When the home alarm went off, it woke Dave Bowers out of a sound sleep.
He went to investigate…
…and found a masked man using a blowtorch to set the carpet of Dave’s house on fire!
Bowers, realizing this firebug lunatic was there to murder him – and anyone else who might be home – grabbed his .357 Magnum.
But he made MAJOR mistakes…
…that could hang over him for years!
The Critical Mistakes This Gun Owner Made When Shooting An ARSONIST
After Dave Bowers grabbed his .357, he shot the arsonist home invader in the guts.
But he didn’t stop there.
As the monster arsonist ran off into the night, Bowers emptied his gun in the direction of the firebug.
Then his house burned to the ground!
Several people who rented rooms from Bowers were left homeless.
One 73-year-old tenant died in the fire.
After that, two more very bad things happened for Dave Bowers.
First, he talked to the press and told his story – admitting that he emptied his gun at the fleeing suspect.
Second, the home invader turned up alive and was put in jail.
Now, you wouldn’t think that’s bad, would you?
The problem is, Dave Bowers’ story isn’t over.
He was lucky he didn’t get arrested for the shooting… and he could STILL face a civil lawsuit.
Here are 3 harsh truths we can learn about Dave Bowers and our f—ed up legal system:
1. Tell The Press To Kiss Your @ss!
I have an entire DVD that you can get, FREE, in which I walk you through, step-by-step, how to handle talking to the police when they show up.
But the police aren’t the only “responders” in a shooting who you need to worry about.
That other “responder” is the press.
The press are looking for a “story,” plain and simple, and they don’t really care about you or the facts as you see them.
After a shooting incident, you may be in shock, and your subconscious mind will be looking for affirmation that what you did was right.
Telling your story to people, like reporters, boosts up that “hero/savior” archetype in your mind.
It feels good to show the world how you were wronged, and how you took matters into your own hands to “win.”
Don’t fall into that trap!
Dave Bowers talked to the press and explained in great detail how he kept shooting as the arsonist was fleeing.
That’s testimony that could be used against him, either in criminal court or – maybe even more likely – if the home invader, or the invader’s family, sue Dave in civil court!
(More on that in a minute.)
If you defend yourself with your gun, or any weapon, and the press show up, ask them to leave.
If they don’t, THEY are trespassing, and you can complain to the police (who are already there on your property, probably) to register a trespassing complaint against the reporters.
2. The Direction He’s Facing MATTERS
There was an action writer, Donald Hamilton, who wrote the “Matt Helm” books.
Helm, who was a hard-as-nails assassin, was fond of saying things like, “I never much cared if a guy was pointing North or South when I shot him.”
Well, when it comes to taking out a threat, it doesn’t matter if you shoot him in the front or the back… but in the eyes of the law, it makes all the difference in the world!
Legally, shooting someone trying to burn down your home is totally justified.
But shooting the “poor, underprivileged” scumbag in the BACK as he’s trying to escape makes YOU the “bad guy.”
I know, I know – you could argue in front of a judge that you were thinking, “What if he comes back to hurt or kill me?”
Well, the courts won’t care about that, because they don’t think it’s your job to prevent future crimes from happening.
All they’ll see is you shooting at someone after the immediate threat was neutralized.
It’s a confusing legal issue, and one that doesn’t make sense to a lot of people (which is why I created my “Bulletproof Legal Defense” DVD to explain how to stay OUT of jail if you have to use force to defend yourself).
3. Don’t Forget What Happened To O.J.
I couldn’t find any articles saying Dave Bowers had been charged with a crime, and it’s possible he won’t be.
But even if he gets off on any charges of using “too much” force, he still has to worry about a civil lawsuit.
Remember when O.J. Simpson was acquitted of killing two people?
Well, he was still found responsible for those killings in civil court, sued into bankruptcy by the victims’ families.
It doesn’t matter if you think O.J. deserved what he got or not – I’m just using his case as an example.
Our legal system makes it easy for the families of criminals to claim “victim” status, suing you if you stepped over ANY legal lines.
(You know, a guy hurts himself breaking into your house, then sues you because your property was dangerous for him to break into.)
If it happens to you, that means years in and out of courtrooms… draining your bank account… stressing your family… and you could STILL lose, even if you’re innocent of any crime!
Look, I know a lot of this doesn’t make sense.
Our courts are less about “justice” than they are about the letter of the law – and if you want to stay out of jail, you’ve GOT to know when you can and can’t use force.
Avoiding situations where you might be the “bad guy” is just a small part of knowing self-defense law.
Like I’ve said twice now, I have an entire DVD that covers the basics, and it’s completely FREE.
(All I ask is that you pay for shipping.)
You just have to let me know where to send it, okay?
Don’t wait on this, and don’t create a situation that could put you in jail when you finally defend yourself.
Learn how the law works so that slimy lawyers and prosecutors can’t turn YOU into the “bad guy.”
