by yourself to your car in a dimly lit parking garage is absolutely one of those critical times you should be paying attention.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[tcox4freedom]

Very true. However, we can be on high alert when walking to our vehicle. Especially when in dimly lit parking garages at night.

At no point did I notice the woman stop and look around on her way to her vehicle. It appeared she only looked straight ahead in the direction of her car.

She did not stop and look around after unlocking her car or opening the back door to place the packages.

She did not stop and look around when she finished placing packages in the back seat and before opening her front door.

She did not immediately lock her car upon entering.

By then it was too late. The attacker had already observed her actions enough to profile her as an easy target. So he pounced!




Absolutely, and like a predator animal, they almost always profile their targets! They do not want to be tangling with someone who is going to offer resistance or fight back if they can successfully avoid it. They are all about easy scores.

Had this woman carried herself differently. Had she had been watchful both going to the car, and while at the car, he likely would have avoided her as the victim and waited for another easier score. Not once did this lady scan the garage and look over her shoulder. Not once!

Yes, we can't all be on high alert 24/7/365... But there are critical times when you need to at least be looking around. Walking by yourself to your car in a dimly lit parking garage is absolutely one of those critical times you should be paying attention.

Plus 1+
Another excellent post Bark'n

[mlr1m]

Personally I park way out by myself whenever possible. It used to be to protect my car from scratches as others open their car doors or from the shopping carts. More and more I have come to think of it as a practical self defense tactic. It is hard for anyone to hide around a lone vehicle without being spotted from a safe distance. The chance of someone following me to get to their car isn't there either.

Michael

[Guantes]

There is something that I think that has been overlooked. While SA is a valuable attribute, I do not see it generally as a stand alone item. It will at times allow avoidance, or more often allow other actions either prepatory or defensive, such as the deployment of various defensive tactics or tools. If one has no training in SD or tools to employ in that regard, the value of SA is significantly less. Had this woman observed from the begining, the attacker approaching at high speed with a drawn weapon, I suspect that all she would have done was freeze. In such a case SA would have been of little use to her.

[Bark'n]

I agree 100% with that Guantes, I was just pointing out that predators profile their targets and had she been aware of her surroundings, (as I described in post #46) the predator may have broke off his attack and profiled someone else considered to be an easier target.

And she may not have even known she was a target at all. While she may never have seen him, you can bet he was studying her closely before he acted.

[Guantes]

I don't think there is any doubt, like you stated, that SA can have a deterrent effect in some cases.

[EvilMonk]

Boy!

Good thing my sciatica puts my into/out of time with a car at around 20 seconds!

Yessireebobski! I sure feel better about my state of being right about now...

Excuse me while I go put on some extra weapons and maybe a suicide vest for extra measure.

Great video!

[oneshot]

I don't know but thought I'd ask here. Isn't it carjacking if they only take that car and kidnapping if they take a person? The idea the cops call it a carjacking makes it sound like simple theft.

Michael

^^^^I look at carjacking^^^^^^^^
as what it is Grand Theft, A felony, and, the taking of a person against their will ; Kidnapping, also a felony.

One thing I think may have helped besides better SA is having her car "backed" into the space. At least (in this case), she would have had the door as a barrier to help her get away.
IMHO; having your car ready to "pull" out is better than having to "back" out of a space.

At least for this instance she would have always been facing the direction the attack came from and may have been able to see the danger before it was too late and get away.

^^^I agree with above^^^^^^^^


And do this almost always, either at work, Kroger, pulling in to a stop and rob, or most anywhere.

So here was an interesting conversation I had at a Christmas party yesterday evening. All my friends are in their mid 30s, early 40s. Most of them work for Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing, ATT.

I asked the women at the table what they thought of this story and whether it compelled them to consider getting a concealed weapon.

The first reaction was they were afraid their kids would get the gun and hurt themselves or others. Then they feared the gun would accidentally go off.
Some of them stated this could never happen to them and that no one "dare" even try to steal anything from them. They even weren't ready to carry pepper spray.

Only two of the women surprisingly said they would consider getting trained and buying a CW. This of course shocked the other women.

It is surprising how perceptions are different even among the well educated. I am surprised people who have double majors don't have the common sense or see it necessary to arm themselves in some way to prevent a potential assault.
The "It can never happen to me" attitude always intrigues me.

^^^^I refer to these "brainy-aks" as^^^^^^^^^^^^

Book Smart, Street Stupid.

I'm suprised as long as she was taking, he didn't fall asleep or look for someone else, lol.

^^^^^I was also thinking the same thing.^^^^^^^^

Either that, or the invisible man was there doing the carjacking/kidnapping.

[Doc Holliday]

Bark'n,

As part and parcel to various items I do in my private life including living within a multi-college region and town as well as working among said persons; I have to say with absolute surety that your theory of inverse correlation is _solid_ (!).

In fact this exact same observational theory comes up often in my own circles....Followed typically by statements of; 'What the....!?' or 'Where is his/her head at?!'.

Narrow band subject matter hyper-smart, but otherwise most often broadband world relevant dumber than hand washed cars in the winter time.

The idea of the daft, aloof and out of touch brainiac 'professor' type is very much the norm, to my direct experience, rather than the made for TV & movies exception.
It is soooo bizarre to witness first hand. I now have learned to no longer question but rather to simply expect as much.
Not all and always, but very much to the majority.

I can concur with the above as well.

I've spent a good bit of time in the academic circle and the majority of the intelligentsia are stark raving idiots that wouldn't have enough common sense to change a lightbulb.

[nutz4utwo]

An interesting video for you, a Russian prankster getting the drop on a dozen or so unsuspecting people. He gets very close to them without their knowledge, hits them, trims flowers, or drinks their beer or whatever, and gets away cleanly.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=32c_1294357344

Still think you can be situationally aware enough at all times to prevent someone from getting close to you?

[mlr1m]

What is someone supposed to do if they have groceries or packages to put in a car? She put something in the back seat first and then got in the car and that's when the perp attacked. I'd like to hear suggestions for how people handle putting things in the car and maintaining SA.

This is but one of the reasons I park out away from other cars whenever possible. Yes I might have farther to walk it is much safer an fewer dings for my car as well. When I am going to my car from the store it is very easy to spot anyone around it or between me and the car. There are no places for someone to hide.
I avoid parking with the crowd.

Michael

[Guantes]

An interesting video for you, a Russian prankster getting the drop on a dozen or so unsuspecting people. He gets very close to them without their knowledge, hits them, trims flowers, or drinks their beer or whatever, and gets away cleanly.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=32c_1294357344

Still think you can be situationally aware enough at all times to prevent someone from getting close to you?

I believe that most of the awareness comments referred to its elevation in specific situations or circumstances.

I think there were eighteen incidents in the video, of which fourteen for sure, I would have been aware and nailed him.