It can be a very real consideration when thinking about being armed. When and where could we face a murderous active shooter?
The FBI has released its report on active shootings in the U.S. for the years 2016 and 2017.
Below is an infographic showing their results on the locations of the 50 shootings in those two years.
The elephant in the room is that many of these locations, if not most, are "gun-free zones" with restrictions on your self-defense with the banning of your CCW.
It's useful to note that one of the incidents regarding the business heading did happen in a shopping mall. So if you feel compelled to carry when you go to the mall, you were not being paranoid you're being prepared. There have been several high-profile incidents over the years that include shootings at malls. It's also relevant to remind readers of the number of gang-related acts that have broken out in and around malls.
The other item to note about open areas is that one of those incidents is the horrendous massacre at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas where 58 people were killed and more than 850 injured when a gunman opened fire at a country music festival being held in an open area which resembled a parking lot. This was also a gun-free zone and you probably remember stories coming out of attendees commandeering vehicles to take the injured and dying to the hospital and of citizens begging police officers for firearms or citizens attempting to acquire long guns from police cruisers to return fire in an attempt to stop the assault.