Fourth, we have two studies in the last 20 years that directly address the outcomes of women who resist attempted rape with a weapon. The best conclusion from available scientific data, then, is when avoidance of rape has failed and one must choose between being raped and resisting, a woman's best option is to resist with a gun in her hands. Yesterday I described the nature of campus rape as found in a recent Justice Department study and reviewed the research indicating that resistance with a firearm is a woman's best chance of escaping an attempted rape. This raises some obvious pragmatic problems, however. First is the matter of training.
Training is essential, as is frequent practice at the range.
More importantly, she must have made, long in advance, a deliberate decision that if it ever becomes necessary to protect herself against a rape or other violent assault, she will brandish and, if warranted, fire it. Most crime perpetrators can easily distinguish between a bluff and a serious threat. One might attempt to use a toy or an unloaded gun or brandish a real gun without having formed the intent to discharge it if needed. Although these stratagems might work occasionally, they cannot be relied on. It is a common truism among firearms instructors that the assailant does not fear the gun so much as the obvious, determined willingness of its owner to use it if need be.