Finding yourself looking at the business end of a firearm is stressful, to say the least. If it happens to you, it’s not something you ever want to repeat, even if it’s for a brief moment. It’s difficult to keep a clear head in such a moment.

However, one store clerk sure did make it look easy.

 

Kevin White, 38, of Durham, was found lying in front of a house on Hillcrest Street with gunshot wounds to the legs, Michael said. He was taken to the hospital, treated for injuries and then taken to jail.

About 9:30 a.m. Monday, Durham police responded to a shooting and attempted robbery at the Mini Mart at 2014 Guess Rd.

A clerk told officers that a man had brought a beer to the front counter, but instead of immediately paying for the beverage the man pulled out a gun.

The clerk told police he struggled with the suspect, grabbed the gun the gun away from him and fired several shots.

Of course, this kind of thing is generally not a good idea, but you know what they say. If it’s stupid and it works, it’s not stupid. This clearly worked, so…

The clerk certainly flipped the script on the robber, but there’s also a takeaway for everyday folks.

I can’t help but think that part of the reason this worked was because White wasn’t really willing to shoot anyone. Oh, he committed robbery with a gun and he was also apparently a convicted felon, but that doesn’t mean he actually wanted to shoot someone.

That’s a good thing.

However, this is something that applies to you and me. Some people talk about drawing a gun to try and scare the other guy off. A lot of times, that will work. When it doesn’t, though, you get a replay of this situation only in this case, the bad guy gets the gun and you get murdered.

One criticism that is often made about concealed carry is that a criminal could take your gun from you. That’s especially true if you’re timid about using it, that you only carry it as a fear-inducing talisman rather than a lethal weapon.

I get that no one wants to kill, but that’s often not necessary. You just have to be willing to pull that trigger, one way or another. You have to be willing to do more than simply scare the bad guy.

In this case, the clerk got the gun and was more than willing to use it.

Over at  The Truth About Guns, they note that the clerk had never shot a gun before, but was now looking to buy his own. Luckily, he lives in North Carolina where he can, and I hope he gets himself a nice, quality firearm then never has to fire at another living soul again.

But we already know that if it comes down to it, he will. That puts him well ahead of a large number of us, at least in my opinion.