#1 Some twists and turns: there are a few spots in AZ that are "special enforcement zones", created by cities, that ban all weapons. However, I know one gentleman who trumped them with a written federal judge's ruling that he *had* to carry a gun--a document that he had requested, thinking ahead, in that he worked in one of those zones.
The second thing is "menace instead of use." When a licensed conceal-carry person pulls their gun, they understand that they *don't* want to use it, except as a last resort. So often, the perp they are holding runs away--which is preferable to gun play, as emotionally gratifying as most people think it is.
Interestingly enough, since the 1960s, police in the US are SWAT-tactic trained, so they constantly pull their guns--which leads to way too much gunfire. Most police killed in the US are killed by their own weapons, and accidental discharges are way too frequent.
However, licensed conceal-carry people operate on the "Old West", not SWAT rules, that you should never draw your gun unless you intend to shoot to kill someone. And THEN, even when you DO draw your gun, you are looking for an excuse to NOT fire it.
Concealment itself is an 'edge'. As long as your weapon is concealed, the perp cannot intimidate you as much as when you are unarmed. So you can be far more relaxed in a tense situation, trying other means to de-fuse it. This edge is lost when you expose your weapon, so you don't want to do this, unless things are getting way out of hand.
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