So, I have a new job as the district circulation manager for a newspaper here in Alaska, which basically means that I get the unenviable task of driving a paper route when a carrier quits or some such fun-ness... Anyway, it sucks, but I'm a well paid paper boy so I keep the job.
I was driving a route today, new to me, listening to a route tape made by my predecessor. The tape got a bit confusing at one point and I made a wrong turn looking for the newspaper tube. While driving up an Alaskan excuse for a road, I came upon a No Trespassing sign, but this was probably the 20th such sign I had driven through to deliver papers. Apparently, newspaper delivery for customer does not constitute trespassing :tongue:.
After driving about 30 yards, I realized that I was in the wrong place and decided to make a 4 point turn to head back out in search of the correct home to make the delivery. As I began to back up the first time, I noticed a crazed man running out of a trailer with a Rifle, pointed, not aimed, at my car while screaming and cursing.
Under my left thigh was my Kimber .45 and my first thought was to draw, but right at this time I realized that this guy was not an immediate danger, as the gun was now being held in one hand by the stock as he began screaming at me to leave, not to mention that the bolt was back.
I apologized for my mistake, told him I was the paper boy and had made a wrong turn and proceeded to finish my four point turn to leave. It is mighty difficult to turn a Ford Explorer with one hand on the hilt of my gun... :blink:
I know that, by the definition of the law, I could have drawn my gun and even fired, but in the second or so that it all unfolded, I realized that this guy was much like a grouse, who puffs out his chest to seem bigger. I'm pretty sure he had some operation going on and really wanted to be left alone, which I doubt is a reality since I reported it to the State Troopers.
What did I learn you ask? Well, it is simple, be aware. Every moment I'm out of the house, especially on these routes, I keep a very high situational awareness. I could have dropped the guy and been in the legal right. There was a gun which was pointed at my car which was enough to draw and fire, but I decided that a calm head was much better and never had to use deadly force to deescalate the situation(simply pointing a gun at an individual is the use of deadly force).
I pray every single day when I put my gun on my hip that I would never have to use it for it's intended purpose. Today is the closest I had ever come to needing to do just that. If my family had been with me and I had made the same mistake, the situation may have been different, but I thank God that all ended peacefully. I finished my route and let the authorities handle it.
I was driving a route today, new to me, listening to a route tape made by my predecessor. The tape got a bit confusing at one point and I made a wrong turn looking for the newspaper tube. While driving up an Alaskan excuse for a road, I came upon a No Trespassing sign, but this was probably the 20th such sign I had driven through to deliver papers. Apparently, newspaper delivery for customer does not constitute trespassing :tongue:.
After driving about 30 yards, I realized that I was in the wrong place and decided to make a 4 point turn to head back out in search of the correct home to make the delivery. As I began to back up the first time, I noticed a crazed man running out of a trailer with a Rifle, pointed, not aimed, at my car while screaming and cursing.
Under my left thigh was my Kimber .45 and my first thought was to draw, but right at this time I realized that this guy was not an immediate danger, as the gun was now being held in one hand by the stock as he began screaming at me to leave, not to mention that the bolt was back.
I apologized for my mistake, told him I was the paper boy and had made a wrong turn and proceeded to finish my four point turn to leave. It is mighty difficult to turn a Ford Explorer with one hand on the hilt of my gun... :blink:
I know that, by the definition of the law, I could have drawn my gun and even fired, but in the second or so that it all unfolded, I realized that this guy was much like a grouse, who puffs out his chest to seem bigger. I'm pretty sure he had some operation going on and really wanted to be left alone, which I doubt is a reality since I reported it to the State Troopers.
What did I learn you ask? Well, it is simple, be aware. Every moment I'm out of the house, especially on these routes, I keep a very high situational awareness. I could have dropped the guy and been in the legal right. There was a gun which was pointed at my car which was enough to draw and fire, but I decided that a calm head was much better and never had to use deadly force to deescalate the situation(simply pointing a gun at an individual is the use of deadly force).
I pray every single day when I put my gun on my hip that I would never have to use it for it's intended purpose. Today is the closest I had ever come to needing to do just that. If my family had been with me and I had made the same mistake, the situation may have been different, but I thank God that all ended peacefully. I finished my route and let the authorities handle it.