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For
years I fought an internal battle. I waged a chemical war upon
myself with drugs and alcohol to anesthetize the pain of guilt.
I withdrew, never allowing myself to become involved in a relationship
that I couldn't abandon without looking back. I wouldn't allow
even my family to get too close.
It is almost eleven years after the fact. I don't think a single
day has passed that I have not thought about that man or the
child that I robbed of a father.
But recently, something has changed; I became acquainted with
a man named Jesus Christ.
Through Him I have learned that I can go to school, I can love
and be loved, and I can even be forgiven. I also keep an answering
machine on my phone.
Postscript.
If life were like the movies, I suppose that I would have walked
away from this incident feeling good about myself, and the woman
I defended would be forever grateful to me. But, life isn’t
a movie.
Two and a half years after the shooting, I was served with papers
on behalf of the family of the deceased. I was being sued for
negligent homicide.
As a result of the suit, I had to track down the woman again
and ask her to testify on my behalf. When I finally found her,
I learned a few things that had transpired since that night;
first, she had gone on to have the baby. With no job, no money,
and no family to support her, she decided that she would sue
me for killing the father of her child. She consulted a lawyer,
a friend of hers who, according to her said, “You called this
guy to help you and now you want to sue him? There are some
cases even lawyers won’t touch.” I guess that there are some
honorable people left in the world, after all.
Later, the parents of the man I killed had approached her because
they were trying to get the criminal case against me re-opened,
and needed her to testify. She made them agree to sign an affidavit
affirming their son’s paternity, which would enable her to collect
Social Security for the child, in exchange for her testimony
. When she testified, the DA told the parents that there was
no criminal case, and the matter was dropped. That left the
civil courts.
To say that I was unprepared for the financial challenge of
being sued is an understatement. I was working for $5.15 an
hour at a factory, making engine manifolds,
I was living in Detroit’s inner city in a rented house, and
I was driving a ten-year-old car. Coming up with $5000 for a
lawyer wiped me out financially. When the case was settled,
I was found liable for $3000.
My warning to all those that carry a firearm is this;
1. Make damned sure that you absolutely fear for your life or
the life of your loved ones before you ever clear leather. The
clearer it is that you were the victim, the faster that the
criminal case will conclude in your favor.
2. Have a lawyer’s number handy. The time that you are involved
in a shooting is not the time to find a lawyer. Look for someone
that believes in the Second Amendment, or at least is not against
citizens defending themselves.
3. Have someone who can be your advocate on the outside while
you’re in jail waiting for the wheels of justice to grind. Everyone
involved in the incident is going to be questioned by police.
You will need someone that you can call who will contact your
lawyer and your family to let them know what happened, and your
job to let them know you won’t be in that day and probably the
next.
4. Join an organization like OFF that will fight for your rights,
and advise you on the latest developments regarding Concealed
Carry. Your best weapon in defending yourself is your brain.
Make sure that it is amply filled with reliable information.
The author of this article has chosen to remain anonymous.He
is employed in a firearms related business and lives happily
with his wife and children in the midwest. |
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