The Armed Citizen® Feb. 28, 2025

by
posted on February 28, 2025
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
The Armed Citizen

Armed Citizen® Today

A 24-year-old resident of Juneau, Alaska, shot and killed a teen in self-defense in a road-rage incident during which the teen pulled out what appeared to be a rifle and threatened the 24-year-old with it.

Police say that the situation started when the older driver called police after being followed by a driver in a 2001 Volkswagen Jetta. The two drivers then circled a roundabout before stopping alongside each other. An argument broke out between the two men, and the 24-year-old driver noticed what he thought was a rifle in the hands of the younger driver. The teen then pointed the rifle at the 24-year-old driver, prompting him to draw and fire in self-defense.

The older driver waited at the scene for responding officers, who pronounced the teen driver dead on the scene. An investigation found that the teen driver had actually been armed with a C02-powered pellet/BB gun.

"It looked very realistic, very much like a firearm,” Juneau Police Chief Derek Bos told KTUU News. “Responding officers also held the initial belief that it was an actual firearm. It was determined much later in the investigation that it was not.” (KTUU News; Juneau, Alaska; 2/3/25)

From the Armed Citizen® Archives – January 1971

Mrs. Deloris Ehle of Ft. Wayne, Ind., was suspicious of two men who parked in her driveway. Consequently, she did not respond when they knocked first on her front door, then on her back door. But when they took a ladder from her garage and removed one of her window screens, she grabbed a shotgun. Upon seeing the armed homeowner, the two men fled. (Ft. Wayne, Ind., The News Sentinel)

Latest

Smith & Wesson Academy
Smith & Wesson Academy

A Visit to the New Smith & Wesson Academy

Let the training (re)commence at Smith & Wesson's new Academy in Tennessee.

New for 2026: Leupold LCO Pro F2 Red-Dot Sight

The optic giant has updated its flagship red-dot sight with a host of upgraded features.

Rifleman Review: Heckler & Koch CC9

When Heckler & Koch USA launched its micro-compact CC9, it proved to be one of the most robustly built micro-compact handguns yet made.

Beyond the Headlines on Armed Citizen Stories

Concealed carriers in the U.S. commit almost no crimes with their lawfully owned firearms. Armed citizens do, however, stop a lot of crimes.

Rifleman Interview: Smith & Wesson FPC and M&P22X

Smith & Wesson’s latest rimfire semi-autos were on display at Plinkapalooza in May.

Taking It Home: War Trophies in American History

From our founding to the more recent past, war-trophy firearms have played a significant role in arming American citizens.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.