VI – Self-Defense – SemperVerus

Practical Situational Awareness Training: Prepare for the Ambush

Situational awareness is often described by suggested methods of observation in color-coded categories of perception: observing surroundings to avoid trouble; locating exits in a room to quickly escape trouble; or achieving advance knowledge of travel routes to change course in the event of sudden trouble.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Jeff Cooper’s Principles of Personal Defense ]

The familiar color-code is White for “totally unaware,” Yellow for “relaxed but aware,” Orange for “potential threat identified,” and Red for “threat verified, engage self-defense action.”

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Simple Chart for Situational Awareness ]

Professional firearms trainer, author, consultant, and executive director for PersonalDefenseNetwork.com, Rob Pincus, identifies one area that might too often be overlooked; he calls it the “fantasy of situational awareness.”

By semperverus
Posted on 03/25/202503/25/2025

US Circuit Judge Video Records Expert Gun Tutorial Dissent to Anti-2nd Amendment Court Ruling

US Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke The San Fransisco-based US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled 7-4 March 20, 2025 to uphold California’s ban on standard-capacity ammunition magazines that hold more than 10 cartridges.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, 20 Reasons to Concealed Carry a Defensive Firearm ]

The case was a Second Amendment challenge to California’s 2016 law that bars possession of such magazines.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Senior US District Judge Declares Gun Magazine Capacity Limits Unconstitutional ]

The US Supreme Court in 2021 remanded the lawsuit back to the Ninth Circuit following the high court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, US Supreme Court Affirms Right to Carry Arms in Public for Self-Defense ]

The Ninth Circuit’s latest ruling says California’s ban does not violate Second Amendment rights because such magazines are not “arms” within the US Constitution’s meaning, nor are they protected accessories.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Important Judicial Decisions Regarding Self-Defense Law ]

But US Circuit Judge Lawrence VanDyke demonstrated the logical reason for his dissent by video recording himself handling several personal handguns and explaining their mechanisms to educate viewers on why his judicial colleagues wrongly upheld the California law.

Organizing, Training & Running a House of Worship Armed Congregant Security Team

Emanuel Kapelsohn The Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network (ACLDN) is a membership organization that helps members in the legal fight after they justifiably use force in self-defense by paying for the services of attorneys, expert witnesses, private investigators, and more. It also educates members in the law governing use of force in self-defense and how armed citizens can protect against unmeritorious prosecution.

Attorney, court expert witness, and ACLDN Advisory Board member Emanuel Kapelsohn, president of The Peregrine Corporation, and author of the House of Worship Firearms Use of Force Policy Bundle is interviewed in the ACLDN Journal on the subject of “Organizing, Training & Running a House of Worship Armed Congregant Security Team.” Below are the complete 2-part video interviews, links to the Journal print articles, and bullet points of salient information from the interview:

By semperverus
Posted on 03/19/202503/19/2025

Self-Defense In Spiritual Warfare: Know Your Enemies

The resulting corollary of the 5 SemperVerus components is SELF-DEFENSE.

Practicing SELF-DEFENSE is the strategic, tactical, and intelligent ability to responsibly protect yourself from menacing spiritual and physical threats.

Notice the inclusion of the spiritual aspect that is often overlooked when considering self-defense. In the SemperVerus Brotherhood™, where we Stay True to what is right and Stay True to our aim, we are vigilant to be situationally aware (including spiritually aware) so that we’re prepared to ward off the enemies of our soul.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Situational Awareness: Spiritual Self-Defense ]

The pastor of Ada Bible Church, in Grand Rapids, MI, Aaron Buer, preached the 4-part sermon series titled Enemies of the Soul, which examines the reality and nature of spiritual warfare in our daily lives. He explores how attacks to our soul come from three directions: the devil, the world, and our own nature (the flesh). His final sermon explains that we defend ourselves from these threats by consciously and constantly putting on the armor of God. Watch each of the videos below to sharpen your everyday defenses and protect your soul.

By semperverus
Posted on 03/15/202503/19/2025