It isn’t a secret that I am a strong advocate of legal armed self defense.  It is obviously the only way that the most vulnerable members of our society will be able to fend off violent criminal attack.

And, of course, those of us who have yet to reach that most vulnerable stage of our lives can use all the help we can get!

People of a similar conviction do what they can to prepare for that most terrible of situations, when lives are on the line and there is only the time between ticks of a second to act.  They do this by training for that moment, usually by going to the shooting range as often as possible.

If they have the money, they upgrade their gear to something that might just give them an edge against armed attackers.

If they have even more money, and if they are smart, they attend firearm training available to civilians.

These are nothing more than common sense precautions, but that pretty much seems to be about as far as most people are willing to go.  They get as ready as they can to protect themselves and other innocent lives, but then they just sort of stop thinking about it.  They want to continue living after a violent criminal attack, but they don’t consider what they have to do when the dust settle and the bullets stop flying.

What am I talking about?  What will someone who employs lethal force need when lethal force is no longer needed?

Well, just off the top of my head …

Did I, as someone who never attended law school or passed the bar exam, ever give my students legal advice?  I sure did!  I said that they should never, ever talk to the police after they were involved in a shooting unless they had a lawyer by their side.

I also told them to find the name and number of a local defense attorney, and to keep the phone number of the lawyer with them every second they carried their defensive firearm.  I thought it was pretty good advice, all in all.

But how to pay for the legal eagle?  Most of my students were of extremely limited financial means, and they wouldn’t be able to afford a private attorney.  In such a situation, the best they could hope for if charged with a crime was someone a bit low on the attorney pecking order.

(You can read these comics for free at this site.)

Public defenders are only available for those charged with a criminal offense.  If sued in civil court, my students would be on their own.

This has been a worry of my own, although I have yet to find myself in a situation where lethal force was necessary.  (Thank Goodness!)  But lucky so far doesn’t mean lucky forever.  My luck can change at any time, just like if could for any one of my dear readers scanning these words right now.

That was why I was very interested about a special program available only in my new home state of Texas.  It is insurance which covers the legal expenses for an active defense.

The program will defend the legal use of defensive firearms in both civil and criminal court, and they have an emergency hotline where an attorney is always standing by.  Optional coverage is available to cover bail bonds, the expense of expert witnesses to testify for the defense, and expanded coverage in case one has to travel outside of Texas for some reason.  One can even include family members who are minor children, in case they are forced to use a firearm to defend themselves against home invaders.

Is it worth the money?  I won’t know for sure unless I am forced to rely on the service, and I hope that never happens!

So what about all of you who live in states other than Texas?  What advice can I give all of you?

Move!