Irresponsible Concealed Carry In Action: Permit Holder Chases Down Robbers For 2nd Gunfight

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — A man with a permit to carry a concealed firearm did everything by the book, until he decided to give chase. I wish this story had ended better, but we’re using it as a “what not to do” example to implement into your decisions.

The would-be victim, who was walking outside near the North End intersection, was approached by two men armed with handguns, according to a preliminary police investigation.

As the men were attempting to rob him, he pulled out his own handgun and exchanged gunfire with the two men. Police said the man had a permit to carry his handgun.

After the exchange of gunfire, the bad guys took off after realizing they didn’t want bullets flying in their direction. What an interesting reaction to someone with a gun. </sarcasm>

[ad location=”Posts – Middle Post”]

This story sounds great so far. We have a legal gun owner who successfully defended himself against a pair of armed criminals, sending them in the other direction. That’s what we want to do: when confronted with a threat, we do what we can to eliminate that threat. Sending them running in the opposite direction is a successful elimination of the immediate threat.

But then…

The would-be assailants fled in a car — and the man got into his own car and chased them, police said. They drove just over a mile, before engaging in a second gunfight in the 900 block of Thomas Avenue.

Where to start. The most important thing here: Once the bad guys were far enough away to not be considered a threat anymore, that’s when you retreat. The first argument that comes in with this is: “The criminals have guns, they can still shoot at you from a distance.” This is true, which is even more reason for you to get yourself to a safe place, out of the line of fire. The absolute last thing that you should be doing is going after the armed criminals. You are not the police. It is not your job to chase down the bad guy.

Second, this armed citizen engaged in an unnecessary 2nd gunfight with the criminals and possibly put other people in danger. One comment on the sourced article hit the nail on the head:

In the end, one of the robbers was shot in the foot and ended up at the hospital seeking treatment and will be facing numerous charges. The other robber is still on the loose. The intended victim was not injured.

According to the app LegalHeat, there seems to be a duty to retreat in Minnesota:

The moral of this story: If you want to actively go after bad guys, become a police officer. Sorry to put a fellow concealed carrier on blast like this, but you’re doing it wrong.