Passing the Torch
Why do things go bump in the night? Why do werewolves change at the full moon? Why are vampires allergic to sunlight? The short answer is it’s easier to do evil deeds after nightfall. By the time the sun is completely down, most people are tired, relaxed, full-bellied from dinner, and getting ready for bed. There’s less light, generally less traffic (both vehicle and pedestrian), and it’s colder. If you have ill intentions, you’re unlikely to be seen and even less likely to be paid attention to. According to an article published by The Sleep Judge, based on 2017 crime reports from several selected cities, more than half of violent crimes occur at nighttime. We gleaned the following highlights from their data:
- 65 percent of murders and nonnegligent manslaughters (for the cities polled) occurred at night, with a peak hour of 9 p.m.
- 59 percent of rapes and sexual assaults occurred at night, with a peak hour of 12 a.m.
- Robbery, motor vehicle theft, and assault all have occurrence rates of 50 percent or greater at night, sharing a peak hour of 8 p.m.
The source article goes into more depth, but these tidbits give us some great context to discuss the importance of low light tactics. To get ourselves properly “enlightened” on the topic, we took a two-day low-light shoot-house course taught jointly by Don Edwards of Greenline Tactical and John Dufresne of Kinetic Consulting. Both are veterans of the 75th Ranger Regiment, and their combined backgrounds include executive protection, professional mentor/consulting experience, as well as time spent in Special Forces and Asymmetric Warfare Group. While they both teach a number of classes separately, they joined forces to teach a weekend-long class that dealt specifically with the use of white lights in enclosed spaces for self-defense and duty purposes.
Point and Click
Buying a capable
