“One Mind Any Weapon” the Motto of the United States Marine Corps Martial Arts Program. This means using your mind to imagine that you can find weapons everywhere.

MEDIA: Unarmed – the media uses this to say the individual was not carrying a firearm.

The moment you refuse to comply with law enforcement officers’ instruction(s) and you force the officer(s) to use force to make you comply, YOU have introduced a firearm into the equation; therefore you have just armed your criminal self.

Let’s take a look at some of the deadly weapons I can think of in 20 seconds: chair, bottle, computer, TV, window, door, keys, knife, martial arts weapons, sword, fire, the floor, the ground, a car, etc. etc. etc. Oh, and we can also add, hands, elbows, knees, feet, head, etc.

According to the FBI Uniform Crime Report during 2012 there were 3,910 murders in America that did not involve a firearm. The following information shows the number of murder victims in the United States by the cause of death; weapons used or cause of death includes: guns, stabbing, blunt objects, strangulation, arson, and more.

Note: Crime statistics usual lag by a few years; data collection takes time and then it must be analyzed.

Cutting or Stabbing: 1,589

Blunt Object (club, hammer, etc.): 518

Strangulation, Hands, Fists, Feet, or Pushing: 767

Arson: 85

Others (Includes poison, explosives, unknown, drowning, asphyxiation, narcotics, other means, and weapons not stated): 951

What is the difference between a Man, or a Woman, or a Child holding a weapon on you in a threatening manner? NOTHING. A threat is a threat. Their age, race, sex, nor any other attribute matter. Police Officers are taught watch hands. If the officer sees a gun, he or she may become hyper-focused on the gun, therefore what the suspect does with the gun is all that matters; nothing else matters. If an officer is shot in a vital organ by an 8 year old girl with ponytails he will likely die; age, race, religion do not matter.

Scenario: A police officer shows up at a call. After exiting his or her cruiser a vehicle begins backing down the driveway and heads straight for the officer. It is obvious the driver is trying to run the officer over. The officer shoots the driver, which defuses the situation.

Sounds like a legitimate shoot to me.

Oh, but wait a moment, the driver was 12 years old boy.

Now the media will tell us all that a police officer killed a 12 year old boy. They will bring in a bunch of experts to help tell people their creative narrative. The narrative told is that another police officer had killed a child; DID HE HAVE TO KILL HIM – he was just a boy!

In my opinion there is a no such thing as an unarmed suspect. If you do not want to be shot by the police here are a few ideas:

  1. Do not be a criminal.
  2. Do not break the law.
  3. If confronted by Law Enforcers, comply with all instructions; if they are wrong, sort it out later.
  4. Do Not make the police chase you; it pumps up their adrenaline, and usually do not work out in your favor.
  5. Do not be a criminal.
  6. Do not be a criminal.
  7. Do not be a criminal.

And finally, for all the armchair quarterbacks who have never been in a life-threatening situation – in the words of, President Theodore Roosevelt

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

Think about that…………

SF DKD

By David Devaney

David K. Devaney SgtMaj USMC Retired 2009 City of Hit Iraq with PTTDavid was born in Geneva New York and graduated from Geneva High School in 1980. He joined the Marine Corps on a guaranteed Infantry contract in April of 1983. After graduating boot camp he was stationed in Hawaii with 3rdBattalion 3rd Marines (3/3). While assigned to 3/3 he held billets as a rifleman, fire team leader, and squad leader. During 1986 Corporal (Cpl) Devaney was selected as a member of Surveillance and Target Acquisition (STA) Platoon, 3rd Battalion 3rd Marine. Upon graduation of Scout Sniper School he was assigned to the Scout Sniper Section of 3/3 STA Platoon. During his second deployment as a Scout Sniper with 3/3 he was promoted to Sergeant (Sgt). After a tour on the drill field from 1989-1991 Sgt Devaney returned to STA 3/3 were he deployed two more times. During 1994 Sgt Devaney was selected to the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSgt) and ordered to III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF), Special Operation Training Group (SOTG); while at SOTG SSgt Devaney was assigned as a Reconnaissance and Surveillance (R&S) and Urban Sniper Instructor and Chief Instructor. At the time III MEF SOTG Instructors were members of Joint Task Force 510 (JTF 510 CT); a Counter Terrorism Task Force. In 1998 he deployed to Operation Desert Fox with Battalion Landing Team (BLT) 2/4 and was attached to Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) 572/594 as a sniper. SSgt Devaney deployed again, during 2000, with ODA 135/136/132 to Malaysia as member of JTF 510, working with the Malaysian National Police. After leaving SOTG Gunnery Sergeant (GySgt) Devaney was assigned to Company A 1st Battalion 7th Marine, and spent much of his time training the Scout Snipers of 1/7. Just before the invasion of Iraq, in 2003, he was selected to the rank of First Sergeant (1stSgt) and led 270 Marines, sailors, and soldiers during combat – receiving a Bronze Star Medal for destroying the enemy and their will to fight. During 2004 1st Sgt Devaney was ordered to duty as the Inspector Instructor Staff 1st Sgt for 2nd Beach and Terminal Operations Company, Savannah, Georgia. During 2007 he was selected to the rank of Sergeant Major (SgtMaj) and received orders to Electronic Warfare Squadron 4 (VMAQ-4) stationed at Cherry Point, NC. There he trained a CADRE which in turn trained a massive Quick Reaction Force in combat operations. After two more deployments to Iraq SgtMaj Devaney received orders to Weapons Training Battalion, Quantico, VA. SgtMaj Devaney retired from the Marine Corps on 31 December 20013. He now works as an adjunct combat instructor at the “Crucible’’ in Fredericksburg, VA. David is also on the Board of Directors of the Marine Corps Scout Sniper Association. David’s published work: Books Devaney, D.K. (2007). Surviving combat: Mentally and physically (3rd edition). 29 Palms, CA: USMC. Devaney, D.K. (2015). They Were Heroes: A Sergeant Major’s Tribute to Combat Marines of Iraq and Afghanistan. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. Articles Devaney, D.K. (2011) Enough Talk of Suicide, Already! Proceedings Magazine. Devaney, D.K. (2011) Can PTSD Be Prevented Through Education? Proceedings Magazine. Devaney, D.K. (2012) PTSD Is Not Cancer. The Marine Corps Gazette. Devaney, D.K. (2012) Women in Combat Arms Units. The Marine Corps Gazette.

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