Why you must carry on your person.

[Miggy]

I know it sounds redundant but I'll explain in a sec.

Crew of charter boat disappears on high seas off Florida; 2 passengers in federal custody

Video: FBI tries to solve ocean disappearance
AP Video: Suspects Found Adrift in Missing Boat's
MIAMI (AP) -- A boat trip that began as a routine charter to the Bahamas turned horribly wrong somewhere on the high seas when four crew members vanished and the two men who hired the vessel were plucked out of a life raft.

Kirby Logan Archer and Guillermo Zarabozo are in custody on federal charges while rescuers conduct a massive search in heavy rain for the crew of the 47-foot fishing charter Joe Cool. Neither Archer, who was a fugitive, nor Zarabozo is charged in the disappearances.

"All I can say at this point is that the investigation is continuing," FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela said.

The pair were found in a life raft Monday about 12 miles from where the fishing boat was drifting. Authorities found no one on board and no mechanical problems with the vessel.

A key to some handcuffs was found on the boat, and a substance appearing to be blood was found on the vessel's stern, according to an FBI affidavit.

Archer and Zarabozo paid $4,000 cash to charter the Joe Cool on Sunday to Bimini, Bahamas, where they told the boat's operators they had female companions waiting for them. The Coast Guard says that GPS navigation devices on the boat show that it veered sharply south toward Cuba about halfway into the 50-mile trip

I just finished talking to a guy who was dear friends with the missing crew. Obviously he is not in the best of spirits specially since he help to load the boat for its last trip and met the two alleged scumbags. He was invited to come along but decided not to go at the last moment.

One of the things he commented is that the BGs must have done their deed in a fast & violent manner because there was a gun on board available for the crew. It was hidden but supposedly easily accesible to whomever knew it was there. The guy told me that the gun was recovered from its hidding place by the Feds so the crew never had a chance to use it to defend themselves.

I learned that having a gun nearby is not as good as having one on you at all times.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[sass20485]

Well stated Miggy, nearby is not as good as ON your person & readily available. Please keep us updated, if you learn anything more on this
matter.

[ELCruisr]

Man, I'm sure sorry to hear about this. It hits close to home for me as I spent a lot of years at sea. It's a tough call for mariners. We catch hell from boarding parties of feds and coasties for having a gun on board and if it's on your person they can get very, very hostile. (Try face down on the deck with a gun to your head and a knee in your back while they strip your boat looking for drugs since only a drug smuggler would be armed, right?) So you try to minimize risks between law enforcement and criminal risk. It backfired this time and that stinks. I hope they lock up the perps and lose the keys for ever...

[P95Carry]

Been following this on the news Miggy - and smell of rotten fish has been overpowering from getgo.

True enough - on the person - is IMO the only place for a defensive weapon ..... one reason I carry all the time about the house - a ''few seconds'' needed to go retrieve a gun is ''a few seconds'' possibly way too long IMO.

Was that guy the cousin of one? I recall someone being interviewed who in the end did not go along.

[retsupt99]

On your 'person' is important anytime...on a boat, in your car, or at home (for me)...
One would/could be in just as much trouble when/if someone breaks in the front door and you're four rooms away from your weapon.

I don't think that this is overkill...in my home, my weapon is either on my person or on a table within my reach.

OMO...others may vary...

[Miggy]

I don't think he is a cousin but knows (knew) them for many years and also knows the boat owner who is a very nice guy according to him and must be true since the guy is paying other boats to search for his crew.
Do we have a piracy/death penalty law in the books?

[ELCruisr]

Do we have a piracy/death penalty law in the books?

Unfortunately, no.

Another point is just how hard it is to carry on a small vessel at sea. You are in an environment of constant salt water spray and an occasional soaking. This spray dries into wonderful little crystals of abrasive, corrosive salt. Gets into darn near everything on deck and a surprising amount of stuff below decks. Leather dissolves without constant care and Kydex rubbing salt crystals into steel is a real mess.

Maintaining a firearm on board is a real trial, I speak from hard experience! It's bad enough on a ship but even with daily maintenance on a smaller vessel you face an uphill battle against corrosion, moisture and salt intrusion. Even a "stainless" weapon can turn into a ball of rust in short order. Ammo goes bad quicker. Then there's the possibility of being charged as a gun runner if you have too many rounds or weapons in a foreign port. In some places over 100 rounds while checking in is a felony and you're going to jail!

It's really a different world out there when you're not just making a one day fishing trip of it near shore. The challenges and solutions change. The risks are different. Overall it's much safer than land but I never could bring myself to face the challenges of charter work. I have enough headaches and my hat's off to those who do well with it. Legally things get confusing for us mere mortals as we deal with US law, international maritime law and the foreign law as we enter another nations coastal waters.

Do they know if the crimes were in US or Bahamian waters? Thank goodness they didn't make Cuban waters or they might have literally got away with murder if they had enough "pull".

[Miggy]

Do they know if the crimes were in US or Bahamian waters? Thank goodness they didn't make Cuban waters or they might have literally got away with murder if they had enough "pull".

Nothing published on that so far. They do have their course thanks to the GPS including when and where they made the turn south, but I could not tell you where the events happened.

[Chaddae52]

On your person is good policy for everyone. Takes an awfully short amount of time to decide that you need deadly force. I bet the extra time it takes to bring it to bear is an eternity, even when on your hip. Very sorry to hear of this current event. God bless those involved.

[TN_Mike]

You are 100% correct Miggy. Best to have it on you, not just with in reach.
This is exactly the reason I carry all the time, even at home.

[Ron]

Darn, every time I decide that it is too much of a pain to carry all the time when I am in my house(I live in a pretty "safe" community) one of these threads appears on the Forum. Oh, well, I guess more food for thought.

Ron

[LoneRanger]

Just makes me really happy that my fiance loves that I carry. I made the mistake of not carrying one day and when we were out and about she called me on it and was a little disappointed. Needless to say I've never let her down since. Even when we watch a movie, etc. its right there with us. It will never be too close if I ever need it.

[tankdriver]

I carry all the time, I joke with folks "If i have my pants on, I'm armed". If I'm at home I have a 40 cal sig P239 with in reach.

One of the things our gun class instructor who was a TBI agent said years ago the has stayed with me was...

"I do not care if you have a 1,300 HK sitting on you dresser, if you do not find a gun you are willing to carry all the time, you are fooling yourself and wasting my time..."

[Janq]

Excellent point Miggy and a lesson to be learned for us all.

El Crusr the fix for the harsh environment problem comes in the form of a polymer framed blaster duplicated by two and regularly swapped on a weekly basis.
I'd rather spend twice as much on a single sidearm than save some coin and per chance lose everything.

The ******** shot everyone including even the one guys wife. :(

- Janq

[bobcat35]

land rugermk2 or sw5906 w/ an ar15 and an m1 carbine in the truck
water glock 17 and a benneli nova h2o under the consol
air... a very thick book

but thats just me even around the house i carry the pistol(or book on a plane) is just so i can get to a better weapon be it my rifle or the bg's gun