Several years ago, I had three teeth extracted at the same time, and once the anesthesia wore off, I had the mother of all teeth aches. It was late in the evening, but I finally found a pharmacy that could fill the prescription the doctor phoned in for me. Unfortunately, the pharmacy was located in a bad part of town. I drove down to the pharmacy, picked up my prescription, and was walking towards my car when I noticed a group of about 5 urban youths approaching me. They were between me and my car, and before I could turn around and retreat to the pharmacy, I heard the locks on the pharmacy door clicking shut, and a glance over my shoulder showed the pharmacist lowering the shade and turning off the lights.

I was mad, scared and in pain. Fortunately, I was also armed. I flipped back the corner of my windbreaker and put my hand on the butt of my Colt's Government Model. This caused 2 of the youths to stop and give me the shy "we don't want none" look. Their companions continued to walk towards me, and the guy in the middle started saying "No comprende - no understand". I then drew my pistol and went to a low ready position and said "You boys habla .45?" That caused them to stop, and I said "Look guys, I'm sick and I'm just passing through here. If y'all would let me leave in peace, you'll never see me here again." The guy in the middle thought about it for a second, and said "You're okay, you get a pass since you're a civilian".

I left and went home without incident. A few days later, I was talking to a friend of mine who was a LEO, and I told him what had happened. He told me that I had done exactly the right thing, and that if I had tried to be a tough guy, the situation more than likely would have degenerated very quickly.

Regards,

Dave