Don't Say 'I've Got a Gun!' - Massad Ayoob examines the Philando Castile case - Critical Mas Ep 25

While carrying a weapon, a routine traffic stop can turn deadly if you don't know what to say. Just look at the case of Philando Castile in Minnesota. Massad Ayoob has experience on both sides of a traffic stop. Mas explains why officer Jeronimo Yanez was acquitted of all charges. He examines all the mistakes that Mr. Castile made that cost him his life. Understanding the correct terminology and proper movements during a traffic stop could keep you alive.

Dash cam footage of the fatal shooting of Philando Castile

Critical Mas(s) with Massad Ayoob is a show that provides expert analysis over a wide range of contemporaneous topics related to civilian and law enforcement self defense, the use of force, and second amendment issues, provided by a renowned and established author with a career spanning decades in training law enforcement officers and the public at large, who is frequently called upon to provide expert witness testimony.

ABOUT MASSAD AYOOB:
Massad Ayoob has been handgun editor of GUNS magazine and law enforcement columnist for AMERICAN HANDGUNNER since the 1970s, and has published thousands of articles in gun magazines, martial arts publications, and law enforcement journals. He is the author of some twenty books on firearms, self-defense, and related topics, including “In the Gravest Extreme” and “Deadly Force,” widely considered to be authoritative texts on the topic of the use of lethal force.

The winner of the Outstanding American Handgunner of the Year Award in 1998, Mas has won several state and regional handgun shooting championships. Ayoob was the first person to earn the title of Five Gun Master in the International Defensive Pistol Association. He is the current President of the Second Amendment Foundation. He served 19 years as chair of the Firearms Committee of the American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers, and several years as a member of the Advisory Board of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association. In addition to teaching for those groups, he has also taught
for the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors and the International Homicide Investigators seminars.

Mas has received judicial recognition as an expert witness for the courts in weapons and shooting cases since 1979, and served as a fully sworn and empowered, part time police officer for 43 years, mostly at supervisor rank. Ayoob founded the Lethal Force Institute in 1981 and served as its director until 2009, and now trains through Massad Ayoob Group. He has
appeared on CLE-TV delivering continuing legal education for attorneys, through the American Law Institute and American Bar Association, and has been retained to train attorneys to handle deadly force cases through the Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network. Ayoob served for two
years as co-vice chair of the Forensic Evidence Committee of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He also appeared in each episode of Personal Defense TV (Sportsman’s Channel).

0:00 - Review of what to do video
1:00 - Philando Castile traffic stop
2:40 - What the officer saw
3:10 - The Weapon
4:15 - Reaching for his wallet?
4:40 - Smell of Marijuana
5:30 - Why Jeronimo Yanez was acquitted
5:50 - Us vs Them
7:00 - The lesson to learn

#MassadAyoob #WilsonCombat #CriticalMas

[gordonbodzin]

Until recently here in Ohio, we had a duty to notify. The one time I was stopped while carrying, I told the officer I was carrying. He said, “if you don’t take yours out, I won’t take mine out.”

[dlam]

He didn't say "I have a gun". He said. "Sir I have to tell you I do have a firearm on me" in a very calm voice. the cop seemed calm at first and then freaked out.

[figmojustfigmo]

Just watched the dashcam vid for the first time. The victim did not say “I HAVE A GUN!”. He politely said “Sir, I have to tell you I have a firearm on me”.  Pretty big difference there.

Also - while I agree that reaching for his pockets (for whatever) was a move that could be considered threatening - it was not an imminent threat. Especially when combined with the knowledge that the suspect had just voluntarily and politely notified the officer that he was carrying.  

Yes. The officer was justified to draw his weapon at that point and command the suspect to keep his hands visible. But to start pulling the trigger? No. In my mind - he would have to see that suspect’s weapon actually being drawn to justify pulling that trigger.

Mind you, at this point the officer had the drop on the suspect - having already pulled his weapon first. So long as the suspect’s weapon remained holstered - there was no imminent threat. Regardless of what the hands were doing.

Personally, I do not believe this was a good shoot.

[cesarramirez]

Yes...saying "I have a gun" can sound threatening. But that is not what he said. He calmly and respectfully said, "sir, I do have to tell you, I have a firearm on me", which doesn't sound threatening at all. Therfore with all due respect, due to such a drastic misquoting of what Mr Castile actually said, it really puts into question the rest of your assessment and opinion on the matter.

[Alleged_Mercenary]

"Officer I have a permit to carry and I am carrying tell me what you want me to do" Has worked for me every time.

[stevenroach]

I live in the state of Georgia and currently, there is no requirement to inform an officer of the law that I am carrying or that I have a permit. Also, our state legislature has recently done away with the permit requirement for carrying concealed. So, what I've gleaned from this video is that in a traffic stop, it is a good idea to have my necessary documentation (license and registration) already out where it is visible and to have both hands on my steering wheel. After that, I will use my discretion as to whether or not I should inform an officer of my carry status in a non-threatening tone (not "I've got a gun") and ask for instruction on how to proceed.

[paulmiller]

The area that shooting took place was my old stomping grounds when I was a kid. I didn't have anybody tell me this but I figured it out myself, when the party lights come on whether you're carrying or not you keep your hands glued firmly to the steering wheel.when the officer walks up. In my case I always turn the dome light on and roll all down the windows. Because it's always seems to happen at night. While my hands are firmly glued to the steering wheel if I am carrying I inform the officer at that time.. every time I have been pulled over while carrying I walked away with a warning or nothing at All the police seem to appreciate the fact that I'm up front and I'm trying to do whatever I can to make sure the situation does not escalate

[chriscosby]

I was stopped for speeding about 6 months ago, I told the officer in a calm manner that I had a firearm. He told me that he was OK with that. I was calm and respectful and was given a warning to slow down. I think a calm demeanor goes a long way when dealing with law enforcement.

[jcnikoley]

I recall having seen this video a long time ago, and your take on it just didn’t seem right so I had to watch it again. “Sir I have to tell you I have a firearm on me”, at which point it immediately escalated. The officer was afraid of his own shadow and that is why this person is dead. You should be making a video for the officers how to better handle this. The officer may have been acquitted of murder, but that doesn’t mean he did everything right.

[wdeancole]

Mr. Ayoob, Thank you very much for your concern and efforts to educate the public. Your thoughts are representative of a common sense approach. Many of the subjects of your presentations are topics that need to be considered before there is an actual requirement to respond to the circumstances in question. Thank you again, DC

[In_Gun_We_Trust]

In my state there is no duty to inform, so I don't. The fact that I have a CHL comes up when an officer runs my driver's license. I've never been asked if I'm carrying, but I do have the impression that I'm treated more respectfully because I've been vetted as "good citizen" through being a CHL holder.

[hatchetjack]

Since you wrote, " In The Gravest Extreme ", you have been a wealth of knowledge, for the armed citizen and Law Enforcement, alike. Mr. Ayoob's tutorials should be included in every CCW class!

[carlosenriquez]

My one time this happened, I was the passenger and the firearm was in the glove box, my state does not have a requirement to advise, but I consider it best practice what I said was " I need to inform you that I have a concealed pistol license and the firearm is in the glove box, what would you like me to do" his response was to leave it where it was and he thanked me for informing him after issuing the traffic warning, did not ask for my license or my CPL, everyone was safe and happy.

[schwedr]

Thank you for good solid teachings on how to and how not to handle situations that can make all the difference in the world.

[mlasch]

Mr Ayoob, I was very much impressed with your teachings. My first exposure to your wisdom was likely in shooting magazine articles, followed by my purchase of self defense books of yours. The things that stick with me in your presentations is the calm, sensible manner you present proven practices on how to stay alive, stay within the law etc. Many people will benefit from how you show the best ways to be prepared for emergency events before they happen so we how we respond leaves us with practiced and rehearsed procedures to give us our best chances for survival should the needs arise.

[jamesa.]

Thank you for this. I have been through a few license checks and was a passenger in a car involved in a minor traffic accident. Identifying myself as a CCW permit holder and following the Officer's instructions got me through each encounter with no negativity what so ever. One officer even joked with me and said he wanted me for his backup. So these people who try to claim it's a race issue that cause tragedies like this miss the point. If you communicate and follow instructions and make no threatening moves or comments, things go just fine.

[chuckappel]

"Sir, I have to tell you, I do have a firearm on me."

[Sagittariustoo]

Massad, I have owned all your books on self protection for years and love hearing about your experiences on video too.
You're the best! 👍🏻

[MatthewSmith-wvfi]

I believe I've said it before...but, thank you, Sir.

I may not agree with you on everything you say, but I am super thrilled you are prepared to talk about it and express your point of view so articulately.

[JP-ecrl]

I won't even have a beer with a steak dinner out because I value my gun rights over having a beer.
That being said it's a shame that our society has become so uptight in my lifetime that we've decayed to this point.
I don't know what happened in that shooting but I carried a loaded SAW for a year in Iraq, in and around Baghdad and other hostile cities where everyone I encountered I automatically presumed was hostile. I still didn't go around lighting people up.
I've witnessed other soldiers panic-fire on a crowd of people because they didn't have line of sight when other troops down the line were firing over that crowd at a threat behind it, down the street. Some service members have cooler heads than others. I suspect police officers are no different.
In Iraq we couldn't deny civilians the right to carry fully automatic AK-47s until we had justifiable cause to deny them the right to live.
They had to be pointing the weapon at someone before we could shoot them.
Those were the ROE once major combat was declared ended.
Perhaps our society has too many rules for it's private citizens and not enough for those who are considered to be of elite status and supposed to be public servants? Just a thought.