“Depending on the type of call, there can be break downs in any part of the process. If it’s a disturbance call, the information flows to the crew and they MAY or MAY NOT know there is an armed citizen at the scene. They get that information when they arrive. So now you have the original disturbance call AND a man with a gun. The cop has a very short period of time to process the information and make the correct decision, EVERYTIME.”
I have called 911 several times. Once it was late at night after seeing cars being broken into in driveways near my brother’s house. Good neighborhood - wealthy targets. Easy pickings for the punks or so they thought. I made sure the 911 operator knew I was armed, gave her my name and descriptions of myself and the perps, and verified she would inform the first responsees (police) of the information. She actually kept me on when she called the dispatcher and asked if I wanted to add anything.
When I saw the officer enter the street about 3 minutes later, I placed my hands on a fence in clear sight. The officer rolled up, got out of his cruiser, and calmly walked up. I made no sudden movements, indicated I was (heavily) armed, and offered to surrender my arms to him. His response: “That’s not necessary, Mr. #######, just tell me what you saw.” All calm, all good. Additional officers arrived within a few minutes including K-9 units. They scrubbed the area. Bad guys got away - but never came back.
The point: very well trained and professional police from top to bottom. I also made sure the officers never felt threatened.
Now could it have gone bad? Sure, but you can slip on soap in the shower and get killed. Everyone behaving professionally, calmly, and with good communication made the risk very low though.
Had a somewhat similar situation occur in broad daylight a couple of weeks ago.
People messing with an abandoned car were wearing surgical gloves...
I called the police, and gave fairly detailed descriptions of the man and woman involved.
Somehow, the responding officer got the information it was two males...
Lots of potential for misinformation.
Some departments are incorporating a technology that allows the dispatcher to put the caller directly in contact with the responding officer.
Very useful in stressful situations.
And that is exactly how it should happen, but rarely does.
Every time I encountered a civilian with a gun on a call (good guy) there was no prior knowledge of their presence. I had one guy prowling his neighbor’s yard because he thought he saw something. His wife called it in and never mentioned her husband was outside with a long gun.
Did an entry and found an elderly lady sitting in a chair with a .380 in her hands. She wasn’t aware her grandson dealt drugs out of her house.
And the one that still haunts me is a college kid and his buddies running around our downtown at 3am with paintball guns. This, prior to the requirement that the tips be painted orange. Someone called it in and the kid came running around the corner with a very realistic looking 1911 replica.
Would I have been justified in shooting any of these civilians...probably. But instinct and time in the district said these were no-shoot scenarios. Fortunately, no one got hurt.
I commend your actions on the scenario your related. Judging by some of the comments on this thread, I don’t think many would have the presence of mind to make sure ALL the information was relayed to the responding crew. I make no judgement about any of the shootings between cops and civilians. I wasn’t there so I don’t judge. But some of the broad brush comments I’ve read make me take pause in how many are actually “mature” enough to handle a firearm. We have enough “bad actors” in the law enforcement community. We certainly don’t need the “John Wayne” types attempting to do our job.