Ravenwood - 02/04/05 08:00 AM
Following the fatal shooting of an actress in New York City, the National Crime Prevention Council is offering advice on how to comply with muggers. Color me skeptical, but I fail to see how following their advice prevents crime.
The best way to deal with the confrontation is to comply by giving the robber want they want.Of course, the problem with this approach is that it assumes that the guy is just going to rob you, and not going to murder you. Those of us who aren't clairvoyant might feel more obliged to resist.The key is to be observant. Take notes on the robber. Look at facial features or any distinguishing facial features, what is they are wearing, how they speak. Get a good description to tell the police.
Now, I'm not saying I would get up in the guy's face and take him on, as police are speculating this woman did. But I would certainly be more apt to just run off than hand over my money. I would be willing to bet my life that he's not going to run after me. Actually, I should rephrase that. I would be more willing to bet my life that he's not going to run after me, than to bet my life that he's not going to shoot me. I am most certainly not going to whip out my pencil and paper so that I can take notes, or ask the mugger if he has any distinguishing birthmarks or scars. But maybe that's just me.
You can choose for yourself whichever method you want to take. But I think running away goes further toward crime prevention than does the Crime Prevention Council's method of making it a successful robbery.
The problem with the "good description" people is how you take in information.
I can ask someone right now to profile the last person they saw two minutes ago, App. age, height, weight, color, culture, hair, eyes, accessories, posture, etc. The average person cannot do a good job of recording someone's description. Hell, I'm a CJ major and after countless minutes (or hours over long time) of boredum in retail I've gotten to the point where I can say I am fair at it. Not only do you have to be descriptive but you also got to do it in a way that the person doesn't think you are profilling them. As in the case of the half dozen shoplifters I've had arrested just by remembering their description and getting it to loss prevention.
Running away is a lot better than co-operating. For yours truly I'd be too fearful of being shot in the back while trying to run away. For me I'd try to disarm them. 1 thirty minute video plus hours of practice can make you pretty profficient at this. Of course it is a gamble and you want to be in good physical shape and be willing to get bloody but any move you do is a gamble when being robbed.
Posted by: Rhett at February 4, 2005 11:16 AMToo many people are killed, even when willing to give up their money to a robber; some of them seem to shoot people just for the sheer hell of it, or because they are whacked out on meth.
Posted by: Robert Garrard at February 4, 2005 11:42 AMMy preferred method of crime prevention (barring the ability to escape the situation, of course) works to prevent future crimes by the perpetrator as well...
Posted by: Steve Scudder at February 4, 2005 4:05 PMAn armed society is an unmugged society.
Posted by: Hank at February 6, 2005 12:12 PM(c) Ravenwood and Associates, 1990 - 2014
