Recent Trials should have taught you plenty.
I’ve always believed in our Justice system, and the recent events & trials have re-enforced that belief. The day after the reading of the Rittenhouse verdict I held an Arizona Concealed Carry permit class with 29 students. It was exciting to me because the class represented persons wanting to carry concealed for self-defense. The Rittenhouse trial and the verdict demonstrated that the right to self-defense still exists. I feel that any person with common sense who examined all the evidence of the case and who without injecting any political or racial biases, would say that the verdict was fair.
I spoke a lot in the class about the Rittenhouse trial, but I also spoke about the Arbery trial. Before the verdict was decided in this case I felt it was not going to turn out well for the three defendants. There were several periods of time during this incident that I described to my students as, “What not to do’s.” There is a fine line to stopping the movement of another in relation to conducting some sort of citizen’s arrest. Following and surveilling a possible suspect is one thing, but totally preventing a person from moving freely requires other elements to have occurred and be witnessed by the individual stopping their movement. These elements were absent in the defendant’s testimony.
The thing that struck me hardest during the Rittenhouse case were statements made by the Prosecuting attorneys that were not only misleading, but also false. Many people watching the trial and hearing these statements made by the State could have easily take them by their word and as a result have an incorrect view of self-defense and the use of a firearm during self-defense. Example, “If you bring a gun to a fist fight you relinquish the right of self-defense.” Not verbatim but stated by the Prosecutor while he displayed a photo of Patrick Swayze in a scene from the movie Roadhouse. This statement was so misleading, false, and said only to confuse the jury to lean the verdict against the defendant. Having been a witness for the State in many trials I find it repulsive that the State would make such incorrect statements during a trial. Not to mention the negligent action where he pointed a rifle at the jury with his finger on the trigger.
Look up the 4 Rules of Gun Safety.
I don’t carry concealed because I’m on my way to a fist fight and I want the upper hand. I carry because in my State it is my right and I have my firearm for self-protection. If my life is threatened by a person who has a weapon less effective than my firearm, i.e., fists, baseball bat, iron bar, knife, this doesn’t void my right to use my firearm. If I feel the threat of great bodily harm or death, not my problem bad guy only brought a knife to commit their crime.
I believe the right of self-defense, mostly involving firearms, is definitely under attack by certain groups and political parties. I feel it’s an attack on our God given rights to defend ourselves and it’s an attack on the rights given to us in our Constitution and 2nd Amendment. We must keep these rights in order to survive and also to protect ourselves from a possible tyrannous Government. We must also trust our Judicial system and let it function without outside coercion, threats, or political persuasion. The two trials I previously mentioned showed that the jury system does work. Unnecessary pressure was placed on the jurors, and they still completed their duties and made their decisions based on the facts of the case. Well done, to all selected in both trials.
With the atmosphere in our Country today it is unfortunate, but we will see many more cases like these two. Let the court system play out, it works. Stand firm in your right to self-defense, and if you carry a firearm on your person or vicinity, please, know your local, state, and federal laws. Don’t convict yourself due to ignorance of the law.
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NEVER STOP TRAINING!
For any questions regarding my article, email me at
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Oz Johnson/Lead Instructor, NRA Certified
JohnsonGroupTAC.com
602-448-8283 / 602-410-7355
