At the church shooting, could you have made that shot?
"Well, could you, T-Bolt?"
Yes, I could. My marksmanship has improved enough that I could have made that shot. I've done a lot of training.
"Double action, like a SIG or revolver, and to the head, at that range, with the target moving, just like that good guy Wilson, did, T-Bolt?"
I said yes, I definitely could. But I also could have missed it. Stress from the scenario, trying to hurry it, just a bad day. I could have missed it, too.
And you know what? So could have Mr. Jack Wilson. He could have missed. And I bet he'd tell you that. It's no guarantee. When it happens it's not like the range or the training class. To start, it is always louder.
Wilson almost assuredly has had MORE training than me, and since he owns a range a lot more practice. Even accounting for differences in age and when we both started shooting. If you have to bet who has a better chance, bet on him.
So, he or I if I was there, flubs that shot. Then what happens? Well, follow ups. The bad guy, Wilson, the 4+ others in the congregation. Maybe more innocents are hit by bad guy or with friendly fire. A bad scene. No way to conjecture about different scenarios with surety. One or more good guys would continue the fight until it was over.
One thing I do feel pretty certain about. The picture in the bad guy's head about how the whole thing was going to go down didn't look like what actually went down. I bet his head movie had a lot less response in it from his potential victims. At least for a lot longer.
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Responding congregants, good job. Think more about muzzle control.
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I have had hours and hours of training. I need and want hours and hours more. Hey! New Year's resolution?
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4 comments:
Even a missed shot could have distracted the bad guy from what he was doing long enough for someone else to take a crack at him.
Yeah, I don't thing that Church needed 10 minutes to wait for a police car to arrive, even with LOTS of missing.
Could I have made that shot? I don't know. Two handed single-action with my .38, or two handed with my semi-auto, fair chance. One handed double-action, very doubtful.
But would I have tried? Absolutely.
Even a person with moderate training,who was carrying a gun that day, and had the will to at least attempt to stop the shooter, was better than waiting for the police to arrive.
I admit that I wish that I could afford more training. But since I am on a fixed income, with a wife and a 23 year old daughter who is disabled living with us, I simply cannot go to Thunder Ranch twice a year, etc. What I can do is dry fire, go to the range a couple times a month, and when the weather permits, go to the outdoor range, and practice drawing and firing from my holster.
Could I have made that shot? I don't know, but what I do know is that I would not have stopped firing until the threat was stopped. That means that if I missed the first shot, I would have kept shooting until the bad guy was down. The way I was taught, and the way most people are taught. The fact that the good guy was able to do it with one round speaks to his skill, and his training. And I am very grateful for his ability, in that it saved many others in the building. But the main thing is that he had a team that was trained, reportedly by him, and ready to help him, should he need it.
As sad as it is to have people die, we have to be thankful that more did not die or get seriously injured. And learn from it.
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