I'll use some scenarios to illustrate what I'd like to discuss:
Scenario a)
A few days ago, I went out to meet some friends somewhere. I did not have a gun because I was going somewhere I knew I would be drinking (yes, always carry always no matter what -- but I still want to live my life and toting while drinking is illegal here and, in my opinion, irresponsible). I did have pepper spray on my keychain -- which, at the time, was in the ignition (the Sabre Red size I use does not have a quick release tab -- so, effectively useless in this scenario). Before meeting up, I went to the ATM to withdraw some cash, time was about 10pm. I circled around the bank to get to the drive-up ATM and didn't notice anybody. No other cars were at the bank. Car goes in park, insert the card, enter the PIN, and all of the sudden I see a male in a hoodie and baseball cap (weather was about 75 degrees) approaching me from the back of the bank.
As I notice him, I said, "hey man, what's going on?" He was about 50 feet away at this point. His response: "It's all good." That concerned me. He continues walking toward me. He follows up: "I'm just trying to use the ATM." Unsolicited, he repeats: "It's all good." That really concerned me. By this point, he was about 30 feet away from me. Somewhere between the first "it's all good" and the "I'm just trying to use the ATM," I put the car in drive -- I don't recall thinking about that at all. With the second "it's all good," I started hitting cancel on the ATM to have it give me my card back. I said, "that's cool man, hang out over there and I'll be done in a second." He continued advancing -- oh, shit. ATM spits my card out, I grab it and take off. I go find another ATM and go on with my evening out.
I could see his hands at all times. The only concerning thing about his appearance was the hoodie + baseball hat combo, as the hood didn't match the weather (warm, humid). His unseasonable choice of clothing combined with the "reassurances" led me to believe that this was probably a setup for a robbery, thus me GTFO'ing.
Scenario b) (generalized)
In my previous city, I had a friend whose place I was often at late at night. Their place wasn't in the greatest area, but it was also conveniently close to a really amazing chicken place (unfortunately situated in a worse area) so we often ended up in a long drive through between the hours of Irresponsible PM and Poor Life Choices AM. Among certain cultures, it's... not uncommon to approach total strangers as they walk along the street or sit in their cars in the drive through. Often, they were panhandlers. I can recall several times where a total stranger approached our window unsolicited while in the drive through. Unlike the first scenario, I was always armed when out there. Also unlike the first scenario, I typically had a car behind me, a car in front of me, and a low concrete parking lot barrier to one side and the restaurant on the other.
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Apart from "don't get chicken at 1am on a Friday in the ghetto," what are some steps we can take when dealing with an approaching stranger, specific to the context of sitting in a drive-through? What about actions that don't necessitate producing a firearm or other tool, but should be red flags? What about our responses to those actions (again, that don't involve producing a firearm/other tool)? What if we cannot drive off?
Thanks!