A tactical training scenario is posed:
A woman and her infant child were parked outside a small electronics store on a busy thoroughfare in the suburban city where I work. She was waiting to provide a ride home to her sister and her best friend, both of whom were working in the store. Five minutes before closing, another car pulled into the parking lot. It was occupied by two men. She thought it was strange because it backed into a parking space facing the store and because it had no license plates, either front or back. Even though it was strange, the car was a Lexus and didn’t seem out of place in the wealthy suburb.
The woman watched as one of the men entered the store while the other stayed in the car with the engine running. The man in the store asked some unusual questions about a remote control, looked around the store thoroughly and then left a couple minutes later without buying anything. He returned to the parked car and sat down in the passenger seat.
The woman, still unnoticed by them men, watched as the two men in the car pulled ski masks down over their faces and got out of the car together to walk into the store. The woman realized she was witnessing a robbery going down. She wanted to protect her sister and best friend inside, but didn’t want to endanger her infant child in the back seat.
If you were the woman watching, what would you do?
While turning on the car lights proved to be effective, it honestly didn’t occur to me. The first rule is to secure your own position. Turn on the car, keep it running, and back up to keep a safe distance between you and the bad guys. Assuming they’re carrying pistols, 50-60 feet is safe.
Step two, call the sister and the friend. This can be done while you’re moving the car to a safe position. Tell them to exit the store immediately, preferably from the rear entrance so they don’t have to risk crossing paths with the thieves.
Step three, call 911 or whatever the police equivalent is. In European countries, there are usually two different codes, one for police, one for fire and medical emergencies, although 911 does redirect to 112 throughout most of the European Union. Then stay on the line and serve as a spotter.
At no point should you engage, even if you are a man with a gun who knows what he’s doing. The only time I would even consider engaging is in a school or mall shooting scenario, where you can’t possibly make the situation much worse and you’ve got a pretty good chance at ambushing an amateur who isn’t expecting opposition. Otherwise, you risk turning a relatively harmless robbery into a lethal situation.
Life isn’t television. The police don’t point their guns and say “drop it” when they confront armed bad guys and neither should you. If you’re not prepared to pull the trigger on someone from behind without issuing any warnings to them, or you don’t feel as if the situation warrants a lethal ambush, you shouldn’t be engaging in an armed intervention. Serve as the spotter instead. That’s more than enough.
And remember, mobility is the key to safety in dangerous situations. You should always be on the move, or in a position to move instantly if required.