SEAL Survival Guide (43 page)
Read SEAL Survival Guide Online
Authors: Cade Courtley
2. Keep looking forward and be aware of your surroundings. Your instincts may tell you to look behind to see how far away or close your pursuer is. This is not a track-and-field event, with a ribbon as a prize. Looking back not only will slow you down but will increase your chances of falling over an upcoming obstacle or getting run over by a car. Keep your eyes ahead and your mind focused on what’s directly before you, not what’s behind.
3. Yell loudly and shout for help as you are running. Just make sure you are not doing it so much that it slows your pace. Your lungs and legs need this oxygen to keep you moving. If your pursuer is an attacker, you might be able to alert the police or get people to see your plight and intervene.
4. Make last-minute changes in direction (easier if you know the area you are in). For example, if you know of an open-ended
alley ahead, make it seem as if you are running straight, then dodge suddenly, without indicating that you will make an abrupt turn.
5. Keep alert to the environment, and be particularly observant of objects or items in your path, such as trash cans, which you could use as obstacles to slow your pursuer. If you do not know the area, be alert not to turn onto streets or alleys that could be dead ends.
6. Run toward large crowds or public places where there will likely be people, such as malls or bus stations. You want to attract witnesses, since most attackers don’t want to be seen.
7. If you are in a wooded area, look for concealment, since your pursuer could be in as good or better physical condition than you, and you can only outrun him for so long.
8. If your pursuer doesn’t care about being rolled up, when you make it to a public place, try to quickly blend in. You want to get lost in the crowd by taking off your jacket, for example, or “borrowing” a pair of sunglasses from a passerby.
In
The Fugitive,
Harrison Ford presented a dozen ways to lose pursuers, with multiple changes in his evasion tactics. At one point he borrowed a stranger’s coat, threw on a green hat, and joined a crowd of proud Irishmen as part of Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day parade, becoming invisible in a sea of green.
GANG VIOLENCE
Law enforcement monitors the activities of the nearly 25,000 gangs in the United States, which currently have an approximate membership of more than 950,000 in active status. Nearly all gangs are territorial and, in many instances, much more ruthless than other groups of organized crime. In general, U.S. gangs’ primary business is illegal drugs. Most gang violence is directed toward other gangs, but there is little regard for non–gang members caught in the crossfire. Due to gang activity, homicide is the leading cause of death among people aged fifteen to twenty-four in U.S. urban areas. For example, in 2009, eight children and teens were killed in gang-related drive-by shootings in Chicago during one twenty-four-hour period.
In Washington, D.C., in April 2002, a woman and her boyfriend were driving to dinner and communicating in sign language when another car, carrying gang members, stopped at the same traffic light. The gang thought the woman was flashing a rival gang’s signs and shot her in the face. Neither the woman nor her boyfriend, both of whom were deaf, was a gang member.
Wrong Place, Wrong Time
In general, it’s being in the wrong place at the wrong time that increases your odds of having a confrontation with gangs. Most homicides do not occur due to the random violence of a single angry stranger. In fact, most murders are committed by someone the victim knows. When random acts of violence do occur, however, they are often committed by groups or gangs. So if you find yourself in an area where gang activity is noted, your best course of action is to
avoid
and
evacuate
. If you plan to drive in a city you are unfamiliar with, it should be part of your pre-mission planning to know where the areas with the highest crime rates are located and avoid them.
In 2010, a couple visiting Los Angeles unknowingly drove into a part of town controlled by gangs. They had forgotten to turn the rental car’s headlights on, and gang members, fearing an attack by rivals, ran up to the car and fired ten rounds through the windshield.
Keep Your Distance and De-escalate
If you find yourself in a situation where interaction is inevitable, be agreeable and de-escalate. “Kiss my ass” is not de-escalation and will be taken as a threat, or
disrespect,
and considered a challenge. The very foundation of gang mentality is respect and intimidation. In this situation, you really want to be what we commonly call “the gray man” (see also “Torture and Being Held Hostage,”
page 280
, and “Trouble in a Foreign Country,”
page 286
). You must present yourself as someone merely passing through, not knowing or caring who these people are or what they are doing. Don’t try to buddy up, pretending you know gang signs or gang language, either. Likewise, you do not want to show fear or weakness, for any of the above reactions will cause immediate confrontation.