What should I do if someone is chasing me and trying to shoot me?: originally appeared on Quora: The best answer to any question. Ask a question, get a great answer. Learn from experts and access insider knowledge. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.
Answer by Justin Freeman, Former Patrol Officer
If you're on foot, you're obviously going to be running, but you need to do so smartly.
- Your instinct will be to run directly away from the attacker, since a direct line is the shortest; however, you need to fight this tendency and make random cuts in your flight pattern. A moving target is fairly hard to hit, but if you're running in a straight line it's much easier, since you only have to correct one aspect of the aim if you miss.
Then, a bolt action rifle. Most will have scopes as shown below, but you're frankly quite unlikely to be getting shot at with this - and if you are, the shooter is likely stationary, anyway:
Then, a pistol, which is by far the most likely weapon you'll be fleeing. Note the cracking report. This is a Glock 17 9mm, which is what I carried on the street:
And then, of course, we all know what automatic weapons look and sound like. If you're personally getting chased by someone with an automatic rifle, you probably don't need any advice from me.
- As police arrive, try to find a place to keep your head down, and follow dispatch's directions regarding what to do from this point.
If you're in a vehicle, this is probably going to be an easier process:
- In the case of an active shooter in their own car chasing you, drive as quickly as you safely can to a police station as you dial 911. I emphasize safely, because if you wreck out you're going to be stuck in an immobilized metal box while your attacker quickly closes distance.
Obviously, this will be a unique and dynamic situation. You're usually going to know, based on the situation, what you need to do to stay as safe as possible; if you can do this for 1-3 minutes (probably the top end of Code Three response time in a metropolitan area), you should have a police officer between you and your attacker.