Something that I think many who carry for self-defense have in mind, is that there is a perceived lack of reality when it comes down to what actually happens in violent encounters. Myself included, I think alot of us sometimes have the idea that any violent self-defense encounter that we could be involved in, will play out like a chess game, with us of course having the upper-hand, due to our knowledge, choice of firearm, holster, etc… etc… However the reality of the matter is that most civilian self defense encounters are over in a matter of seconds. There are all sorts of drills out there trying to get this point across. One of my favorite is the 6 second drill, with 6 rounds at 6 feet, drawing and firing within 6 seconds. In addition, to paraphrase the vast majority of self defense instructors/philosophies, when the time to act defensively has been decided upon, it has to be as violently and as swiftly as possible, until the threat is no longer present (not dead). There is no half way mark when defending your life.

The video has appeared all over Facebook, but I couldn’t find it on Youtube, and thus uploaded it there-

This video originates from Brazil, and according to a description going around, it is of a Brazilian off-duty detective coming to the backdoor of a Jewelry Store (he is probably associated with). At first, a guy passes him and takes up a position behind him at the top of the stairwell. This is probably the first mistake that the detective made, a situational awareness one that almost costed him his life.

A man in a red shirt rounds the corner from the left part of the screen, and appears to make demands with a revolver in his right hand. At this moment the first guy, now his accomplice, appears to draw a handgun, and begins to point it at our good guy, the detective.

At this point, the detective does two very strategic actions. The first one is that he moves the woman he is with behind him, out of the line of fire with the second bad guy, but unfortunately still in line with the first bad guy. Luckily this makes no difference in the end though. Then he blades his body to the second bad guy, and draws his firearm from concealment, in what appears to be an IWB on his right hip.

Now, he proceeds to unload every round in his magazine at the second bad guy, at a point blank range. The first bad guy, fearing more for his own life than the life of his friend, runs away like the coward most criminals are.

The detective proceeds to follow the second bad guy, all the way down the stairs as he runs away. Here is where the second bad guy succumbs to his wounds, having been shot in the wrist, chest, arm, and head, numerous times. I would say that this is second point in the action where our good guy makes a mistake. For CCW holders in the United States, following someone and continuing to fire at them is possibly considered murder in many states, as it is an offensive action. The second point is that he peers around the stairway, with his slide locked to the rear. If the first bad guy had somehow built up some courage and came back to help his friend, he could have easily been around the corner, waiting to ambush our good guy.

I’ve censored out pictures from the crime scene, but the second bad guy has an entry wound through his face,entry through his upper left arm, a large exit wound through his wrist, and multiple entry wounds throughout his chest.

Items that I believe are to be taken away from this are that a self defense encounter will never be on your own terms. It will not play out remotely like you think it might play out. In fact, this is exactly what criminals are betting on, your vulnerability. But what you can prepare for is the constant situational awareness and vigilance on your part. In addition, having the a solid mindset, like this detective had. Not only does this serve well for self defense, but really during any chaotic event, natural disaster, injury, etc… Above all else, you need to remain calm, and make calculated, decisive decisions. Sometimes it is better to just let a situation develop instead of acting rashly.

But the most important bit to take away from this, is will this encounter change the way you shoot at the range, or act in public? If we aren’t constantly updating what is working and what is happening in the world when it comes to self defense, then we are automatically putting ourselves at a severe loss. If we aren’t basing our training on reality, then reality will smack us in the face with a very heavy shovel.