When Seconds Count, Civilians Fire Back: Do Armed Citizens Really Stop Mass Shootings?
Greenwood Park Mall. July 2022.
A 22-year-old named Eli Dicken draws from concealment, closes the distance, and neutralizes an active shooter — all within 15 seconds of the first round fired. He engages from over 40 yards. He scores 8 out of 10 hits. He does what trained officers hope to do. And he does it while shopping with his girlfriend.
But here’s the part they don’t want to say out loud:
He wasn’t law enforcement. He wasn’t military. He was a civilian with a pistol and a commitment to be ready.
So let’s kill the question once and for all:
Do armed civilians actually stop mass shootings?
Yes. And not just once. Not by accident. And not as a fluke.
The Reality the Headlines Ignore
The FBI’s 2022 report lists 13 cases where armed citizens stopped active shooters. That’s 13 out of 50 incidents — over 25%. Now pause. Consider that:
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These are just the ones that made the FBI’s narrow definition of “active shooter.”
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They exclude defensive gun uses where the threat never escalated to a shooting.
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And they certainly don’t count the stories that didn’t fit a tidy narrative.
The numbers are almost certainly underreported.
Because when a civilian gets it right — especially with a gun — the media buries it or reframes it.
When Law Enforcement Isn’t Fast Enough
Here’s a truth every cop knows but few will say at the podium:
We don’t get there in time.
The average response time to an active shooter? 5–11 minutes.
The average duration of a mass shooting? Under 6 minutes.
You do the math.
In Uvalde, they waited over an hour.
In Sutherland Springs, it was a neighbor — not the police — who engaged the shooter.
In White Settlement, Texas, it was Jack Wilson, a 71-year-old firearms instructor, who dropped the killer with a single round to the head. Two seconds. One shot. A civilian, again.
So Why the Reluctance to Say It?
Because admitting that armed citizens are part of the solution is politically radioactive. It disrupts the preferred narrative. It means we have to trust ordinary Americans — not just institutions — with extraordinary responsibility.
And that terrifies people who live behind security gates and send others into danger for them.
But those of us who train civilians know better.
We know the veterans, the off-duty officers, the prepared dads and moms who carry not out of paranoia — but purpose.
The Hard Part Isn’t the Gun — It’s the Training
Let’s be honest: not every armed civilian is ready.
Owning a gun doesn’t make you capable. Drawing from concealment under pressure, assessing your backdrop, firing accurate rounds under stress — that takes discipline.
And that’s where our focus should be:
Not on debating the right to carry — that ship sailed — but on ensuring those who carry are ready to act.
Prepared. Proficient. Morally grounded. Legally aware.
That’s what I teach. And that’s what separates the guy who hits from 40 yards under pressure… from the one who fumbles his draw and gets someone hurt.
Final Word: When Evil Shows Up, Who Do You Want Nearby?
Another headline will come. Another school, church, store. The question isn’t “if” — it’s “who.”
Who will act before the sirens arrive?
Who will fight before the perimeter is secured?
Who will be ready, because they trained like lives depended on it?
If you’re carrying a gun for defense, this article isn’t about theory.
It’s about you.
Train harder. Think faster. And when the day comes — if it ever does — be ready to end it before it begins.
👊 This isn’t about politics. It’s about pressure. Precision. Performance.
If you carry, make it count.
If you teach, raise the standard.
If you doubt civilians… review the footage.
— Herfel Torres
Instructor | Tactical Educator | Range Commander
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Join our advanced civilian response workshops.
We don’t train for theory. We train for Greenwood moments.
