Can You Disarm a Gunmen? If Not, Monterey and Alhambra Should Be a Wakeup Call.

A 72-year-old gunman hellbent on inflicting maximum casualties on middle aged people at two popular dance clubs. Seriously?

Let me guess, when you first heard about this cold-blooded slaughter, you thought, a gang member, an incel, maybe a racist. Right?

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

I know a lot of you would much rather not want to believe this. But, things have changed, perhaps permanently, in our nation.

Here’s a quick rundown of just how much so, from Halloween to now: 4 college students slaughtered in a town where violent crime doesn’t happen. A Walmart shift supervisor guns down his co-workers. A college student at one of the top state schools in the nation guns down fellow students as they all return from a school field trip to see theater. A 6-year-old student shoots his teacher. In her classroom. And Colorado Springs, where a young man literally walked into a bar that served as a unique place in the community, and just started killing.

And now middle aged people who just wanted to dance to celebrate the lunar new year.

Sorry folks. But if you think facing an armed attacker will never happen to you. You are living in a bubble. A very dangerous bubble.

The shooter in Monterrey and Alhambra, was disarmed when he entered the club in Alhambra. By one man, who saved countless lives. He truly is a hero.

So How Do You Disarm a Firearm? Here’s what I teach. (Keep in mind the goal is to practice enough to make it automatic).

• You have to be within range to grab the firearm (whether a pistol or a long gun). The only way to control a firearm is to grab the firearm itself. By the barrel. Scary. Counter intuitive. But it’s how it works. DISTANCE IS NO FRIEND WHEN FACING AN ATTACKER WITH A FIREARM
• Your hands must be at weapon height. A bullet travels approximately 2000 feet/second. If your hands are anywhere but at weapon height you won’t get there.
• You’ve got to make yourself as small as possible, by turning sideways, because there is a good chance that gun will discharge (if his finger is on the trigger) and you need to avoid being hit. 
• The most important thing of all is to fully commit when you start. Hesitation will kill you. No matter what. Once you start. Keep going.

Above are two video clips. One that demonstrates disarming a handgun held by an attacker in front of you, and the other one for disarming a long gun held by an attacker that is in front of you. You can also learn to disarm from weapons held behind you too.

You can learn to disarm a firearm, a knife, and an impact weapon. But, this should all be as a last resort. Feeling confident about your safety in this changed world, means learning to recognize a safety risk so you can avoid the risk entirely, to de-escalate a spiraling situation, to change the dynamics of an attack so you can survive the initial onslaught, and to defend yourself so that you can exit safely should you have no other option.

You can live in a bubble, or you can be proactive. Your choice. It’s not just your safety that matters, but your family’s too. You can learn to keep yourselves safe, so that you can live the life you want. Take the first step to feeling more confident in your safety, schedule a free 15-minute call to learn more. And be sure to watch this free on-demand personal safety training workshop.