Les Jones

Guns > Interviews With Gunfight Survivors

Dave Spaulding interviewed more than 200 people who had been in gunfights and sums up their experiences. Excerpts below.

On shooting and being shot:

Interestingly, few people remember taking notice of any immediate effects of their bullet strikes. Some reported that they expected small chest explosions like they saw in the movies and were surprised when that did not happen. Some recall the suspect's shirt puckering or moving, but most have no recollection of any bullet strikes. Most of the people I spoke with remember shooting and then their opponent "just not being there any more." At the same time, gunfight survivors who are shot vary greatly in their recollection of what happened when they were shot. People, who are shot in the leg, unless a bone is hit, take less notice than other areas of the body that are hit. People who are shot in the chest remember being slammed or being punched at the time. How they handled the impact seems to fall totally on how much anger and resolve they felt at the time they were shot. Doctors and emergency medical technicians have told me over the years that if you are not killed instantly by a gun shot wound (a vital organ being hit) or bleed out in a few very short moments, you probably will not die from your wound.

And on physiological reaction:

The various phases of body alarm reaction that have been discussed over the years such as tunnel vision, slow motion movement, loss of digital dexterity and the like, were all recalled by the subjects interviewed. None of the people I spoke with remember suffering all phases, but everyone remembers suffering at least one of the sensations listed under the category of body alarm reaction. Those that understood what was happening to them better handled the sensation during the encounter versus the people who did not. Without a doubt, forewarned is forearmed.

Some of the other reactions I've read about that aren't mentioned in the article are apparently pretty common for people who are in a gunfight: not remembering the sound of the gunshots, being unable to acurately remember how long events took, and peeing on one's self. Also, you probably won't be able to remember how many shots you fired, so reload as soon as you get the chance.