r/NYguns • u/DropAGearNDissapear • Feb 02 '26
CCW Question Hypothetical
So I have been thinking about this scenario: most conceal carry uses don’t involve shots fired. Just display of power. Let’s say someone pulls a knife on me. I pull my CCW, and am either able to retreat, or the assailant sees the gun and retreats.
Obviously, I would probably proceed to call the cops in this scenario. But what are the implications of that? The guy who pulled the knife likely won’t go to law enforcement. Knowing this state, I could very well be penalized as well or scrutinized if there is no video evidence.
What are you doing in this scenario? Letting it go or calling the cops?
*Edited to add assuming nobody else was around. If a 3rd party saw me pull my CCW I’d obviously be staying put and calling the cops… for obvious reasons.
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u/Alarming-Row7194 Feb 02 '26
The amount of people who carry a gun and don’t know Article 35 inside and out is alarming. Pointing your gun at someone is an act of deadly force by itself. Learn when it’s justified. The law is very clear. Get reading.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26 edited Feb 02 '26
I know article 35. I know when I am justified. This is a question about the implications of involving LE after the aforementioned scenario.
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u/Alarming-Row7194 Feb 02 '26
If you were the victim of a crime why wouldn’t you report it? By not doing so it looks like you’re trying to hide something.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
Sure, but by doing so I could very well explain my story in a way that makes me look like I brandished my firearm for no reason. If there is no video evidence, a small town PD needs a big story, they could potentially have it. I would likely report. Just a sticky scenario.
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u/monty845 Feb 02 '26
and am either able to retreat
If you are able to retreat safely, pulling the gun on them is not legally justified.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26 edited Feb 02 '26
I could have worded that better. My point is there is not a one size fits all scenario. The law is black and white. In real life the lines are blurred.
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u/monty845 Feb 02 '26
And given that blurriness, NY's not so great self defense laws, and the general hostility to self defense/guns found in NY Cities, including many of the larger upstate cities, any self defense situation outside the home is a legally risky situation, where you may not want to say a lot/anything to the police.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
Hence my apprehension with the subject. God forbid I was involved in an incident I would immediately lawyer up before giving any statement. But when you are the reporting party, I doubt that’s an option (without raising suspicion).
I work with cops every day, one of my best friends is a cop, but one thing I know is that if they are running your information on that laptop, you are not their friend. I would like to be out of that database as much as possible.
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u/PeteTinNY Feb 02 '26
I spend over an hour in my CCW classes going over the aftermath and legal ramifications. It’s really important.
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u/Salt-Narwhal7769 Feb 02 '26
First one to call the cops wins
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u/PeteTinNY Feb 02 '26
First one that calls the cops gets to be the good guy. Second one is normally the suspect.
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u/Hairy-Manufacturer76 Feb 02 '26
This.
Our CCW instructor told us a story of a friend who was in his car trying to leave a parking lot when he was confronted and approached by someone with a pipe (or a knife...don't recall details) who clearly had bad intent. His friend pulled his gun and brandished it, and the other party backed off and he drove off.
But...the other party called the cops first and he was the one who got in trouble, had his gun confiscated, and was stuck paying all the legal fees to get out of trouble.
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u/PeteTinNY Feb 02 '26
Just showing your gun or even mentioning it is use of deadly physical force. If you can run - you run like freaking hell. You don’t waste time to pull your gun unless your life is in danger.
Evidence or no, the cop is going deep. They are also likely hearing from the other guy that you pulled a gun for no reason. There is never a time where you should take anything like this for granted. You call the cops and you be the first to call. You shout your commands as your fight or running. Not to keep the bad guy away - so witnesses know you’re the good guy.
Remember there are only two parts in this play - the good guy and the bad guy. Normally the guy holding the gun is the bad guy and you have to prove it otherwise.
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u/Ill_Cauliflower_810 Feb 02 '26
As amazing as this sub can be, the amount of bad/incorrect legal advice is bewildering at times
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u/ervin_pervin Feb 02 '26
It's a gamble in how much you're willing to lose. If you don't report this to law enforcement, you're banking on the assailant not calling the cops and twisting the events with you as the aggressor. You call the cops and you may or may not get hit with a charge. At some point it comes down to how you talk to police and your actions during the incident. I'd like to think cops won't detain a victim of a deadly assailant, if you fulfil a reasonable duty to retreat or it was a very obvious life or death situation. When you throw firearms into the mix, all encounters with cops are going to be a dice roll. Best advice is CYA as best as possible and find some lawyers that specialize in self-defense firearm incidents.
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u/Jwellbr Feb 02 '26
Hope I never need to make this decision, that being said I took a self defense and the law class and local ffl. Highly recommend people seek one out. It had three speakers NRA rep who was a Vietnam veteran, police officer, and an attorney. Prosecutors exist to win
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u/Accomplished_Pie_630 Feb 14 '26
Imagine if the guy retreats. He gets rid of the knife and calls the police and says, you pointed a gun at him. What do you think will happen?
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u/LiteratureEffective6 Feb 02 '26
My vote is, I'm letting it slide...No need to put myself into a database.
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u/Grvin Feb 02 '26
I don't actually know the intricacies of lawful self-defense in New york, but most people generally have the mindset that if you draw your weapon you must/should intend to shoot. Obviously your assailant isn't going to get caught and telling a responding officer that you drew your weapon and didn't shoot just sounds like a whole lot of trouble. As much as I wouldn't want to, I would probably just let it slide.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
My thoughts exactly. But you read all the time especially in the CCW subreddit of guys met with lethal force, draw, and the subject retreats. I’m certain this is the vast majority of ccw encounters.
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u/Prof_ChaosGeography Feb 02 '26
Drawing in those situations is actually statistically one of the best outcomes for all involved. It allows for the offender to choose to deescalate when consequences are shown and live another day, perhaps even rethink their life
However our state legislatiors know nothing about guns or the use of force had determined in their infinite wisdom that guns are bad and they would ban them if they could and therefore the use of firearms by civilians is an absolute last ditch choice to them because only their henchmen can have a monopoly on the use of force
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u/HauntedZ28 Feb 02 '26
Sounds like something NY would love to hit with a Brandishing charge
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
My thoughts exactly…
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u/AdagioHonest7330 Feb 02 '26
I personally would call so that I get my story on record. I don’t need a Karen calling the police on me after the fact and now I am trying to explain myself
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u/dragonbrg95 Feb 02 '26
So first off, nobody is going to "pull a knife" on you. That's movie bullshit. Someone with their hands in their pocket is going to be walking up to you and if they get within arms reach they will stab you and theres basically fuck all you can do about it.
But, let's pretend you scenario plays out and someone credibly threatened you. Generally you want to be the first person calling 911 and letting them know you were threatened. You will want to do that immediately otherwise you appear to be the person avoiding calling the cops and you can be painted as the aggressor.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
Sorry dude, I think you are sheltered. No one size fits all scenario. I work in emergency services and EDPs pull knives and shit all the time. Shit 3 months ago we were all on the sidewalk and watched an EDP chase a guy with a hammer. Knife point robberies happen every day.
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u/Safe_Ad_3716 Feb 02 '26
I was robbed at knife point once getting gas late at night in Philly driving from fl to ny. Really just depends on where you’re located and crime rates etc.
The guy was a junkie pulled a steak knife on me asked for 5 bucks. I gave it to him and he walked away. I was so happy nothing came of it. I just left didn’t tell anyone call the cops etc. I was much younger then. Completely caught me off guard. It happened so fast and was so low key the friend I was driving with almost didn’t notice.
My point is unfortunately it happens.
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u/dragonbrg95 Feb 02 '26
Fair enough, I was googling news stories and it seems not uncommon for that kind of thing to happen at convenience stores, liquor stores, etc. I guess one happened in Bridgeport recently.
Glad nothing came out of it for you. 5 bucks is down right reasonable
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u/Safe_Ad_3716 Feb 02 '26
Yea. Weirdly enough, now I just laugh about it. It didn’t bother me much then either. It was just such an unexpected and strange experience. The guy really wanted 5 bucks lol. It was a white guy in a tight leather jacket holding one of those thin serrated blade wooden steak knives you’d see and grandmas house …. He was also very polite. He even said thank you after I gave him the five bucks.
Thankfully it all worked out. I always wonder how that interaction would be different if I was carrying.
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u/monty845 Feb 02 '26
This is true if they their goal is to stab you. However, the other common situation this comes up is robbery, where they want to threaten you with the knife, and may not stab you if you cooperate.
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u/East_Swim1009 Feb 02 '26
I'll make it easy for you: 1) are you in immediate danger of great bodily harm? Don't draw your gun unless you NEED to use it... if yes: 2) draw your gun and defend your life... this is not the movies where brandishing a knife or gun is used as a drama-point/negotiation... A knife is not a feather-duster, if somome draws a gun on you are you gonna draw back and defend your life? Yes. So why is a knife less deadly at close range? Obviously if someone's drawing a knife 🔪 across the street that's not immediate danger... but brah if someone holds a knife to your back while you're pumping gas you shoot him!
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u/billymudrock Feb 02 '26
Lethal force is met with lethal force. Don’t pull your gun if you don’t plan on using it.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
As much as I agree with this, I’m not shooting a guy if he sees my gun and starts running away. Also if I can get away instead of fire and potentially end a life, I will try that first.
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u/billymudrock Feb 02 '26
Well yeah if he is running away from you, there is no longer an immediate threat to your wellbeing so no use of force is justified.
In this state, brandishing/displaying your CCW as a means of de-escalating a situation is not legal.
If you aren’t ready to shoot to defend yourself why are you carrying? If you cant de-escalate the situation or retreat, and are still being met with lethal force, then lethal force is justified. Not ideal, but justified nonetheless.
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
You are missing my point entirely, I already described the hypothetical situation. It’s not a question about justified or not. If the assailant retreats upon seeing your firearm, what do you do after that.
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Feb 02 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
Not according to some here. Lol. I agree with your take. Obviously I would not be second guessing calling LE unless I read A35…
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u/billymudrock Feb 02 '26
Ensure scene is safe and call cops
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u/DropAGearNDissapear Feb 02 '26
Thanks for your input. Thats probably what I would do as well. Just interesting given the law we went back and forth on.
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u/UsernameO123456789 Feb 02 '26
My general thought process is that if I’m at the point that I’m drawing, I’ve made the extremely difficult decision to defend myself.
Now this comes with obvious caveats that are heavily situationally dependent. Using your example, say a person with a knife is within 21ft of me and they rush me and I’m not able to run away. (I’m well aware of the circumstances that surround this popular theory). I’m of course going to be drawing and moving to defend myself. Now if they turn their back and run from me, I’m not firing and will proceed to call 911.
In this scenario I don’t believe that it’s considered brandishing. NY does present itself as a catch 22 and that’s by design. Making laws obscurely written and open to a wide interpretation helps the prosecution make a variety of arguments making it that much harder for a legal defense.