Personal Tenets of When to Use Deadly Force

[matefrio]

Many times it's been asked "Was this a good shoot?" with the accompanying news article and then folks play armchair quarterback with the information given. Even I do it and acknowledge it can be a productive exercise.

Reality is though the consequences of deadly force will be personal, long lasting, and ours to possess no matter how fortunate or unfortunate the outcome.

As laws of men cannot cover every situation and are thought out, made and enforced imperfectly thus the decision to use deadly force needs to be made with ones own moral code.

Searching my personal thoughts to put into words I've come up with the following personal tenets of deadly force that are not all inclusive, meant to be understood perfectly or in final draft but are ready to be shared.

• As these are personal everyone has or should create their own without harsh judgement. I put these out as a starter or to give some ideas.

MateFrio's Personal Tenets - Use of Deadly Force.

If I use deadly force it'll be because the threat of harm is worse than the hell on earth that happens afterward.

The decision "good shoot or not a good shoot" will be my own and as such will be made to the best of my ability and as an informed decision, not an impulse reaction.

The informed decision to use deadly force will be made as a last resort as my abilities allow, and after making every effort to resolve the issue without irreversible consequences or unnecessarily putting myself in further harms way.

Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness are God given rights He has given me if I am unselfish in my intent. God allows good to triumph over evil and I am at peace with Him that evil may forfeit or risk their mortal existence when trying to force their will on me or others.

I have assessed to the best of my abilities, my own worth to society, to my family and those around me so I know what is at stake if I am harmed or killed. I allow myself to be selfish in this assessment as well. I do this so I can weigh the risks and make an informed decision that doesn't unnecessarily or thoughtlessly put myself in harms way.

Although using force deadly force is a personal decision I'll do so with consideration to my family and friends. I have value to them and they rely on me to make the correct decision. Realizing the aftermath of using deadly force will put them at risk in ways I cannot control.

 

[Tejano Scott]

And you thought carrying a Bowie knife into the state capitol was pain in the ass...

 

[txinvestigator]

Very well put, Mate.

 

[T-FAST]

Totally agree with you Mate

 

[jordanmills]

Good call. The way I see it, it's my responsibility to help keep that fool trying to kill himself from getting it done so long as it doesn't allow harm to come to me or a third party. I've been in a few situations where I would have been well within the law to terminate the encounter with deadly force, but managed to talk or wait it out with no harm to anyone. I'll be happy if that trend continues indefinitely.

 

[Jungle Work]

What's the ol' saying, "Better tried by 12 than carried by six."

I'm just a law abiding citizens now after almost 34 years in LE and as a Peace Officer.
I'm no about to let a criminal perp take my life or the life of one of my Loved Ones with a heck of a Fight/Gun Battle.

I know when I can an can't and I abide by the law. And I know the Magic Words.

Jungle Work

 

[specter77]

Well said. In the Marines I was taught the rules for Deadly Force. The concept of “when all lesser means has failed” has stuck with me when I carry.

Semper Fi


Mike

 

[ArmyZach]

Our first ROE was "nothing in these rules prohibits you from the right to defend your life or the lives of your fellow soldiers".
That's always stuck with me.

Sent from my AN/PRC-77 using Tapatalk.

 

[txinvestigator]

For me it is simple. I will only use deadly force to protect my life or that of another. I will not use DF to protect property only.

 

[Mreed911]

It's good to think through this. Often. And plan. And practice.

The four most significant deadly force encounters I remember from my short time as a LEO all fell back to not thinking and simply putting my training and mindset to use. One of them didn't warrant deadly force because it would have likely made a bad situation worse, the other three ended with the actor complying and no deadly force being required. I didn't have time to think in any of them... but afterwards? My actions reflected my training and mindset.

Now, even though not a LEO, the mindset and SA my training developed come in handy as a medic and in everyday life, including personal CCW. I've only been in two potentially deadly scenarios: one I probably should have avoided (confronted a prowler in my back yard that was trying to peek through my windows - I should have called the police and let them handle it without exiting the house and confronting them) but that didn't result in any injury to either party and one where SA and strong verbal challenge resolved the issue (followed obliquely through a parking lot after a movie then approached "from the blind side" right where I expected him to pop out from near my car) without the need for a show of force.

For me? I'd prefer to live my entire life having never taken the life of another human being, but I will if I or my family is threatened or, for me by my values and appreciation of the law, if I'm able to protect others who are unaware/unable in a mass shooting scenario (like the Kenya mall 'takeover').

 

[karlac]

For me it is simple. I will only use deadly force to protect my life or that of another. I will not use DF to protect property only.

Ditto ... rather spend the almost guaranteed minimum $5k for legal on another TV or tool.