A personal protective device comprising: a protective vest comprising: at least one protective shield; a neck sling connected to said protective shield; a first torso strap connected to said protective shield at a first location; a first selectively disconnectable fastener connected to said first torso strap; a second selectively disconnectable fastener (52, 54) connected to said protective shield at a second location which is spaced from said first location; a carrying case comprising a front portion, a rear portion, at least one handle, at least one of said front portion and said rear portion comprising at least two, spaced openings (20, 21) which are spaced and positioned for alignment with said first fastener and said second fastener (52, 54); said carrying case comprising a third opening which is alignable with said neck sling when said at least two, spaced openings (20, 21) are aligned with said first fastener and said second fastener (52, 54); said protective shield is selectively positionable substantially within said carrying case and selectively removable from said carrying case; when said protective shield is positioned within said carrying case, said protective vest is configurable from a ready state wherein said first selectively disconnectable fastener is positioned outside of said carrying case, said first torso strap is positioned substantially within said carrying case, and said neck sling is positioned within said carrying case, into a deployed configuration wherein said torso strap and said neck sling are positioned substantially outside of said carrying case. a protective vest comprising: at least one protective shield; a neck sling connected to said protective shield; a first torso strap connected to said protective shield at a first location; a first selectively disconnectable fastener connected to said first torso strap; a second selectively disconnectable fastener (52, 54) connected to said protective shield at a second location which is spaced from said first location; at least one protective shield; a neck sling connected to said protective shield; a first torso strap connected to said protective shield at a first location; a first selectively disconnectable fastener connected to said first torso strap; a second selectively disconnectable fastener (52, 54) connected to said protective shield at a second location which is spaced from said first location; a carrying case comprising a front portion, a rear portion, at least one handle, at least one of said front portion and said rear portion comprising at least two, spaced openings (20, 21) which are spaced and positioned for alignment with said first fastener and said second fastener (52, 54); said carrying case comprising a third opening which is alignable with said neck sling when said at least two, spaced openings (20, 21) are aligned with said first fastener and said second fastener (52, 54); said protective shield is selectively positionable substantially within said carrying case and selectively removable from said carrying case; when said protective shield is positioned within said carrying case, said protective vest is configurable from a ready state wherein said first selectively disconnectable fastener is positioned outside of said carrying case, said first torso strap is positioned substantially within said carrying case, and said neck sling is positioned within said carrying case, into a deployed configuration wherein said torso strap and said neck sling are positioned substantially outside of said carrying case.