Where can I buy a gun for self protection? (rental car, high crime)

[observer53]

Originally Posted by mistygrl092

I plan to take the most valuable of valuables in my car (i.e. pictures that could never be replaced and any other items that I just wouldn't trust to be moved by someone else), so I really feel I need a gun.

If you really believe you are going to be targeted for your pictures, think again. No one is going to break into your car for those, much less hold you up at a rest stop or whatever else you are afraid of. Put your obvious valuables in the trunk, make sure your car is in great working order and your AAA membership up to date, have cell service with a company with good coverage, use common sense, and make your trip. If that's the only reason you want a gun, save your money and your time.

[mistygrl092]

Originally Posted by observer53

If you really believe you are going to be targeted for your pictures, think again. No one is going to break into your car for those, much less hold you up at a rest stop or whatever else you are afraid of. Put your obvious valuables in the trunk, make sure your car is in great working order and your AAA membership up to date, have cell service with a company with good coverage, use common sense, and make your trip. If that's the only reason you want a gun, save your money and your time.

Well, it's more than that. I said other valuables as well but don't want to elaborate. Let's just say even FedEx wouldn't insure it.

BTW, I had my car broken into (windows smashed) in Amarillo, TX - so no stranger to the dangers. Unfortunately, they DID take what can never be replaced, yet homeowner's insurance covered what they took (as in the stuff that did not matter), which was no big deal.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by mistygrl092

Well, it's more than that. I said other valuables as well but don't want to elaborate. Let's just say even FedEx wouldn't insure it.

BTW, I had my car broken into (windows smashed) in Amarillo, TX - so no stranger to the dangers. Unfortunately, they DID take what can never be replaced, yet homeowner's insurance covered what they took (as in the stuff that did not matter), which was no big deal.

I'm not asking you to elaborate on what you are transporting, or where. I'm just saying, as a single woman who's traveled car trips alone, that if that's the only reason you need a gun, IMO, you don't. A gun would not have stopped what happened in Amarillo. That's what car trunks (and insurance) are for.

[madmmac]

If you shoot somebody breaking into your car, you will be going to jail also.

[Rick Lee]

Legally speaking, property ain't worth defending unless it's an occupied house or vehicle. I wish it were otherwise. IIRC, in AZ you can threaten deadly force against someone breaking into your car in the driveway, but you cannot shoot them unless you're already in the car. You're not gonna stop someone from breaking into your house or car while you're away and a gun surely won't help you there.

[themudpuppy]

Originally Posted by mistygrl092

Unfortunately, they DID take what can never be replaced,

When my home got broken into, they took all my home videos of a loved one who had passed away a few years earlier. We're talking old VHS that isn't worth anything, not DVDs or anything that they could have sold. I wouldn't have cared if they took anything else, but that was the one thing I regret losing, because they can't be replaced.

That said, no matter what you're moving with you in your car, a gun won't stop someone from stealing it when you're away from the car.

I'm going to be making my cross country move by car too, and I'm also a single woman. I travel with a big dog and have made many trips with no problems. I don't think anyone's going to want to mess with someone with a big dog in the car. They don't need to know he'd only lick them to death.

I want to get a gun, but not for the trip. Too many different state laws to deal with. I'll wait and get one when I'm in Arizona.

[bicoastal10]

To the OP, why do you believe you'll be in such danger that you'll need to carry a firearm? Unless you're the lone employee who works nights at some store in the ghetto or something similiar, I'm not quite sure why you feel this way. And even if those are your working conditions, you'd probably be better off complying with the criminal(s) instead of trying to put your gun to the test. Why? Because more than likely, even if you go through training, when a real situation occurs, you'll either overreact and unjustifiably shoot someone (and end up in state prison on a voluntary manslaughter charge), or end up having the gun taken away from you and be used against you (I'll tell you right now that hardened male criminals will not think you have the guts to actually pull the trigger and will not respect the fact that you have a gun since they will likely have one as well). That said, while you may think carrying a gun is a good idea, there are so many things that can go wrong as a result of you attempting to put up a fight or use the gun.

In most situations, as long as you comply with the perps demands, it's unlikely you'll suffer bodily harm. It's usually when people don't comply or put up a fight that true danger/violence emerges. However, if you use common sense (such as not going jogging alone near or after dark/very early in the morning or driving through very high crime areas late at night or driving with your doors unlocked) and are aware of your surroundings, it's unlikely you'll run into major trouble.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by bicoastal10

In most situations, as long as you comply with the perps demands, it's unlikely you'll suffer bodily harm.

Just wow. Really, really bad advice.

If you're justified in using a gun against an assailant, you are, by definition, facing imminent death or grave bodily harm. Do you want the bad guy to be the one who decides if you live or die? Do you want to be totally helpless and just pray some nutbag gunman runs out of ammo before he gets to you?

[themudpuppy]

Originally Posted by bicoastal10

However, if you use common sense (such as not going jogging alone near or after dark/very early in the morning or driving through very high crime areas late at night or driving with your doors unlocked) and are aware of your surroundings, it's unlikely you'll run into major trouble.

Major trouble can happen anywhere. The area I live in (not in Arizona) is considered very, very safe. In the past 2 weeks, a man has tried to abduct 2 women in the parking lot of 2 different stores in broad daylight. These stores are in locations where there's rarely any crime. They still haven't caught him. Both times the women were lucky that someone came to their rescue while he was trying to force them into his vehicle with a gun.

My current neighborhood is one of the safest I've ever known, but two nights in a row a man tried to pry my window open in the middle of the night. It was very obvious I was home, and it's obvious that I live alone, so I'm pretty sure he wasn't there just to rob me. First night a neighbor's dog came over and ran him off. Second night I scared him off when I turned on all the outside lights and yelled that I had a gun (even tho I didn't). Next day I installed an alarm system on all the doors and windows and went big-dog-shopping at the local rescues.

[Bideshi]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

Just wow. Really, really bad advice.

If you're justified in using a gun against an assailant, you are, by definition, facing imminent death or grave bodily harm. Do you want the bad guy to be the one who decides if you live or die? Do you want to be totally helpless and just pray some nutbag gunman runs out of ammo before he gets to you?

Agree. It's reality.

On the subject of ladies compact CCW choices, a .32 ACP has a good bit more stopping power than a .22 LR with less recoil than a .380 ACP. The Keltec .32 rather than the Ruger LCP for example. European police departments relied on the .32 ACP (7.65mm) for nearly a century. I think we tend to be a bit "caliber happy" here in the US. In any case, with a super short barrel a .380 won't be able to show it's full advantage over a .32 anyway.

BTW, I would not recommend a Beretta Tomcat .32. The frames crack and Beretta has not seen fit to effectively correct the problem.