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3. The law permits you to carry a concealed weapon for self-defense. Carrying a concealed weapon does not make you a free-lance policeman or a "good samaritan."
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Ummm...the plain fact is, that's not how the law works.
Being a "good Samaritan" *is* legal in many situations. "Free-lance cop", yeah, he's right: the purpose of a cop is to arrange punishment for crimes and he's 100% correct, no CCW holder should EVER go there. That's vigilante justice. This was the mistake made by the first guy in the Idaho situation.
BUT, defending others with the MINIMAL force possible to save the life of somebody being violently assaulted "right there in front of you" is legal in almost all states, and legal in both Florida and Idaho going off of past cases I've read about there. IN A FEW states you can even shoot a fleeing violent felon but I don't recommend it even in extreme cases...say, guy is stabbing a woman repeatedly, you draw, he runs.
IF POSSIBLE, yes, a verbal challenge is a great idea. The parties involved will sort themselves out rapidly. But once a gun is out in the hands of somebody that looks like an assailant...yeah, I'm not ready to condemn the 2nd guy the way some of y'all are. I think he could make a pretty damn good case that his draw was justified under the "defend others under immediate attack" principle. He did great holding fire while the details got sorted out and I think he really should escape punishment and should even keep his CCW permit due to his holding fire, the smartest thing he did that day.
Does anybody else agree?