You’ve just shot a violent, menacing attacker in self-defense. Should you render first aid? According to firearms and self-defense expert Massad Ayoob, the answer to that question is a resounding “No.”
This decision comes down to a variety of factors. The first being that the aggressor’s actions left you with no other choice but to open fire. “There has to be a prioritization at scenes of violence,” Ayoob explains. “[The attacker] was acting so violently and so dangerously that you had to shoot him.”
Furthermore, there could be accomplices nearby. “Just because you’ve identified this single threat and believe you’ve neutralized it doesn’t mean he’s the only threat,” Ayoob says.
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Finally, if you reach down to administer first aid, you leave yourself open to the possibility of the wounded suspect turning the tables on you. “You’re going to be within reach of him overpowering you, disarming you, and murdering the people you fired that gun to protect,” Ayoob states.
For more on this subject, watch the video below.
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About Massad Ayoob
Massad Ayoob has been handgun editor of GUNS magazine and law enforcement editor of AMERICAN HANDGUNNER since the 1970s, and has published thousands of articles in gun magazines, martial arts publications, and law enforcement journals. He is the author of more than a dozen books on firearms, self-defense, and related topics, including “In the Gravest Extreme,” widely considered to be the authoritative text on the topic of the use of lethal force.
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