If you have a particular encounter with another citizen or LEO, post it here.
 #90260  by cappilot06
 
This case is now closed and I feel free to discuss.

So the adventure, if I can call it that, started last night on my way home from celebrating my two daughter’s birthdays with my brother and sister-in-law at Bahama Breeze at the Christiana Mall. We were leaving the mall around 7:00pm and were on Route 1 North merging onto 95N. My wife and I were in two separate cars because she had met us at the restaurant after she got off of work. She was two cars behind me on the on-ramp, and witnessed most of what happened. My two daughters were in the truck with me.

Traffic was congested and we were moving very slowly on the on-ramp to 95N. Apparently, based on what my wife saw, I accidentally cut off a motorcycle who was weaving in and out of traffic on the ramp and riding the shoulder. I never saw him. When I cut him off, he pulled up next to the passenger side window and started yelling at me watch “what the f----k” I was doing. The girls starting crying and getting upset at that point. He then pulled in front of our truck and stopped. He sat there for about 30 seconds and just stared back at me. He then pulled onto the extreme left of the on-ramp (the driver’s side of the ramp). Traffic started to move again, but he stayed where he was until I was abreast of him. At that point, he started fidgeting with his backpack and threatening to kill me and my family if I tried to run him over again. Of course at this point, I have no idea what the heck he’s talking about because I didn’t know I cut him off.

When I saw him reach inside of his backpack, I then started to reach for my pistol which was on the dash. It was only then that he saw my pistol and that I was reaching for it. He then hit the gas on his bike and wove through traffic onto 95N and was gone. The girls heard and saw it all and were hysterical in the back seat. I tried to calm them down on the ride home, and it took about 20 min for us to arrive. This is where the story gets even more bizaare. Critical point here is that I NEVER had to actually touch my pistol or draw it. But I was literally about 2 seconds from doing so. The hairs on the back of my neck were tingling and something was definitely not right with this guy and I was completely in fear that he was about ready to pull a weapon.

Anyway, as I’m about a mile from home, I pass an unmarked state trooper on the side of the road near Bellevue State Park. I didn’t think anything of it. I drove the next mile and then turned onto my street. As my wife and I are pulling our cars in the driveway, I have two state troopers with lights and sirens box me in on my driveway. They instruct me to roll down all my windows, put my hands on the steering wheel, and not to make any sudden moves. The girls start freaking out again and are almost inconsolable. My wife is in the car next to me and tried to keep them calm. The first trooper asks over the loudspeaker if I have a weapon in the car. I said yes, a 9mm fully loaded on the dash. He orders me out of the car and frisks me. Then moves me away from Toni and girls over to his patrol car. They confiscate and unload my weapon and locked it in the trunk of their patrol car. I was informed that the guy who threatened me called in a complaint that I was brandishing and waving a gun at him and threatening to shoot him. So their response, while unnerving, was understood at that point. It was embarrassing having the entire neighborhood watch what happened, though. Thank goodness the girls were able to verify that this guy is the one who threatened us, and that I never threatened him or brandished anything. All was over in about 10 min, and they gave me my pistol back.

We thought all was over and done with at that point. Unfortunately, it was not. We get another knock on the door around 10:30 by the two state troopers who responded the first time. They asked for my phone number because the investigating officer needed to talk to me. This was the officer that the motorcycle guy actually complained to. I gave it to them and about 2 min later the other DSP officer calls me. He tells me that due to the serious nature of the allegation this guy made, that I need to go to Troop 6 along with the girls (who are already in bed) so he can get our side of the story. I was severely upset but kept my cool.

We got the girls up and went to Prices Corner. We talked to the investigating officer who was one of the best officers I’ve ever encountered. His manner with the girls was top notch and they were completely at ease with him. He talked to my wife and the girls first while I waited and then they came out and I went back with him. Apparently, the motorcycle guy left out most of the details that the girls and I gave him. With witnesses on my side, he complimented me on my situational awareness and said that my sixth sense was most likely correct. He said that I had done nothing wrong and had handled myself as appropriately as I could in the situation. He, of course, tried to suggest that I not keep my firearm visible on the dash, but I pushed back at him on that theory. I told him that if that guy hadn’t saw my pistol that I may have actually had to draw and shoot. The fact that he saw it and sped away was worth the hassle of having to answer questions later. I don’t know if he fully agreed with me, but he didn’t push the issue.

I only post this to let those of you who carry realize what can happen and to be aware of it. the bad guys will try to turn the tables and point the finger at you, like this guy did. This is something that could start happening to those of us who carry for self-defense. So all told, the night was 4 hours of stress and anxiety and we didn’t get the girls into bed for good until about 12:30 Sunday morning, but we are all ok today….and I left the police barracks with pistol in hand.

Finally, no charges are being sought against this guy because (even though I had witnesses), it's essentially his word against mine.
Last edited by cappilot06 on Tue Aug 27, 2013 3:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
 #90263  by Taurus247
 
Thank you for sharing. I'm glad that it did not escalate further for the sake of all involved especially your daughters.
 #90267  by Mr.Skellington
 
Thanks for sharing. Shame it had to happen while celebrating the kids birthdays :(
 #90270  by Daveman
 
Cappilot, thanks for sharing your incident. Given the situation, (guy on a bike yelling at and threatening me) I most likely would have acted in the same exact way you did... Glad everything AND everyone is ok. Especially your girls. Glad it didn't turn into a more serious event. On the other hand, I think( in my opinion) they need to bring in or visit the guy on that bike and question him, just because of his actions and threatening to "kill you & you family" while he was reaching into his backpack. That's just my opinion. But very glad everyone is ok and everything turned out ok for you.
 #90271  by myopicvisionary
 
Well done Sir. Good job on keeping your cool while being at the ready.
 #90272  by schmenge
 
Ditto all the above. I do have a suggestion though.

I was taught in my CCDW class, and I think it makes sense, always report the situation before the bad guy does. I would have called 911 immediately after that low life took off. Let the police visit him, and put him through the ringer.
 #90274  by cappilot06
 
While I agree, keep in mind that in the heat of the moment all I was thinking about was getting my girls home safely. I wasn't going to stop that truck until I got home. Maybe that's a guy thing, I don't know.

It's funny how you react and what thoughts go through your brain in a situation like this. I know I learned a lot about how I would react, and I've critiqued myself many times between Saturday and now. I don't regret anything I did, and I still think trying to get them home safely was way better than pulling over to call the cops. I had no idea where he was or where he went after I saw him pull away. I was taking no chances.

I know I could have done better, but I don't regret anything that happened.