Three Tips to Use a Taser Gun Safely

On Friday May 1^st, Cobb County decided to arm its officers with Tasers, reopening a longstanding debate about how they fit into the police’s use of force continuum, and how good an idea they are – period. There are a broad range of opinions about them, ranging from strong, unconditional support to serious concerns about their safety. Now you can buy Taser guns from us so obviously, you know that we approve of them – but we support proper Taser use. Here are three guiding principles to pay attention if you choose to purchase a C2 Taser.

Appropriate Use: Most controversies involving Tasers ultimately boil down to inappropriate use. In law enforcement this happens because of a combination of officer stress and poor training, explaining why there are so many differences between Taser statistics in different jurisdictions. For example in Phoenix, AZ, police shooting incidents declined by a third while Taser use increased between 2001 and 2003 – an indication that proper training helped these officers save lives. In Houston however, the introduction of Tasers didn’t reduce shooting deaths at all. (Source: Wikipedia)

A Taser is one of the best nonlethal alternatives to injurious or deadly force out there – but it is an alternative to those situations, instead of something to use when you’re angry or frustrated. Just like a firearm, they’re dangerous based on what the user does. Tasers are serious self-defense tools to be employed in extreme situations – you’re not just “setting phasers on stun.” But in that role, they’re one of the very best options available.

Avoid Multiple Shocks: One characteristic of high profile Taser incidents is the use of multiple shocks over a brief period of time. A Taser is one of the safest self defense products for what it does . . . once. Evidence for Tasers contributing to serious injury and death is often controversial, but rest assured that these situations are also very, very rare and in many of them, the target was hit with multiple consecutive bursts.

Fortunately, the C2 Taser and other civilian models are designed to take this into account by automatically limiting the operating cycle to a maximum of 30 seconds. (Law enforcement models provide unlimited consecutive 5 second bursts for as long as the operator pulls the trigger). The C2 is programmed so that you will use it properly by default, giving you a chance to escape. So in most cases, this concern is not even an issue for civilian users.

One Solution Among Many: Like any self defense product a Taser has an appropriate time and place – in this case, it should be used when you feel someone represents a serious threat to your well-being. Don’t buy one for the same reason you’d buy pepper spray, for example. Pepper spray can be reasonably used when you want to deescalate a threat before it reaches its peak; Tasers fill the role of putting someone down when they need to go down right now. It won’t just scare them off, and you must be prepared for the responsibilities that come with all of a Taser’s possible consequences. Ultimately, it’s a powerful self defense asset when it’s used as part of a total strategy that includes personal awareness, health and a focus on avoidance and escape. A Taser will help you prevail in the most extreme situations.

How to Use Pepper Spray: Five Steps

If you’re going buy pepper spray you might hesitate with the simple question: “How do I use it?” Fortunately, pepper spray is extremely simple to use. Nevertheless, you should practice and visualize how to use pepper spray in an emergency. (Make sure that when you practice, it’s with a substitute object the same size as the canister to avoid accidents.)

Proper pepper spray techniques can be boiled down into five easy steps. All of the above also apply when you buy mace spray, since “Mace” is actually a brand name – modern Mace is pepper spray.

Draw Easily: Make sure you can quickly and easily draw the pepper spray from wherever you keep it, but that when you put it away, it’s in a secure spot where it isn’t likely to fall out by accident. You may have to try out several locations and practice a bit to ensure a quick, smooth draw. Many pepper spray brands come with a carrying case. Consider using it. If it has a snap release or other two step process to draw, practice doing this quickly, but if you feel threatened, release the snap ahead of time.

Safety Release: The other aspect to consider is the safety. Become familiar with any safety mechanism on the pepper spray. When you practice, mentally note when you would release the safety and practice the movement with a substitute. (We do not recommend that you actually release the safety in practice in case of an accident.) This should be a smooth motion and part of the drawing process.

Aim and Posture: Pepper spray is designed to cause facial irritation above all else, so that’s your target. However, you should never just hold it in front of you. Using the spray should be part of an overall self defense posture. Keep in mind that the attacker may be striking or grabbing at you while you draw the spray. To defend against being struck, grabbed or jostled, take a step back so that your knees are bent and your feet are more than shoulder width apart. Taking a step back creates distance, and reduces your profile, making it harder for the assailant to hit you. Keep both hands up, protecting your face and body. Do not push the hand holding the spray out so far that your ram is fully extended.

Center and Fan the Spray: One handy tip for properly aiming pepper spray is to look at the attacker’s face while bringing the spray in line with your eyes. Move them in one unit. When people feel threatened they often close their eyes, but don’t do this! It won’t protect you from any spray that comes your way and blinds you to any movement from your attacker. Once you release the spray, fan it back and forth to account for poor aim, the attacker’s movements and other factors.

Yell, Fight and Escape: Yell. YELL! Yell throughout the entire incident! “Stop it!” is a good catch all. You should actually practice this, because in many cases, surprise over an assault may otherwise render you speechless. And once you’ve used the spray enough to create an opportunity, get away as fast as you can. Pepper spray takes some time to work, so you have to shove, hit and run fast in addition to using the spray. You should also be prepared for the risk of being hit by some of the spray, since it scatters and can be affected by wind.

Situational Awareness: The First Step to Using Any Self Defense Product

You need one critical thing to use a Taser gun, pepper spray or any other self defense product. That’s situational awareness: the ability to properly observe your surroundings, identify danger and understand your options for overcoming it. Without it, you won’t have an opportunity to protect yourself. You may not even see the danger coming.

Criminals rely on surprise; the kinds of duels you see in the movies almost never happen. Attackers don’t waste time threatening you first. They attack first, then threaten to exert more psychological leverage. The only exceptions are some bar fights and school fights, and in those cases, you can often get away simply by refusing to participate and removing yourself from the situation.

Situational awareness is one of the core concepts taught in policing and the military. You can notice things, but are you paying attention? Do you immediately think about your relationship with events around you? There are many ways of modeling this, including the OODA Loop in military aviation and SWOT Analysis in business and combat strategy. The average person can develop situational awareness by using a few simple principles.

Active Seeing and Listening: Many people walk down the street paying more attention to their inner monologues than the world around them. Instead, treat looking and listening as an active process. Look around you as you walk and think about what you see. Try to identify sounds. Don’t fixate on any one thing. As an avid hiker, I try to bring the sense of observation and exploration I feel on the trail with me around Atlanta, as it’s a very similar attitude.

Sense of Self and Others: You should develop a mental “landscape” where you pay attention to your place in the surrounding environment as well as where other people are. This includes paying attention to being observed. Are you being followed, or is someone just walking your way? How far away is from the nearest brightly lit location? Note that this is not paranoia or fear. Be cautious, but you should notice the positive as well as the negative. There are a lot of happy families and fun things out there. Notice them as well as potential sources of trouble.

Mental Rehearsal: You should mentally rehearse what you will do in case of danger. Do this as you’re out in the world. Where can you run? Would yelling for help do anything? How would you draw your pepper spray or a cell phone stun gun? Remember that you should assume a sudden attack without warning. If you do notice it coming, that’s a blessing. Visualize yourself resisting and surviving as soon as you make contact, and prevailing despite the assault. Again, if you do better that’s great, but be prepared for the worst.

Post-Situation Assessment: After the emergency, go through the previous three concepts. Look around to see if there’s more trouble. Assess yourself. After an assault you may have injuries you didn’t notice. Get away from other hazards and locate the nearest source of help. Even if you feel fine, do your civic duty and report the incident to the police. Even if they didn’t help you, your information helps them record and understand local crime trends.

Self Defense Products and Techniques for Aggressive Dogs

An aggressive dog is a really frightening thing to face. Dogs don’t follow human social rules, and stronger, pound for pound and are hard to predict. As social animals, dogs are deeply affected by how their owners treat them. That means that an innocent gesture can set a dog off because it’s reading signals into your behavior that it interprets as a threat or territorial challenge.

Don’t Approach Without Permission: Don’t go near a dog unless you have permission from its owner. Even then, you should approach slowly and calmly, without making eye contact. If you must touch the dog, be gentle and stay away from its face

Respect the Bark: Dogs bark for all kinds of reasons, but in most cases a dog you don’t know is barking to make you go away. The answer is simple: Go away! Don’t run, but calmly move away from the dog and the person, place or thing you feel the dog is defending.

Remain Calm: If you think a dog is considering an attack, the key is to avoid acting in a way that the dog can interpret as aggressive. Don’t make eye contact and keep your hands at your sides. Once the dog begins to lose interest, slowly back away and move on.

Don’t Run: Unless you’re an Olympic-level sprinter, any large dog can run faster than you. Worse, dogs are natural predators, so running arouses their hunting instincts, increasing their aggression level. Many larger breeds will instinctively attack your legs while you run, bringing you down. This is also a good reason not to try an kick an aggressive dog from a standing position.

Protect Your Face and Throat: Dogs tend to latch on and shake whatever they can grab. In the event of an attack use your arms to cover your face and throat, which are the vital areas most in danger from its teeth. Some experts counsel that you not try to release your arm from the dog’s grip, to avoid the dog from attacking more intensely or moving on to a more dangerous target. If you have a choice, let the dog get your non-dominant arm.

Get a Barrier: A big dog can cause serious lacerations and puncture wounds, so heavy clothing, a stick or a bag can help mitigate the damage. Don’t try to retrieve these objects.

About Fighting Back: If you’re concerned about encountering aggressive dogs it might be a good idea to buy pepper spray or a chemically similar dog spray. These are effective tools to ward off even large dogs, which are no more resistant to it than human beings. Aim for the eyes, not and mouth. If a dog latches on to you, many authorities advise you to remain calm, curl up and stay still until the dog loses interest. If the dog doesn’t calm down, however, you may have to hit back. Aim for sensitive parts of the face but always remember that your first priority is to protect your head and neck.

Self Defense and Property Crime: A Hot Issue in Atlanta

Atlantans have become particularly worried about crime in recent months, due to a reported rise in property crimes and a number of brutal murders, including the February 10^th killing of cancer researcher Dr. Eugenia Calle. While anecdotes from citizens give them impression that violent crime is on the rise, too, this is disputed by police statistics. Who’s right? For the purposes of this article the answer isn’t important, but one fact is indisputable: property crime and violent crime go hand in hand. In Dr. Calle’s case, it appears that her killer’s motive was money, as he took cash, jewelry and credit cards that he later used in a spending spree.

Preventing and protecting yourself from property crime is one of the fundamentals of self defense. Where do you start? The key is to understand how burglars, muggers and thieves pick their targets, and why they steal in the first place. Here are two landmarks that apply to a great many criminals:

Addiction: Drug addiction is one of the most common motives for serious property crimes. Addicts have trouble keeping jobs, have impaired decision making skills and have a regular need for substantial amounts of money to keep up their habits.

Impulsiveness: Despite movies that show us meticulous criminal capers, most thefts are decided on the spot when an opportunity arises, or out of a sudden impulse, combined with a memory of a likely target.

As a result, you can’t be sure that simply not resisting a theft will ensure your safety. Even though we associate the term “career criminal” with a cool, street-smart professional, the average example is a desperate drug addict who isn’t thinking things through rationally. I’m not saying this to get you to sympathize with him – I’m saying it because this is what makes him dangerous. If he decided he’s going to hit you with a hammer and take your wallet, that’s what he will do, even if you would have given it to him in the first place. That’s the mental “script” he’s thrown together to commit the crime.

In essence, there are two ways to protect yourself from property crimes, or at least keep them from escalating into a threat to your safety: prevention and response.

Prevention: These measures make it less likely you’ll be hit in the first place. Make sure your home’s exterior is brightly lit and you stick to a routine of locking your doors – and you have sturdy deadbolts. In terms of self defense products, home protection tools that send a message that your home is more trouble than it’s worth are highly recommended. These include alarms and door braces. Some thieves will give openings a test kick or shove; if your doors and windows don’t budge, or it looks like an alarm will go off, they may move on to easier pickings.

Response: If the crime proceeds despite your best efforts you need to keep it from transforming into a violent attack on you and your family. Obviously, escape if you can. Gun ownership is a personal choice with pros and cons; exercise your rights at your discretion, but do your research, and take an accredited safety course. As an alternative, you can buy a Taser Gun. The C-2 model is designed for personal protection. If you get a Taser or buy stun guns make sure you get familiar with drawing them quickly and store them safely.

How to Use a Stun Gun

If you buy stun guns from us we hope you never have to use them, but if you do, we hope you do a good job. This time around we’ll go over the basics of using a stun gun properly.

To make a stun gun work you need to understand the principles behind its operation. Contrary to what the name might suggest, a stun gun (or stun baton) doesn’t shoot anything or operate at a distance (get a C2 Taser for those capabilities). It’s a close range electroshock weapon. Current passes through two contact points. When pressed against a target, the current passes through it. This causes pain, muscle contractions and disorientation, though the exact effects depend on the area you hit on an attacker as ell as his clothing and specific physiology.

One you buy a stun gun your first job is to get familiar with the weapon. First of all, never touch the contact points, and don’t let the touch anyone or anything you don’t want to hurt. Second, practice testing the stun gun (a visible current will pass between the contacts) to ensure that it’s working properly. Third, learn how to rapidly disengage the safety. Finally, become comfortable carrying it in your hand with the safety engaged. Our cell phone stun guns let you do this without drawing unwelcome attention to yourself. It also gives you the element of surprise so that an attacker won’t pre-emptively disarm you.

When you need to use the stun gun, disengage the safety and press it against the attacker for one to five second – longer if there’s no reaction. Clothing can interfere with a stun gun’s operation and the current needs to pass between points on the attacker’s body, so don’t just lightly touch – push! Don’t “punch” with the stun gun, since it requires some time in contact with the target. A split second impact will have little to no effect.

The most effective targets for a stun gun are nerve clusters on the attacker’s torso. Many people recommend around the upper hip and below the rib cage. Used correctly, a stun gun will have some effect on almost any target area, however, and you can use it on an arm to persuade an attacker to let you go. Some authorities recommend working from the outside in, by using the stun gun to clear a grab before targeting the torso. The attacker may double up in pain, but remember that a stun gun doesn’t cause full paralysis or incapacitation. It gives you time to escape – that’s it. Use it to get away. If anything more severe happens to the attacker, consider that a lucky margin of safety. Count your blessings from a safe location.

The last importance piece of advice is to remember that a stun gun is not a shield! It’s usually not a great idea to wave it around to try and scare away an attacker. This just prepares them to defend themselves against the weapon and may inspire them to escalate the attack with their own weapon. If you feel threatened enough to let your attacker know you have it, you should actually use it.

Running Away for Self Defense: Five Tips

There are many situations where you can’t run away from an attacker in an emergency but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take the option of fleeing as seriously as learning a technique from a course or self defense DVD, or by carrying mace, pepper spray or a Taser gun. But this aspect of self-protection is often overlooked. Let’s go over five quick tips on running away effectively.

Survive the Attack

The most important part of self defense is to resist the initial assault. If you don’t think you can get away immediately, put all of your energy into responding to the attack until an opportunity opens. This should be the central goal of any self-defense plan. People talk about “fight or flight” as if you must choose between one and the other, but drop that attitude. Self protection is your goal. This is something we can’t give you specific advice for. Every situation is different. If you manage to free yourself and get a second or two of lead time, it’s time to go.

Be Ready to Run

If you’re going to run, make sure you can run. This tip has two components. First of all, even though you shouldn’t be a slave to your fear of attack, consider wearing comfortable clothing you can run in whenever it’s convenient to do so. Secondly, this is one of the many reasons you should try to stay in shape. Short range running is an anaerobic activity, meaning the action if brief and intense enough to not use oxygen. Longer running is aerobic. This site isn’t devoted to fitness advice but to be brief, make sure you stay physically active at something you enjoy, and consider taking a fitness class so that you can keep going when you need to.

Don’t Corner Yourself

TV and movies have brought us some terrible examples of how to get away. It may be dramatic to run for a rooftop, but think about it; you’re just cornering yourself. It’s smarter to seek the ground level. Unless you have a building with a safe room, hiding in a confined space probably isn’t a good idea unless you really have no other choice.

Make a Scene – Get Attention

Muggers and other street attackers don’t want to be caught, so you want to draw as much attention to your situation as possible. Dignity be damned; run to crowds and bright areas and yell for help! Once again, running though back alleys like you see on TV is usually a bad idea.

Decide When You Won’t Run – and What the Law Has to Say

Remember: If you have a clear plan you’re more likely to succeed. That means you should decide when you aren’t willing to run away. We think deciding to run should be your default choice, but everyone has situations where they’d rather stay put and resist. What if you have to protect a family member? Are you willing to flee your home? These are very personal choices, so don’t make them in haste. You should also become familiar with laws in your state that say whether or not you’re obligated to retreat. The Atlanta region falls under the jurisdiction of Georgia’s “stand your ground” law, so your legal duty to retreat is limited, but don’t let the law be your only guideline. In our opinion, your safety is more important than your dignity. After that, the choice is up to you.

Three Home Self Defense Tips

Let's get back to basics today. I'd like to talk about three tips that apply to practically everyone who's ever thought of what they might do if somebody invaded their home. When you read these you may just protest: "Well, that's just common sense!" Unfortunately, the news is full of people who didn't think of a particular bit of common sense at a critical moment. They panicked.

Think about that for a second. Your ability to make rational decisions is one of the first things that stops working properly in a crisis. This is why police and other emergency workers don't just improvise logical plans on the spot. Even experienced members of these professions need to account for the way the human mind reacts to extreme stress, so they train to do certain things instinctively after they and their trainers consider the kinds of problems they might encounter. You may not be training for law enforcement, but you can still use that principle by thinking, preparing and practicing. Apply that to the following:

1) Start With a Safe Home

If you run down the stairs, fall when a handrail collapses and break your neck, no training or tool will help you. If your own home is a danger fending off an attacker becomes much harder. Think about how your home would stand up to running and falling. Prepare by fixing that wobbly step or replacing the broken light fixture. On a related note, never unsafely store a firearm or other self defense tool in your home. You might think getting to it faster will give you an advantage, but in fact, you should be practicing to get to a safely stored weapon. The last thing you want is for a family member to injure themselves with your weapon - or for a criminal to injure you with it.

2) Make Your Home a Burglar's Last Choice

Think: The average crook is closer to what you see on COPS than CSI: not too bright, impulsive (many steal with little planning beforehand - they just run into an open door) and often motivated by drug addiction. They need to find a simple, fast entrance into a home where they won't be seen. Prepare: Make sure your home is well-lit and obviously has multiple locks, including a high-quality deadbolt. These guys are more likely to be using a boot than a lock pick to get in. B&E criminals also hate dogs, so if you love them, it might be in your best interest to get a big, lovable, crime-preventing mutt. Alarms and cameras can also serve as deterrents. These precautions aren't just safe for you, either. They prevent accidental entrance by someone who thinks your home is someplace else, such as a neighbor's home or party. In several cases, people have been shot when they walked into the wrong house and the owners assumed they were thieves.

3) Learn How to Break In and Out

Think: Do you know how to break in to your house? Many people do. The time and noise it takes to do this can be a useful indication of how secure your home is, assuming you pick the most vulnerable point to enter. Aside from the fact that it can be handy when you lose your keys, breaking in can help you understand how a criminal might look at your home. That's not all, though: Can you get out safely without using the main doors? You should already have some idea of this when planning what to do in case of a fire, but this can also help you and your family avoid contact with home invaders. Prepare and Practice: Walk through the route and think about situations where you'd get out that way.

Once you've gone over these three tips you'll have a much better idea of the self defense products you need. We offer an array of personal and home alarms in addition to safety flashlights and self-defense weapons. Remember: Self protection is more than you and an attacker. It's about the whole environment around you. The better you know it, the better prepared you'll be.

Cell Phone Stun Gun Demonstration

You may or may not know this, but Self Defense ATL is on Youtube! Check out our Self Defense Youtube Channel, where we continuously add new product demonstrations and ads.

Today I'd like to show you two videos that demonstrate the Pretender Cell Phone Stun Gun. This is one of our favorite products because it fits our self-defense philosophy to a "T." It's designed for average people to carry around in daily life and use when they need to protect themselves. It's for when it's time to go - not just for show.

Here's an ad of ours with a dramatization of the Pretender being used.



Note that the woman in the dramatization doesn't need to employ much strength and uses the stun gun intelligently - she gets away as quickly as possible. (The next step is to call the police. Remember that even if they don't get the assailant right away, the description and data can help your community down the road.)

The next video is a practical information session with Self Defense ATL's David Brackman.



Here, he talks about its application at close range as well as the integral LED light. This also brings home an often confusing point: Even though "stun gun" is the common name for electroshock weapons, most of them are designed for close range use. Fortunately, their effectiveness doesn't rely on physical strength, so movements that normally wouldn't work with an impact weapon like a baton (such as a pressing motion with no "windup") still delivers the weapon's effect.

The Pretender isn't the only cell phone stun gun model we carry. Our Cell Phone Stun Gun Review page compares the models in our catalog.

Want to buy Mace? Here's what you need to know.

Before pepper spray, there was Mace: a chemical self defense product that people referred to by name. They didn't really think about what was in it, assumed that it was some formula called "Mace," or that it was an acronym for some special combination of chemicals. Now that people buy pepper spray as a standard chemical self defense tool, some people ask: "What happened to good old Mace?"

In fact, Mace is a brand name owned by Mace Security International, and has attached its name to an evolving line of self defense and animal repellent products. The old Mace was 1% CN tear gas dissolved in a mix of chemicals. CN gas is . . . not fun. It was originally developed during the First and Second World Wars and used in Vietnam. It's a lachrymatory agent (meaning that it causes tears) and irritant prone to inflicting toxic effects on susceptible individuals.

Most modern Mace is actually pepper spray: a substance that, when used properly, has more stable, predictable effects while maintaining excellent "stopping power" against most aggressors. We sell it as a separate category because the Mace brand is synonymous with quality. The company has excellent manufacturing standards and excels at making pepper spray (and its sticky cousin, pepper gel) that's easy to use. The company leads the way in designing ergonomic delivery systems - that means their sprays are easy to hold and aim. You can also buy dog repellent under the Mace brand that has the same great characteristics. And if you want a bit more "punch," Mace Triple Action Spray combines pepper spray, the old-style CN gas and dye to mark an assailant, making later pickup by the police much easier.

Like all sprays and other self defense products, you should check on local laws to make sure you buy products permissible under state law. Don't go looking for laws about "mace," since this can be misleading - it might refer to CN and other tear gasses. The laws surrounding pepper sprays are the same laws that affect Mace pepper spray products, so buy mace under the same advice you would use to buy pepper spray. Check out our page on pepper spray laws for a quick guide. If you still have questions, contact local law enforcement - they'd rather refer you to an answer than arrest you for making an ill-informed choice.