Administrative Comments: We arrived 15 minutes early. TJ ?? (the assistant) re-arranged the tables in the classroom. Class was scheduled to start at 0900. At o920 or so AJ (the instructor) showed up. She then proceeded to re-arrange the room back to the original configuration. Paperwork snafus and disorganization abounded- paperwork and ID's were just put into a big pile for TJ to go through. Much milling around. Class got started at about 0935. Be prepared to have your DL held hostage until you pay the range fee. Also be prepared to have the Winchester Range people boot you out of the parking lot which is reserved, evidently, for their customers, not AJ's. You are definitely a red-headed stepchild here. Bringing your firearm into the classroom is somewhat discouraged, so be prepared to lock up your pistol in your car in a parking lot about 100 yards away from the classroom in a decidedly bad part of Ft Worth.
The Bad: Her "I am a tough and bad-ass black woman with some casual references to being in law enforcement so I know it all" attitude gets very old very quickly.
The classroom is run in a confrontational manner. She likes to hear herself talk and often subjects and topics blended into one another and were difficult to follow. There were many, many opinions stated as facts. Several words were misspelled on her slide presentation.
After asking a somewhat open-ended or non-specific question, she often demeaned a student's attempt to give an answer to what he perceived the question to be.
She made several serious mistakes discussing the Penal Code and use of force. For instance, she said that you had to endure a beating up to the point of broken arms or legs before you could use deadly force. She then told us that we'd only have seconds to use deadly force when attacked so we'd better be ready to shoot. Now, which is it, Ma'am? This caused much confusion especially among several of the female students.
She got the theft and criminal mischief in the nighttime wrong.
There are now 35 states, not 31, that have reciprocity with Texas, Ohio being the latest one. http://legallyarmed.com/resources/statelist.html
She said that no matter the situation, if you use your pistol you would "ride" to jail. You would be arrested and ill-treated. Again, not so Ma'am. It's possible, but not guaranteed. She harped on this over and over, but did not even discuss what steps to take after the shooting was over to prevent this - how to secure the firearm (BTW, AJ, a "weapon" is defined as something served by a crew. A "pistol" or "rifle" or even "firearm" is the proper term for a hand-held personal defense tool) or how to not get shot by the responding cops, or what to say to them. A casual mention of popular legal plans might have also been a good idea.
You will not get a review prior to taking the test. The test itself is another bureaucratic nightmare that tests little of importance. You are expected to know what a particular article of the Penal Code pertains to by only a reference to its number. That's all well and good if you're a cop or prosecutor, but a CHL only needs to know what he can do, for instance, in "defense of a third person" rather than what he can do in reference to Penal Code Section 9.33. It is particularly ill-written. FWIW, I scored in the mid-nineties, so this is not just sour grapes.
The Good: She says the unmentionable: Most people who "want a gun" shouldn't have one. Most people will not pay for professional training. Most people will not practice. Most people do not understand the responsibility undertaken when they are armed. Most people (there were several men and women in the class who had not even practiced loading or charging their pistols!) simply do not take being armed seriously enough to even attempt to master the machinery.
She spends good time on de-escalation versus confrontation, and stated that CHL holders are not cops, not super-heroes or avengers for truth and justice. Well said in this regard, Ma'am!
She discussed the behavior of street predators- how they selected their victims, tested them and groomed them in preparation for the attack. She described common pre-attack behavior. Again, well done.
Her demeanor in the range was also annoying and confrontational. However, she said she did it to induce some level of stress to show us what it would be like should we ever be in a shooting situation. Again, well done. Even (even! lol) I found myself monkey fingering my pistol a little.
Overall it was not an enjoyable day spent in what should be a positive learning experience.
There is a reason her course is cheaper than most. read more
