02.19
Wow! I know this happens but crimes that don’t occur aren’t documented so it’s difficult to point them out to Anti-Gun people like the Brady Campaign.
What we have here is a well documented case of Open Carry actually deterring crime.
From Ed Stones article in the Examiner:
Matt Brannan and J.P. Mitchell were dining in the Wafflehouse on Barrett Parkway at I-575 in Kennesaw at 4:45 in the morning recently when a scout for an armed robbery crew entered the restaurant to case it. At the time, Matt and J.P. thought he looked a little suspicious, as he was wandering around the small restaurant like he was looking for someone. Unknown to Matt and J.P., two cars full of armed robbers were parked behind the restaurant waiting for the scout’s report.
The scout saw that two of the customers were wearing holstered 1911 Springfield Mil-Spec .45 pistols, and he immediately turned and left the store.
Meanwhile, conscientious Cobb County Police Officer D. Lowe had noticed suspicious cars sitting behind the restaurant in the dark and decided to investigate. He caught men with masks and rifles who had been preparing to rob the Wafflehouse. The criminals informed the police that they had changed their mind upon discovering armed customers and were waiting for Matt and J.P. to leave. Ironically, the police car was pulling in to the parking lot just as Matt and J.P. were driving away. In other words, had Matt and J.P. not been armed, the robbery probably would have occurred before the police intervened.
Captain Jerry Quan, the Commander for Precinct One, where the Wafflehouse is located, confirmed Matt Brannan’s story as one in which the open display of a pistol deterred a well armed robbery crew.
I can’t believe it! What luck that we get a documented case.
[Source]
This is one example that shows open carry is superior to concealed carry. This was the best possible situational outcome considering what almost happened. Good deal!
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That is such a horrible thought, to imagine, two cars full of armed criminals wanting to rob of all things, a Wafflehouse in the pre-dawn hours of the morning. I’m surprised the police officer was able make contact with them without being engaged (perhaps he called for backup beforehand). What were they going to do? Steal bill and tip money? This isn’t high school and I can’t imagine why someone felt as though they needed to rob a Wafflehouse. I think a more sinister plot was involved, but we may never know. Either way it is good that two open carriers, a practice derived from which is the first line of defense – deterrence, were able to preempt criminals even unknowingly. No sensible person carrying firearms want to kill anyone, if anything we want them to change their minds and move on. Should the pathological criminal still choose to engage, people should defend their lives with the best tools available.
In these hard times criminals will be looking for soft targets.
Perhaps you’re right. I could be jumping the gun, no pun intended, but where I am, Wafflehouse is known for attracting undesirables sometimes, often in the wee-hours of the morning, but not a ‘Heat’ style stick up crew…