"Guys with the guns are the worst. You never know what they are going to do."

You had no choice.


By now we all have heard about the store owner who had to use deadly force to protect himself and his employees from 4 robbers. The result was two dead robbers and two wounded robbers.




For more details go the links below.

2 Dead, 2 Injured: Harlem Biz Owner Shoots Suspected Robbers

Harlem Shop Owner On Shooting Robbers: "This Is Really Awful"

I strongly concur with Ray Kelly , Mr. Augusto was completely justifed in his actions. He was literally put in a position where it was himself and his employees or the robbers.

However, Gus takes no pleasure in the results.

"How would you feel? This is terrible. This is really awful. I can't imagine it. Some young kids are dead because they're stupid."

Awhile back I did an entry on firearms.

Crime: There is more to it than pulling the trigger.

What I find ironic is that many aspects of what I blogged about are issues that Mr. Augusto are dealing with and took the proper actions in acquiring and using his shotgun.


If you look at the comments I got reamed pretty badly for it. And I responded to those comments with this entry.

I Love You Man!



I want to get this very clear.

I DO NOT BELIEVE IN GUN CONTROL NOR DO I BELIEVE IN ANTI-GUN CONTROL.

I BELIEVE IN GUN SAFETY.

What is Gun Safety? In my opinion it is that all gun owners should be properly trained in the use of a firearm. They should also be educated in the laws pertaining to gun ownership, the psychological, emotional and mental trauma associated with using a firearm in self defense situation. They should also be aware of how to protect their finances in case the hostile parties involved with the situation decide to pursue legal action against them.

Whether a gun owner owns a .38 snub nose or a has a garage full of M-60s is their business. But they need to understand the responsibilities they are undertaking by owning a gun.

I am not a gun expert nor am I lawyer but in my opinion this was a text book righteous shoot. The hostile party entered his premise with the intention of causing harm. He pleaded for them to leave and gave them the option to walk away. They chose to escalate it by attacking one of his employees. His only response was to shoot.

Mr. Augusto was completely in the right for the following reasons.

1. The robbers announced and displayed their intention that they were committing a crime. They weren't just mouthing off, they were armed and made it clear they wanted rob the store.

2. The robbers entered Mr. Augusto's store when he shot them. Mr. Augusto did not shoot them outside his store. If he had done that, he would have been in the same jam as Mr. White.

3. Mr. Augusto actually asked them to leave. Even though they were brandishing a weapon, he would have been justified to whip his shotgun and start blasting.

4. He had a permit for his shotgun. Unlike Mr. White, Gus had a legal firearm.

5. Gus shot three times and only one of the robbers was armed. This was not excessive, in fact it was necessary. Only one gun was displayed, but there was a possibility that the others were armed but were concealing their weapons. Gus needed to be thorough.

From the all of the interviews I read, Gus had no desire to fire his weapon and was heart broken over what occurred. In fact he stated that he knows how it feels to lose a loved one to firearms because his son took his own life with a gun.

What also concerns me is that the family members of the robbers will decide to pursue legal action against Gus despite the fact this was a legal shoot and their boys were the ones at fault. I think it is highly unlikely this will occur because the backlash would be huge however it is a possibility so I hope Gus has consulted a lawyer in protecting his finances.

I think Winchester's sales have gone through the roof because the shotgun used was about 20 years old and probably the shells were the same age. If this is not the greatest advertisement for reliability, I don't know what is.

Shotguns are excellent firearms because you do not need to aim, all you have to do is point in the general direction of your target and the spread will hit them. Sometimes you do not even need to use it.



The pump action sound alone is enough to make criminals turn and walk away because there is no sound like it in the world.

There are some positive aspects to this incident. First of all criminals are now going to think twice about robbing stores because they have no idea what might be hiding behind the counter. Business owners, particularly those that deal with cash, will now have a better idea how to protect themselves and following the law in the use of deadly force.

In terms of real estate, that block has now become the safest block in Manhattan. Because of the reputation alone, no one will be stupid enough to f**k around in that area.

As for the robbers, I have no sympathy for them. These idiots were fully aware of what they were doing, they were given an out without any bloodshed and when they decided otherwise, their fates were sealed. I feel horrible for their families, because nobody wants that for their kin. But those robbers made the decision to walk the path of violence.