Nearly assaulted while walking dogs

Recently, I was walking my two chihuahuas in Los Angeles, near a park with lots of homeless people, drug addicts etc...

Gang banger with shaved head and teardrop tattoos on his face, who looked seriously amped up, confronted me and immediately started making death threats. I was a few inches taller, but he was solidly built.

I didn't know what to do because of my dogs. They were barking and trying to defend me, but they're little. I was afraid he would kick them. If I let go of their leashes, I thought they would get hit by traffic.

I'm in decent shape, but haven't been in a fight in a long time. My lifetime experience is a few drunken bar fights and some boxing classes.

I tried to verbally deescalate the situation, but the guy wasn't acting rationally. Just kept threatening to kill me, saying that he worked for the cartel and he would kill my entire family, that kind of stuff.

I tried to run away, but I had to contend with my dogs. They were confused, and I had no idea how to get out of the situation.

I ended up tripping over my dogs leash, and falling in someone's yard.

I didn't know it at the time, but before I ran into this guy, he had been walking through the neighborhood threatening a bunch of people, including a mother with two small kids.

Right when I fell, a random neighbor called out that the cops were on the way. The guy turned his attention to the neighbor, and I got out of there.

Five minutes later, the cops arrested him. I was the only one willing to give a statement. It sucks to see regular, hardworking people stand down because of fear. The cops told me that nothing would happen anyway, because no one had gotten hurt.

What should I have done better? I just ordered some pepper gel online. I use to own a handgun, and have been to the range a few times. I thought about trying to get a CCW, but a friend told me its almost impossible to get in LA.

I'm much calmer now, but I was pretty worked up when it happened. The whole situation was so disorienting. Any ideas on how to defend myself when I'm walking two little dogs?

Submitted July 25, 2021 at 07:56AM by acvfdbbc https://ift.tt/2UKVjk6