Gun range instructors stop bad guys without firing a shot — here's how

Friday on "Pure Opelka", Mike Opelka welcomed Eric Delbert of L.E.P.D. Firearms and Range to discuss his business' tenacity in recognizing and reporting criminals who would seek to use guns illegally.

Delbert's main mission is to train citizens to carry firearms responsibly and assist in law enforcement training. He emphasized that customers are shown how to be "safe and responsible with gun ownership" and the importance of respecting guns.

Delbert's business has no tolerance for those who do not respect deadly force. Mike recalled first speaking to the certified firearms instructor when he had spotted someone on a terror watch list on the cameras installed at his range.

Delbert said fellow instructors and employees possess "situational awareness" that "has actually helped catch some other bad guys" since that incident. Their organization, which is staffed almost entirely by former law enforcement officers, feels it is vitally important to do "whatever we could to keep firearms out of the hands of people who shouldn't be possessing them." And they haven't had to fire a single shot.

Being aware of watch lists and understanding suspicious behavior has helped them report 14 former "patrons" to law enforcement. Delbert recalled one customer who was wiping off the casings of his bullets before loading the magazine. His business called the strange behavior in to law enforcement and managed to help apprehend a felon.

He credits "the diligence of our staff" for helping get dangerous persons who would use guns to commit crimes off the streets.

To see more from Mike, visit his channel on TheBlaze and listen live to “Pure Opelka” weekdays 12-3 p.m. ET, 7–10 p.m. ET & Saturdays 6–9 a.m. ET, only on TheBlaze Radio Network.