THINGS YOU
DIDN’T KNOW
Would Happen When
the Police Arrive
GAIN CONFIDENCE,
PREPAREDNESS &
PEACE OF MIND
WITH YOUR MEMBERSHIP TO THE
U.S. CONCEALED CARRY ASSOCIATION
www.USCCA.com/join
877-677-1919
1
YOU WILL BE
DETAINED AND
POSSIBLY ARRESTED
YOU WILL LIKELY BE PLACED IN
HANDCUFFS. THOUGH YOU WILL NOT
NECESSARILY BE UNDER ARREST, YOU
WILL BE TAKEN INTO POLICE CUSTODY.
f you’ve decided to carry a firearm for self-de- ately ascertain who presents a deadly threat to innocent
I fense, you’ve undoubtedly thought about the
reality of having to use it. You’ve thought about
life. They will evaluate everyone at the scene — principal-
ly you, as you’re the one whose description they got over
how you need to train, what kind of ammunition best fits the radio. They will order you to drop your firearm (if you
your defensive needs and which holster will best fit your haven’t already done so), and you will likely be placed in
gun, body type and preferred method of carry. There’s handcuffs. Though you will not necessarily be under ar-
more to armed self-defense than just these things rest, you will be taken into police custody until they can
though. sort out exactly what happened. Until they do this, they
After the threat to your life ends, the most difficult can’t proceed with anything else.
part of the process is often just beginning. There’s a lot It is mandatory that you comply with all of their physi-
that happens following a self-defense shooting — things cal demands. Before they arrive, you’ll need to reholster
that most people don’t realize are not just possibilities your firearm or place it on the ground; it can be extreme-
but rather hard realities. Read on to find out how the US- ly dangerous to be the one holding a gun when the police
CCA can help support and guide you through the often arrive at the scene of a shooting, so be sure you aren’t.
confusing aftermath of a self-defense incident. Remind yourself that you are not being handcuffed
If you are forced to defend yourself with a firearm, because you did anything wrong; you are being hand-
the police will have to get involved. You need to dial 911 cuffed because the officers need to be sure that no
immediately and tell the dispatcher your location, that one at the scene is going to start shooting again. It is
someone has been shot and that you need an ambulance. extremely important that you not resist them or try
Describe to him or her what you look like and what you’re to fight back. Remember: You haven’t done anything
wearing, but apart from that, simply repeat that you were wrong. You were in fear for your life or the lives of oth-
in fear for your life and that someone has been shot. ers and were forced to employ deadly force in defense
Officers will arrive at the scene of the shooting, but of said innocent life.
before they do anything else, they will need to immedi-
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
3
2
YOUR GUN WILL LIKELY BE SEIZED
AND HELD AS EVIDENCE
THE POLICE WILL LIKELY TAKE YOUR GUN AS EVIDENCE
IN THE INVESTIGATION OF THIS SHOOTING.
T
he officers will be responding to a “shots wait almost two years to recover his pistol from the
fired” call or a shooting that occurred during evidence locker even though no charges were ever
a homicide. filed against him.
Do not let the word “homicide” panic you; despite The state law enforcement agency handling the
most individuals’ use of the word “homicide” to refer shooting will understand that if it relinquishes custo-
to a crime (the “deliberate and unlawful killing of one dy of that firearm, the chances of ever getting it back
person by another”), it can also simply mean “the kill- will be very low; thus, the folks there will hang onto it
ing of one human being by another.” Either way, the as long as they can on the off-chance they will ever
police will likely take your gun as evidence in the in- want to assess it again.
vestigation of this shooting. Again, do not let the word
“evidence” rattle you. As long as you acted in self-de-
fense and were in fear for the loss of innocent life,
you’ll likely be able to work with an attorney to vindi-
cate your actions.
Your gun, however, will probably be in police cus-
tody longer than you will. Nazir Al-Mujaahid, the first
concealed carry permit holder in the state of Wiscon-
sin to use his sidearm in a defensive situation, had to
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
4
3
YOU WILL LIKELY BE INTERROGATED AT
THE SCENE AND AT THE POLICE STATION
THOSE OFFICERS WILL BE INTERACTING WITH YOU THE SAME WAY THEY
INTERACT WITH EVERYONE THEY PUT IN HANDCUFFS: AS A SUSPECT.
esponding law enforcement officers will ask ances you make are most likely admissible in court. Fur-
R you a lot of questions. They will demand to know
what happened that led to you shooting another
thermore, even non-spontaneous statements you make
after you’ve invoked your rights can probably be used
person. They will demand to know if you are alone, and against you. As you will likely be extremely excited and
they will demand to know what led up to you discharging upset in the wake of a shooting, it is probably best that
your firearm. you limit your statements of any kind until you have had
Though it can be extremely tempting to tell them ev- time to calm down and consult with an attorney.
erything that comes to mind, a little caution can go a long Look at it this way: When a law enforcement officer is
way here. Those officers will be interacting with you the forced to shoot someone in the line of duty, he or she is
same way they interact with everyone they put in hand- immediately removed from the scene, assessed by EMS
cuffs: as a suspect. They will be trying to get you to say and kept from outside contact until he or she has had an
as much as possible — to cut loose with what in the legal opportunity to relax, collect his or her thoughts and avoid
world are called “excited or spontaneous utterances” — saying or doing anything that could further complicate an
before you invoke your right to remain silent without an already complex situation. You should request the same
attorney present. These statements are exceptions to treatment. Use this window of time to calm yourself, to
both the hearsay rule and the Miranda rule. That means make sure you are physically unharmed and to ensure
that even if you’ve invoked your right to remain silent or that you don’t make any unfortunate errors that could lat-
your right to counsel, any spontaneous or excited utter- er cost you.
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
5
4
IF YOU DON’T
ALREADY HAVE ONE,
YOU WILL NEED TO
HIRE AN ATTORNEY
— AND FAST
IF YOU ARE FORCED TO DEFEND
YOURSELF, OFFICERS WILL WANT
TO KNOW THE PARTICULARS OF
WHAT HAPPENED TO DETERMINE
WHETHER OR NOT YOU WERE
ACTING OUTSIDE OF THE LAW.
W
e’ve all heard that when questioned,
every American has “the right to an
attorney.” How to get hold of one, how-
ever, can be confusing and difficult without a little fore-
thought.
What that specifically means — “You have the right to
have an attorney present during questioning” — is that
after you are placed under arrest, officers are not al-
lowed to ask you any more questions unless you con-
sent to answering them. However, they will ask you as
many questions as they can before they actually place
you under arrest. This is what they are trained to do,
as they understand that, after you have been arrested
and “Mirandized” (apprised of your Fifth Amendment
right against self-incrimination), any information they
get from you that you do not offer voluntarily will like-
ly be ruled inadmissible in court.
If you are forced to defend yourself, officers will
want to know the particulars of what happened to
determine whether or not you were acting outside
of the law. This is where an experienced attorney
comes in. He or she can help you navigate the intri-
cacies of such a situation.
If you are a USCCA Member and don’t already have
a trusted lawyer on speed dial, you can contact the
Delta Defense Critical Response Team for help con-
necting you with an attorney of your choice.
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
6
5
YOU MAY HAVE TO POST
BAIL OR PAY BOND
FEW PEOPLE KEEP ANYWHERE FROM THOUSANDS
TO HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN CASH ON HAND.
epending on the particulars of your situation, depend on your specific situation, but posting bail can
D you may actually be arrested and taken to a city
or county jail. If this is the case, and you are not
be very difficult for the average individual. Self-defense
shootings seem to happen after banker’s hours, and few
accustomed to being treated like a criminal, you’re going people keep anywhere from thousands to hundreds of
to be in for a very unpleasant experience. thousands of dollars in cash on hand in their residences.
Once arrested, you will likely be given the option to Your options might be to call either a bail bonds com-
post bail, which is either a quantity of cash or other se- pany (if such a company is legal in your area) or a fam-
curity that the law enforcement agency will hold as in- ily member who can try to collect the necessary funds.
surance that you will return for a court hearing, or to sign Alternatively, the benefits included with a USCCA Mem-
a document representing your promise to do so. This will bership can assist you with all of those stressful details.
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
7
6
THE DA WILL GATHER POLICE REPORTS
TO MAKE A CHARGING DECISION
MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE HOME DURING THIS PROCESS,
NOT SITTING IN A JAIL CELL.
fter all of the officers have asked all of their
A
take their field notes and, as soon as possible, read
questions, they will compile their notes into through them and put them into a narrative form — one
their official reports and decide if they think that will help someone who was not at the scene un-
there is evidence of a crime. If they believe you have derstand exactly what happened in the clearest possi-
committed a crime, they’ll send their reports to the ble language.
district attorney — along with a DA referral form, which After they’re done with the immediate situation
means that the officers believe there is enough evi- involving you, they have to get back onto the streets
dence that a crime was committed for you to be taken and get back to their jobs as cops, deputies or troop-
to court and charged with something. This is not a rap- ers. Their field notes may sit in their squad cars until
id process. they can write their reports, and after their reports are
It may take anywhere from days to a week or more complete, they may sit in a basket in the station or in
for all officers involved in an incident to complete their the district attorney’s office for anywhere from hours
reports. This is not out of laziness or carelessness; this to days. Remember: This is before anyone has even
is because, depending on where the incident occurred, started to decide whether you will actually be charged
your incident may be only one of a dozen or more calls with a crime. The key is to make sure that you are at
these officers had to handle that day. In order for their home during this process, not sitting in a jail cell.
reports to be as accurate as possible, they’ll have to
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
8
HELPING YOU PREPARE FOR THE BEFORE, DURING
AND AFTER OF A SELF-DEFENSE INCIDENT
ere’s something you must accept right now: terrain that inevitably follows a self-defense incident.
H In the aftermath of a self-defense shooting —
even a justified one — you will likely encounter
The unfortunate truth is that proving your innocence
without a plan can be incredibly costly — mentally and
all six of these harsh realities. As unfair as it may seem, financially.
keep in mind that such realities are standard proce- The good news is that you don’t have to bear that
dure following any shooting. weight alone. The USCCA is a membership association
It is imperative that you spend time now thinking that helps its members prepare for the before, during
about and preparing for what comes after a deadly and after of a self-defense incident. Learn more about
force encounter. After all, the difference between go- all of the benefits of a USCCA Membership and the
ing to jail and going home to your family will likely be de- peace of mind you’ll gain at www.USCCA.com.
termined by your ability to navigate through the rough
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
9
DISCLAIMER – The views expressed in this article are exclusively the personal and/or professional views of the author and do not express the views, policy or position
of Delta Defense LLC (“Delta”) or the United States Concealed Carry Association Inc. (“USCCA”). This article is provided solely for educational and entertainment pur-
poses. This article is not offered for legal or other professional advice. Delta and the USCCA do not make any representations or warranties of any kind and disclaim
any implied warranties for fitness of use for a particular purpose or merchantability. Delta and the USCCA do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party
for any loss, damage or disruption, including incidental or consequential damages caused, directly or indirectly, by the information in this article or reliance thereon,
including any errors or omissions. Delta and the USCCA are neither responsible nor liable for any information contained in this article. Nothing in this article is intend-
ed to be legal advice or to substitute for legal advice, as this article is a general guide relating to legal issues and/or is specific to a certain set of facts and certain
jurisdictions. Every situation is unique, and the reader should consult an attorney in the reader’s jurisdiction for legal advice on any legal issue.
6 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW
10
YOUR JOURNEY TO
FIREARMS
CONFIDENCE
STARTS HERE
FIND A CLASS NEAR YOU
www.USCCA.com/class
EDUCATED. TRAINED. INSURED.
www.USCCA.com
877-677-1919
PRESENTED BY
Copyright © 2020 by Delta Defense LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording
or otherwise — without first obtaining written permission from Delta Defense LLC.
NOV / 2023
