I think this whole discussion is getting convoluted.
Here's a simple summary: if you ever have to defend yourself using deadly force, you have to be prepared not only for the encounter, but also for the inevitable investigation, possible criminal prosecution, and even more possible civil lawsuit. (Unless you're in the few states that have Castle Doctrine, if it works the way I think it does).
If it was only about protecting yourself with no regards to what happens next, then why even bother about getting a CPL License ? Just carry illegally. Of course this would be stupid and wrong.
If you get attacked you may get killed. This is the worst possible outcome.
If you successfully defend yourself from an attack, then are prosecuted and subsequently sued, you may spend the rest of your life (or the large part of it) in prison among real criminals, and have your family go bankrupt. This is the second worst outcome.
Even if you are cleared from government prosecution, in some states (most I think) you are still open to the civil lawsuit by the relatives of the deceased. It is going to be very expensive regardless of the outcome, and you still may be financially ruined if you lose.
If you're ever judged by the jury, you have to ask yourself how a lay person with no knowledge of self defense concepts or prior exposure to handguns outside of Hollywood will see your actions leading to, during, and after the shooting. Most of them have no basic understanding of guns, or magazines, or common vs uncommon gun modifications. Most of them really don't know the difference between a 5 shot revolver and 17 shot automatic pistol. There's no telling which way they can be swayed. Now, I have served on the jury twice, and I've seen, in both cases, the people with clear heads and good common sense leading the jury in the right direction (proud to say I was one of them
). I also met some people whom I wouldn't trust to break up an elementary school fight. Power hungry hockey moms, well intentioned but terribly disengaged from the real world old ladies, guys with a huge chip on their shoulder who seemed to be bent on sending someone to prison just to make someone else's life miserable. It's a scary world inside the jury room.
Now, I've never considered how a person with spare clips of ammo or modified gun will be seen by then, until I talked to my friend; but this made sense, based on what I've observed.
So, I believe there should be a balance between been well prepared, and being seen as "dressed to kill" by the jury. What that balance is, everyone should decide for themselves. Also there are some states where in case of justifiable self defense, you can't be sued in a civil court. My state isn't one of them.
