2. I actually am more concerned with police response times than the type of criminal. My home is in a rural area, and I do a fair amount of driving in rural areas. I work in an urban area. Police response times can run as long as 30 minutes at home and under five minutes at the office. That means that bad guys have more time to attempt something after a 911 call when I am closer to home. In my neck of the woods, home invasions are rare, but they are not unknown. Those are usually performed by more than two people. That means I might need more ammo than the usual 2-3 rounds cited as the deterrent of sirens wailing takes longer to manifest.
Police response time is whatever it is, wherever you are, THAT time.
How long would it PHYSICALLY take for the police to come to your rescue if EVERYTHING went PERFECTLY, AND they were driving past your house when they got the call? Contrast this with how long it would take for somebody to shoot, stab or even beat you to death.
Then ask what the response time would be if:
911 lost the connection or you never got one
911 assigned a higher priority to another call that was a hoax
911 put you on hold
911 demanded that you put your assailant on the line (actually happened in Detroit)
911 took down the wrong information
911 never dispatched police
911 dispatched police to the wrong location
Police didn't bother to respond
Police responded to the wrong location
Police merely drove by your location without stopping or investigating
Police responded, knew what was happening and elected to take no action
Nobody with two braincells to rub together should rely upon 911 or the police for their personal safety, no matter WHERE they live.