Tragedy at Trader Joe's
BY TIM SCHMIDT - USCCA FOUNDER
A tragic story out of Los Angeles illustrates why it's so important for anyone who owns, carries or uses a gun for self-defense to always follow the rules of gun safety — specifically, to know the target and what's beyond (and around) it.
According to Fox6Now.com, "a store worker killed in a gunbattle [sic] before a suspect took hostages in a crowded supermarket was hit by a police bullet, Police Chief Michel Moore said Tuesday."
That worker, Melyda Corado, was fatally struck when one the rounds fired by an officer missed the suspect, Gene Evin Atkins, and entered Corado's body after passing through her arm.
Atkins fired two rounds at officers as he entered Trader Joe's, and officers fired back just as Corado was leaving the store.
"In deciding whether to open fire, the officers had to consider whether the suspect in what was already a long-running series of violent events would become an active shooter in a market crowded with weekend shoppers, Moore said," according to a Fox6Now report.
That series of violent events included Atkins shooting and wounding his grandmother, stealing a car, kidnapping a 17-year-old girl who was grazed by one of his bullets, getting into a car chase with police, firing at officers and running into a Trader Joe's, where he later took hostages.
According to the Los Angeles Times, "Charles 'Sid' Heal, a retired L.A. County sheriff's commander and expert on law enforcement shootings," said that "the suspect created the situation and law enforcement inherited it."
He also noted that "Atkins could have entered the store and shot those inside."
Remember, police officers have an entirely different level of responsibility than do private citizens when it comes to stopping — and especially pursuing — a potentially lethal threat.
Even so, it pays to remember that police are not immune to the stressors of a violent encounter. In the dynamics of an incident, physiological effects such as time distortion and tunnel vision can certainly come into play.
In the Los Angeles Times, Heal suggested that "there is no easy answer."
"We try to have a clear field of fire, but obviously the suspect has a substantial, even a decisive, advantage if we don't return fire," he added.
I share this story not to point fingers at law enforcement but to remind anyone who owns and carries a gun that it's a hefty responsibility and that, ultimately, you are responsible for every single round that leaves your firearm.
You must always know your target and what's around it.
Remember, the police in this instance had a duty to fulfill. They were chasing after a suspect because they HAD to, and there were innocents inside the store they also had to think about.
As a private citizen, you are not required to follow and neutralize a threat if you are no longer in imminent danger. Your best bet might be to escape to a place of relative safety and then call 911.
Despite the unfair and tragic outcome, which, in my opinion, falls squarely on the dangerous and violent perpetrator, police likely saved lives in this situation. My prayers to Melyda Corado, her friends and family, and the officer who is certainly now living his "worst nightmare."
Take care and stay safe,
Tim Schmidt
Publisher - Concealed Carry Report
USCCA Founder