What do you do in this situation?

[gordo23]

The rear (employee) parking area at my job has always had some issues. One employee has been robbed at gunpoint and then a few weeks later carjacked in the same lot. Cars have been broken into...shady people have been seend. Keep in mind, this is a very "high class--high dollar" area...thus all of the robberies. Speed forward to yesterday. A fellow employee leaves 30 seconds before I do, as she enters her vehicle another vehicle pulls diagonal and blocks her in her space... a guy starts telling a sob story that he is broke and nees gas money...she gives him a five and gets out of there as fast as possible (Now I exit the rear door and see her pulling away...she gives me details today). As I enter my vehicle, something feels wrong and I glance in my review mirror to see this guy box me in (no exit) as he exits his truck and walks to my door at a good pace. What do you do????

I think I learned a valuable lesson, because I (out of instinct) reached for my weapon...which was left at home!!! The guy proceeded to give me the sob story...yada yada yada.

Maybe he was telling the truth, but in a parking lot where people have been carjacked before (by being boxed in) my nature tells me to draw and demand the individual move their car and leave you alone...I felt threatened as did my co-worker.

Same situation... If I had been walking her to her car (she was in a rush and left before I could walk with her) and this guy had pulled up and boxed her in while I was entering my vehicle...what should I have done?


Thanks for all the feedback... Stay safe out there!!!

Gordo



***edit***
Mississippi has just passed a new law allowing an individual to use deadly force to defend personal property and or nearby individuals at risk of injury and or dangerous situations. The amendment to this law does not require an act of agression to be able to defend....you simply have to feel threatened.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Scott]

Gun in hand tell man to leave. Man fails to leave ensure he sees gun in hand and repeat request. Man still fails to leave, that is up to you and the laws in your state. Also on cell to 911 after first request. I would get his description and a description of the vehicle and tag info. A parking ticket helped get the Son of Sam. This guy could be more than an aggressive panhandler and while he may not give you are reason to stop him depending on how busy the police are they may want to have a look at him.

I also park "drug dealer" style. That is I back in everywhere I park. Yes. I sometimes park very far away from my intended destination, but with a pick-up truck and the ever shrinking parking spaces I need some way to fit in the spot. This helps with identification of what is going on around me.

Make sure the girl knows that being nice or polite is not an obligation and could get her attacked or killed. Yeah, I know I'm a cynic and probably a little paranoid.

[SIGguy229]

Sounds like you are being conditioned/spotted for a robbery. I would notify building & company management (if separate) as well as the police.

From a practical standpoint--Have a plan!! either find another place to park, have folks leave in pairs/groups when leaving work, and consider CCW at work. Also consider non-lethal defense like pepper-spray, etc. to keep this guy away. Have a plan on how you will get away, notify police and defend yourself.

My 2 cents...

Mike

[rstickle]

I'd sure start with what SIGguy said. Your employer has to take some responsibility for the protection of the employees if this is constantly happening in the employee parking lot.

[CopperKnight]

Welcome to the forum, Gordo.

Like you said, could be legit, but you don't know. Having some non-lethal (OC and the like) at hand would be helpful. Sounds like there isn't much you can do in this situation with the car being trapped like that, even backed in. But being backed in would give you a better view of the area.

Another, more extreme option, is to always park nose to nose with a car smaller than yours (assuming you aren't driving a Geo). That way you have the possibility of pushing that car out of the way as an escape route if the guy has blocked you in with his bigger car. Something to consider.

[P95Carry]

Hello Gordo



Certainly a need for forward planning but re presentation of a gun, not sure as this will be somewhat state by state thing. Certainly tho some good OC on hand would be useful.

What you describe is certainly carrying considerable potential for escalation by the BG, so needs taken seriously that's for sure.

[Sky Pilot]

Before CCW (and before CPZs) here in Ohio, I worked at a hospital not far from here. A fellow on foot tried to box me in. One wonders as to his lack of brains, the smallest car will do harm to a standing human. I was able to reverse and escape, and had a conversation with hospital police via cell phone as I drove home.
I will neither confirm nor deny the presence or absence of a 1911 on or about my person the following day at the same location.
Sky Pilot

[snowdoctor]

Welcome Gordo....I think your employer does need to be notified, but ultimately the moral to this story is not to leave your gun at home. It sounds as though you have contact with a possible hazardous environment DAILY. This warrants carrying. If work doesn't allow, use deep concealment like smartcarry, etc. I don't think you can afford not to.

[97Octane]

Drawing your weapon out in that situation spells bad news for you. The behavior that is exhibited sounds quite odd, and not a good strategy from what I can see about the gas sob story... or driving/walking panhandlers.

Even though others have been carjacked... I heard nothign about the display of a knife/gun/weapon in those cases. Fear of life is the ONLY reason to draw. I know some are easily spooked, and fear for their life even at the slightest approach from a stranger... but in most cases these are non-issues for me. I have only been in 1 situation where red alarm bells were going off, (didnt have have weapon on me at the time either), in the case you described, drawing sounds like trouble.

[sojourner]

Sounds like the perps are looking for an easy mark. Upscale work location, compliant employees. Grab a couple bucks every so often w/ a not so overt threat.

I would recommend getting documentation, in writing, about what is happening. File reports w/ the police. Send mail or memo to owner / mgt of company requesting security cameras and security because you feel unsafe and the incidents.

In addition to documentation, do not allow egress from work by individuals. Go out 2 - 3 at a time and cover each others 6. That would make you not so easy marks. Hopefully, that would get the perps to leave you alone.

Also, Exercise your 2nd A rights, pronto.

Get this documentation! If the situation becomes unavoidable and you are absolutely forced to defend yourself, the documentation could help you. (I am not a lawyer and have not sleeped at a holiday inn express last night).

[PapaScout]

If someone is preventing you from having free mobility (ie. blocking your car with their own) it looks to me like it falls uner Criminal Confinement. In Indiana it is :

IC 35-42-3-3

Criminal confinement
Sec. 3. (a) A person who knowingly or intentionally:
(1) confines another person without the other person's consent; or


It appears that it's only a misdemeanor unless they show a weapon then it moves up to a Class B felony.

[PapaScout]

Sorry for the double-post.

Does someone confining you mean you should shoot them? Probably not, but it certainly warrants an aggressive response from me to describe how unhappy I am with their actions.

A 911 call and a photo of their license plate as they drive away are in order.

[Lumberjack98]

I'd put my hand on the pistol but not draw and clearly tell the man to stop. Repeat the request if he does not immediately stop. If he still continues, draw the pistol, point it at him and repeat the request to stop. If he doesn't stop at that point, then you make him stop.

[AutoFan]

You did the right thing. Boxing in your car with another vehicle is OK only by a cop, firefighter or paramedic, only under special circumstances. Now tell your employer about the encounters (maybe leave out the gun part - your call), call the cops and let them know, and get a picture of the guy and/or his car's license plate. The type of behavior you describe him exhibiting could escalate into something more violent.

[ssssthesnake]

Sounds like from what you discribe the agressiv pan handaling might be a feeling out proccess .
1. Ask around is this the same guy
2. If he is outa gas hows he driving his truck.
3Most pan handalers do there buisness on foot if he blocked in my truck with his and jumped out and aproched me id have a hand on my folder and or oc spray if I wasnt armed if I was armed Id have a hand on my gun
but most importaint I would not be sitting in my car waiting for him to come up to my window. To confine seems to me blocking the path of another car truck ect.. is a means of detaining you might be a trial run at a bigger crime. He might be just trying out his plan for a kidnapping as this seems like the m.o. for that not panhandaling