Home Defense: Less Than Options

Home Defense: Less Than Options

By Daniel McGee, M.P.A.
August 24, 2014

Recently I was asked about less-than-lethal options for self-defense purposes. There is a huge craze in various self-defense weapons. Many people are marketing their own versions and the masses are sucking them right up. But are they all really made the same and what do you need to know?

First, I want to make sure that my readers understand what less-than-lethal actual means. The word lethal means “(1) of, pertaining to, or causing death; deadly; fatal [and] (2) made to cause death” (lethal, Dictionary.com). So if something is less than it means that it shouldn’t be like the normal. So, if something is billed as less-than-lethal it means it shouldn’t cause death and is not designed to cause death. These are the defensive tools out there like pepper spray or electronic stun devices. Then there is what we call less-lethal. If something is less-lethal it means in a common manner it is not designed to cause death, but it comes with higher risk because it can cause fatality. Things like batons, bean bag rounds for shotguns, or rubber slugs for shotguns very well could cause death if they strike certain spots and if misused.

So, in order for my readers to consider self-defense, or home defense tools to put in your kit you need to ask yourself one question. Do you feel lucky?  Now I am not trying to be a smart ass by channeling Dirty Harry, but the question is real. How lucky do you feel? Maybe the first question you should ask yourself is what am I trying to accomplish with having a self-defense tool?

There are legions of people out there who “say” if someone attacks them they would just “wound them” and run. Well, do you feel lucky punk? Do you? So what happens when your less -lethal option malfunctions, but the other guy is carrying a gun? What happens after the initial effects of the less-than-lethal option wears off or does not have the affect one would think? I am a pepper spray/OC instructor. I think it is a very effective tool for self-defense. The very first time I took a dose of oleoresin capsicum I hated it. That was almost twenty years ago. Since then I’ve take hundreds of doses for training as an officer and while instructing. While it still does affect me, it does not have the effect it should. I’ve learned to deal with it. And, as an instructor I can say that it sometimes takes many seconds before pepper spray can take effect on any person even if you’ve deployed it correctly. I am not even talking about other factors like wind, rain, masks, blocking, or malfunctioning of canisters.

The first time I saw a police Taser® deployed it blew a suspect completely across the back of a cruiser seat. Much to my surprise the suspect popped right back up and started yelling “do it again!” Not long ago I observed an officer’s Taser® malfunction due to battery issues. Take a look at this news video clip.



In this case, the officer was lucky. But, he pulled an electronic stun device to stop this suspect and it didn’t work. He ended up shooting the suspect. Now, this is in the police world where Constitutional protections are greater to civilians from police; while case law, as well as Use of Force training and policy dictate how officers act. In the basic civilian world of self-defense you have what I would call a minor variation in latitude with your actions. No, I am not saying you can just shoot someone, but I am saying you aren’t required to wear a 15 pound belt with pepper spray, a baton, an electronic stun device, and a gun. You aren’t necessarily required to go through a progression of a force continuum to act. In basic, you need to establish you are in fear for your life and that your actions would be reasonable to a reasonable person (there is more to this and this will be another blog). 

So, imagine you hear someone breaking into your home. You get your stun gun from your nightstand and proceed down the stairwell. You see a suspect and yell to them to get out. They turn and have something in their hand, possibly a gun. You deploy your stun gun and it malfunctions. What next? “Wait Mister Bad Guy, I’ve got to get my Glock 22 from my gun safe, would you mind waiting and we can try this again”? Umm, no. I think I’ve made a decent enough point about these types of devices. 

Now, what about the new fad of having less-lethal shotguns in the home? There are many options for less-lethal firearms, not just shotguns. They have rubber impact bullets for small firearms, as well as rubber slugs for shotguns. The truth is they aren’t a bad option, but again I ask what is the intention for using such a weapon? The police often use them for crowd control to help deter aggressive protestors or in single-person suicide situations. But, you wouldn’t see them used to stop someone who is shooting at them. Even though this next video is of a bunch of goof balls, I think it does tell a good story…

First, that hurt! But notice he was able to get up. He even had a laugh. Now, let’s exchange that little tool (the guy, not the gun) for someone who is a motivated attacker. He wants to rob, kill, rape. Let’s add alcohol and/or drugs to the fold. Do you think that the bean bag would stop him? Do you think it would disable him enough that he couldn’t pull out a gun and shoot at you? Now the thing with less-lethal weapons is that they can be lethal. Shoot a bean bag traveling at 400 feet per second at someone’s head or neck you could kill them. Hit them in the throat, same thing. So, if you’ve bought your bean bag shells because you don’t want to kill someone, but you accidentally do, how are you going to react (sorry to burst you pacifist's bubble). BUT, those are supposed to be the exceptions to the rule for these weapons. And there is the argument that if the suspect gets the weapon from you and it is a bean bag round then they cannot kill you. Umm, if they take your weapon and shoot you with it and it doesn’t kill you, they’ll beat you to death with the butt end. Stop trying to justify passiveness in self-defense. 

I am not against less-lethal or less-than-lethal. I believe having something to defend yourself with is always better than nothing. But, I am the guy who says give yourself some options. I’d rather see you carry some pepper spray and a gun, or a knife and a gun versus use bean bag rounds. Better yet, understand that attackers attack without warning. Sometimes making it impractical to remove a gun from a holster. Learn some hand-to-hand combat skills to compliment your self-defense tool chest.


You have a right to protect yourself and there is no guarantee regardless if you use a bean bag or a jacketed hollow point. And if you have a family, making the right choice is essential. Anything can malfunction, but if the "less" options are less effective and don't neutralize the attacker, well, your screwed. And now you've got your family to worry about.
 

Of course this is my opinion, but I’m not tossing bean bags with an effective range of 30-40 feet at someone who is breaking into my home. I’m going to stop them because I owe it to my family to protect them. No offense to the less options out there. They have a place. But, I cannot in good conscience tell you that they should be what you use as your sole, only self-defense tool. 

Hopefully this gives you some insight. God’s blessings to all for safety!

Dan

References:

lethal. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved August 24, 2014, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lethal

Police: Man Shoots At Officer After Being Stunned By Taser. Retrieved August 26, 2014, from http://youtu.be/7LS3LLYXRYQ (VIDEO).

Shot by Bean Bag. Retrieved August 26, 2014, from http://youtu.be/W_ymNErgGkQ. (VIDEO)