A violent Crime every 17 seconds! A woman raped every 45 seconds in the United States! One in every four women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. 15% of domestic violence victims are men.

Police Officers, the military and a few select civilians are trained to carry and use firearms. These fine people are trained to recognize the need for lethal intervention and when required will not hesitate. This training and lack of hesitation is what keeps them safe, but carries a heavy burden when used. The killing of another human being is not something that is easy to live with. For that reason non-lethal defense weapons are legal in all states. Not all weapons are legal in every state, but every state has some form of non-lethal defense weapon legal for the average citizen. These weapons consist of TASERS©, Stun Guns, and variants of Pepper Spray or MACE©.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics some crime is declining, but these numbers change from day to day and city to city. Economy, environment and weather, as well as personal situations all have an effect. Some of these statistics are as follows:

– 17 out of every 1000 people will be involved in a violent crime.

– 124 out of every 1000 households will incur a property crime.

– 1.4 of every 1000 violent crimes (8%) will include a firearm.

– 70% of all violent crimes against women were committed by a known offender, 26% by an intimate offender.

– 45% of all violent crimes against men were committed by a known offender, 5% by an intimate offender.

– Approximately 40% of violent crimes were reported to police, and 50% of property crimes were reported to police.

Everybody is a possible victim, whether you are a man, woman or child. You can be abducted, beaten, raped or robbed inside your home, workplace on the street or in your car. If this shocks you, good, because everybody should know that they could be a victim. Most of us take normal precautions to secure our home, and when we travel outside of our house. We lock our doors, don’t talk to strangers, and keep in contact with friends and relatives. Somehow that isn’t always enough. Arming every citizen and giving them a “carry permit” is not the answer either. The average adult does not want to bring lethal harm on another individual. Even in a fit of rage an untrained person will hesitate before firing a weapon at an attacker. Weapons in untrained hands can be more dangerous than no weapon at all.

What do we do? First and foremost is to prevent the crime from happening. Secondly we must report all crimes, remembering you were the victim, so you have nothing to be ashamed of. Reporting all crimes give the law enforcement agencies a better data base to work from. Also with more crimes reported, more funding will be available for increases in Police Officers and the tools they need. Finally carry a weapon that can be used without hesitation, as it is not lethal.

Preventing crime is everybody’s responsibility. Get to know your neighbors and the people you work with. Communicate anything suspicious and watch each other’s property. Protect your house with proper surveillance cameras, dead bolt locks, door braces and home security alarms. You can set up Camera surveillance, home alarms and new locks on your home all for $1200 to $3500, and usually recover some of this in reduced insurance costs. Travel when possible through safe neighborhoods on known roads with your doors locked and walk in well lite areas. Carry protective self-defense weapons such as pepper spray a stun gun or TASER©. These weapons are relatively inexpensive, especially when they protect you from rape or injury.

Finally whether you are involved or suspect a violent crime about to happen, your best defense is to run away and call the police. If you use pepper Spray or a stun device, after you have used it, run away. Do not try to hang around to get identification or tie the suspect up, as there may be an accomplice nearby. The effects of non-lethal pepper spray, stun guns or a TASER© only last for a while, so use that time to escape. Be smart, be safe!

Doug Harper is a former Marine, Drug and Transport Officer and Airline Pilot. Doug retired from the airlines in 2011 and opened Sharper Safety to sell video surveillance equipment and accessories. http://www.sharpersafety.com Sharper Defense was created to sell non-lethal defense products. http://www.sharperdefense.com.

Doug Harper is a former Marine, Drug and Transport Officer and Airline Pilot. Doug retired from the airlines in 2011 and opened Sharper Safety to sell video surveillance equipment and accessories. http://www.sharpersafety.com Sharper Defense was created to sell non-lethal defense products. http://www.sharperdefense.com.

Author Bio: Doug Harper is a former Marine, Drug and Transport Officer and Airline Pilot. Doug retired from the airlines in 2011 and opened Sharper Safety to sell video surveillance equipment and accessories. http://www.sharpersafety.com Sharper Defense was created to sell non-lethal defense products. http://www.sharperdefense.com.

Category: Society
Keywords: mace spray, oc spray, to buy pepper spray, self-defense weapons, Taser guns, stun gun