Skip Calling 911 - Defend Yourself With Guns, Sheriff Says

Emergency call is 'no longer your best option'

Staff shortages in the Milwaukee police department have led to a fairly radical public safety announcement from Sheriff David Clarke Jr.

In a radio ad, he calls on local residents to take gun safety courses to protect themselves, because "calling 911 and waiting is no longer your best option."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEibmLh5qRI

Clarke says: "I'm Sheriff David Clarke, and I want to talk to you about something personal...your safety. It's no longer a spectator sport; I need you in the game, but are you ready? With officers laid-off and furloughed, simply calling 911 and waiting is no longer your best option."

"You can beg for mercy from a violent criminal, hide under the bed, or you can fight back; but are you prepared? Consider taking a certified safety course in handling a firearm so you can defend yourself until we get there. You have a duty to protect yourself and your family. We're partners now. Can I count on you?"

Clarke defended his controversial advice on CNN: "There are certain situations - and I think most people get that - where 911 is going to be of no use," he told the network. "For instance, once the wolf is at the door, once the intruder is inside your home, once you're on the street and someone sticks a gun in your face to take your car or your wallet, you don't have the option of calling 911."

Via Politico.

Good advice, or lunacy?

[Arumizy]

When seconds matter, the police are minutes away.

[PoliticalSpice]

Proves my point, cops are basically useless when it matters. They also suck up some of the largest percentage of tax funds via pension benefits. They should cut forces drastically. Leave it to neaborhood patrols.

[RobertJHarsh]

There is some merit to your comment. I do think citizen patrols should be formed in all neighborhoods...but they need to be ARMED...something many govts frown upon. For example, Columbus, Ohio...as far as the mayor, city council, and the police chief are concerned, if you have a BB gun, you're with al Qaeda.

[Fishbone345]

@RobertJHarsh And if you are with Al Queda the Government can detain you indefinitely. See how this plays out now?
Wonder if the Right is rethinking giving so much power to Government now that it may bite them in the ass?

[bsking]

@PoliticalSpice that sounds like a militia... and what with the president at war with the second Amendment what wood is neighbors have sticks?

[bsking]

@Fishbone345 One would hope the left would be rethinking since the right is basically powerless now.

[Raptor]

Sure thing, then go to the jail for murder and spend 20 to life.

[Dan_Tien]

Maybe some would choose 20 years to life rather than 20 seconds to death.

[jessejaymes]

It does happen as you say. But if you let them kick in the door and blast them you'll be ok. Just don't reload and blast them 83 times. courts tend to frown on that.

[Arumizy]

@jessejaymes Why i am glad to live in a state with castle doctrine.

[NTBFW]

If they become a real physical threat and you are in fear for your life. You won't be charged.

[jessejaymes]

@Arumizy That door frame kicked in is pretty powerful evidence. You show those photos in a court and every juror is going to have a mental image of their own door being kicked in. Not guilty.

[2b1ask1]

Love Love Love it!!

[jessejaymes]

Absolutely on the money. He asks that people become trained and competent in defending themselves. Good advice.

[John_Matrix]

The fact that this is even drawing criticism is pathetic. I just don't get this concept of simply rolling over and allowing someone to harm you without putting up a fight. We've all heard they saying, and it's true, "when seconds count, police are only minutes away."

[PoliticalSpice]

How can you not get the concept of rolling over and letting someone harm you without a fight after seeing the deletion of the 4th, 5th & 6th amds from the constitution via the patriot act? Don't you notice a pattern?

[Quantummist]

@PoliticalSpice ... The Patriot Act is bad, was a bad program from the get go... And is a bad plan that is today still in place .... And now this President want to do the same to the Second ... And if that happens then the next one is the 1st then the the 22nd would be a breeze... Don't you notice a pattern?

[PoliticalSpice]

@Quantummist I do notice a pattern. Thd pattern I notice, sadly enough, is that people who hate immigrants, and said virtually nothing when the patriot act was passed, act as if the second amendment is the whole constitution. Oh, I have read some, like you, object to it, but not with the fevor you object to threats to the second amdndment about. You second amendment beleivers are a powerful lobby. If you'd raise half the fuss about the patriot act you do about the second patriot would be wholely or partly repealed.

I also noticd most second amd supporters are hostile to my politics, now I happen to support the second, but not to fervently, for the sple reason that I don't think it smart to be demanding people who are hostile to
my politics be armed...

[Quantummist]

@PoliticalSpice ... Then you haven't been keeping Up... I for one screamed about the patriot act as a Unconstitutional Taking of Power by the Federal Government... I also do not Hate immigrants... Immigrants are good for the nation... Illegal Aliens Entering the Country Illegally should be Arrested, and them and their families trucked across the boarders, or flown to their Home Countries as fast as possible... Then the Boarders should have Armed Troops that are allowed the use of deadly force if needed to keep anyone from entering the US Illegally.... That should include the Canadian Boarder also...

I am a Constitutionalists.. I am for a Federal Governance... Not a National Governance... So I am for the Limiting the Federal Government to Only the Few Powers specifically given it by the States using the Definition of its verbiage at the time of writing...

[PoliticalSpice]

@Quantummist at the time of its writing, in other words without the 13, 14 and 15th amendments. Sorry to inform you but you lost the civil war, and you are losing this battle in congress on immigration. I will write back if you reply. For some crazy reason I am enjoying this, but it's 4:30 am and I need to get some sleep as I have to be up in a few hours...just wanted to say that so you din't think I am ignoring you. By the way, I am a constitutionalist too, but I support all of it, not just the second and tenth amendments.

[Republican5001]

Rather be tried by 12 instead of carried by 6.

[PoliticalSpice]

Well then I suggest you avoid taking up arms in the civil war you keep mentioning...

[Republican5001]

@PoliticalSpice I will gladly take up arms when secession by force occurs. Rapidly approaching I might add.

[PoliticalSpice]

@Republican5001 Stop teasing me and give me the actual date. It will be over quickly, I don't want to miss it!

[PoliticalSpice]

By the way I like your "new" icon, seems I saw it somewhere before :)

[tomincali]

my sheriff says the same thing and i am in california. not minutes away here,short handed has a long wait for any help. seems just what the whitehouse and the gungrabbers like dead citizens waiting for help.

[SavageMazx]

When I did my interview for my CCW the sheriff basically said "my job is to show up draw a chalk outline and fill out the paperwork. Your job is to decide who is in that outline, you or the bad guy"

[thumper11]

@SavageMazx,
Well said. I would like to pass that on to some misguided souls.

[SavageMazx]

@thumper11 ya it was sort of a wake up call for me, even as a gun owner

[bsking]

@SavageMazx you had to "interview?"

[WattheTyler]

Take the law in our own hands? I'm not a big fan of police but this is kinda strange thing to say. If I was robbed at my job and I attacked my robber instead of calling the police I could be easily killed doing a stupid thing like that. Same thing with getting mugged.

[marine1]

so why not let it be ones individual choice and everyone is content?

[tomincali]

that why you don't do anything stupid,get trained instead.

[jessejaymes]

@marine1 That would be too simple. And not allow for general unstructured, random bitching, ya know?

[marine1]

@jessejaymes Common sense ant the unicorn have a lot in common

[jessejaymes]

@marine1 They do except there are more Unicorn sighting.

[marine1]

If politics were not involved, most law enforcement agencies would tell you the very same thing, simply because it is the truth. It seems like only crooks and politicians don't want you to be able to do this. One can only wonder if they both have simlar reasoning?

[PoliticalSpice]

Well both have something in common, as both are robbing the people...

[SignifiedNBlue]

The world has become one big mess. Thats insane.. People will be shooting unneccessairly

[marine1]

perhaps but then it might be better than dying unneccessairly? Have to wonder who best might make that decision.

[Fishbone345]

@marine1 If "Stand your Ground" is any indication of whats happening on this front, SignifiedNBlue is right. People are using the law and manipulating situations to murder people. Period.

[SignifiedNBlue]

@Fishbone345 my state just passed the stand your ground doctrine. It seems scarey. People can and have used it to get away with murder..its never a good thing to by pass calling 911 first. Of course there are situations where you have to use deadly force but advertising it in this manner is ludirous

[culinary]

Disagree. One major component of this is that they be trained. People are not just going to randomly shoot people because they can, unless that was their intention to begin with. In that case, they will be found out. Don't punish all because of a few.

[marine1]

@culinary The liberal way is to restrict all for the actions of a few. There have been cops do similar things. Should we take all their guns. Idiot-ology always punishes the law abiding because they can deal with the CAUSE.

[DARSB]

I'd love to hear Trayvon Martin's take on this.

[jessejaymes]

you know I sometimes wonder how up close and personal people have ever been to thugs. Trayvon Martin by any measurement other than a mother was a thug. He attacked someone following him. I can thing of two things I would do with someone following me before I would attack them. 1.) approach them with my head uncovered, showing them who I am and explain why I was there. I just assume people who live in an area are suspicious of people in this day and age that they don't know in residential areas. I see someone I don't know on my street and I get my gun. I wait, I don't follow but that's just not sufficient reason for Martin to attack Zimmerman. 2.) I'd run.

Either way Trayvon Martin would be alive today. I saw his facebook. Did you? he was a thug and Zimmerman identified him as a thug. I have been around thugs for so many years I can tell you a thug regardless of their skin color or age. They walk a certain way. They look around a certain way. They attack if given the chance. He did. You wouldn't want me on the Zimmerman jury.

[DARSB]

@jessejaymes We'll have to disagree. I don't have any idea of what transpired between the two of them that night. I do know an armed adult ended up in a situation wherein he believed he needed lethal force to defend himself. It seems to me walking away was an early option Mr Zimmerman didn't choose, and maybe he damn well should have.

I'm not convinced the typical citizen would behave any better. Rambo is a fictional character. Trayvon Martin is an actual dead teenager.

[jessejaymes]

@DARSB I wouldn't turn my back on the 7 houses on my street. I am no Rambo but I would not let a thug go without taking some action. there are no thugs on my street. there is a black couple but no thugs. We don't tolerate thugs. Trayvon was a thug. You will die or end up in prison when you thug. It's the nature of the beast. If it hadn't been Zimmerman it would have been someone else.

[Medicinebow]

@jessejaymes nothing personal but I'm glad I don't have to live in a city.

[jessejaymes]

@Medicinebow I can appreciate that. I'm a city person. Always have been. Feel as out of place in the country as you would be in the city. But I do understand what you're saying. It's not what it used to be. The Gangs have destroyed the big cities.

[cleverusername]

Cops are not there to defend you. After all they are not your personal secret service for life. Cops are there to catch criminals after the fact. It is up to each of us to defend ourselves. Like what David Mamet said.

[hankf68]

Agreed, the police are after the fact entities, rarely, if ever a preventive force...hmmm, maybe therein a problem exist in itself...

[NTBFW]

Since the last time I called 911,it took 45 min for him to arrive. He had the gout. Couldn't get around good. I kind of figured this one on my own. But it's damned good advice. I actually heard a libtard say they didn't need a gun. They had a phone to call 911. Now it's official. You really need a gun.

[Clarke12]

certified safety courses are great, and can be tailored to your level of knowledge as well as the type of gun you prefer.

[Arumizy]

That he may or may not have attacked Zimmerman, and may or may not have tried to kill him.

[mimi57]

At least he's being truthful, he knows the truth, too bad this POTUS has such a hard time with it.

[marine1]

For the Potus, the truth might be baggage?

[mimi57]

@marine1 Yep...it's all a bunch of 'baggage', too bad we're the recipients of it!

[cat2009]

Understand that your comments came after having laid off some officers and that the sheriff's office is undermaned but beware I think it was the Mayor who is opposed to your comments and if his home is in need your force better show up faster than Superman because he won't care about some other family needing the dept he just wants you there when he calls.

[humptydumpty]

You dont have to beleive in god or own a gun thats your choice,but one thing i kno for sure if someone intent on doing you harm breaks into your house the first thing your going to do is call somebody with a gun and pray like hell he gets there quick! Even a brain dead feel good liberal will!!

[tomincali]

surely a lib would not lower themselves to call an armed person for protection,i would think they would rather talk to the thug trying to push how bad that gun is in hopes he will go turn it in.

[humptydumpty]

@tomincali i have come to realize that anti gun liberals are not anti gun when it comes to there own protection, but in the back of there insecure minds they want to be ruled by a king/dictator and they kno the only way that will ever happen is if there king disarms all those that dont agree with him!! They are a bunch of blind sheeple

[Thunderchicken]

I was told something similar several years ago. Given the average 911 response time of ten minutes, a lot can happen before anyone shows up.

[humptydumpty]

Yes