Shut up ya big baboon!!

 

If you don't like the thread then don't post on it.

But...you're right. Once they're IN the house it's a WHOLE different ballgame. In my case, I have an alarm system AND two BIG dogs that don't like strangers. If someone is determined enough to ignore the alarm and get past the two dogs then I will assume they're there to do physical harm to me and my family. All bets are off at that point.

 

As I said, my reaction would depend totally on their reaction. I can't honestly say since I haven't been in the situation.

I think I would definitely draw the Glock if I found someone. If they put their hands up and cooperated then I would probably just hold them there at gunpoint (from a distance) until the cops showed up....at which time I would holster the gun and probably get down on the ground myself and let the cops sort out who is who with my wife (I'd rather not be shot thank you).

If their reaction to me finding them was to charge me or to pull a weapon and come after me then I would shoot.

If their reaction was to turn tail and run then I like to think that I would just holster my weapon and wait for the cops to arrive and try to give a good description. I'm certainly not going to chase them and shooting them on the run wouldn't even cross my mind.

But...that's all in theory. There are too many variables to say for sure and not having been in the situation I don't think I could say for sure even if there were no variables.

 

Pretty cut and dried for me. You mess with my house, I'll hurt ya. You mess with my truck, I'll hurt ya. That's what birdshot is for. You mess with my wife, my kids, my horse, or my dogs, I'll kill ya.

If it's an inanimate object, it can be replaced.

Having said that, I guess I'm duty bound to treat the guy after I shoot him.....

 

The only time my piece leaves my bedside is when I go to a ranch or something. About three years ago I bought a lasermax laser sight for it, really just for kicks, but after reading some testimonials on their web site I hope that it will deter an aggresive action from an intruder until the police arrive. If it doesn't then at least I'll have the upper hand on accuracy and possibly avoiding lethal consequences. Anyways, the testimonials from law enforcement officers are a pretty good read on their website.

 

I go along with what chrisreyn said. EVEN with training it is not all cut and dry. It never is and never will be. What I am trying to say is that none of us will know HOW we will react until we are thrust into the situation. I am not saying that any of you are not going to do what you say, but I hope none of you will ever find out. I still believe that bentwings did exactly what he though he should do given the circumstances, but would I? I don't know. I never will know. I believe that if ANY person messes with my family.........well, they had better hope that the cops get them first. All I am trying to say is that is very easy to "talk the talk" and hope you never have to prove yourself.
Tom

 

Well said. Nat

 

I am with Cowhand on this one, except instead of birdshot my brothers and I could do more damage

I live in what used to be a very "country" area. Suburbia is slowly creeping in like a cancer on us, and just last year there was a murder 2 towns over. My parents have made it pretty clear to us kids (I'm the youngest, 17, out of 3 boys 2 girls) that if anyone ever ENTERS the house in a forceful situation with the intention of doing harm, or even taking things INSIDE the house, to put a bullet in them. Not to kill them, but put him out of commision. If someone is outside, and we catch them, my brothers and I will make short work of them, physically-not with a firearm, that's what we have baseball bats (and a bocce ball really hurts, too ). Now, I know to identify them, and take a quick reference for what they are going to do (If really IN the situation I am sure I would identify them first, who knows if I'll contemplate their intention, but if I don't know them well...).

I agree with Tom, also. Nobody knows what they will do until they are in the situation, and hopefully nobody is. But I'm sure I will have the basics of what I will do. If he comes inside, he's going to stay there until the cops get him.



I believe in the old western days, if someone sneaks up to the house or fire, they are going to get shot. If they announce their arrival, then they will be welcomed. That is my take on this. (I know a lot of babbling)

 

I have a sister who has been on drugs since high school. There is not very much of her left. She will stand there looking like walking death and sincerely deny ever touching drugs. I am sick of the outlandish stories she fabricates to try and get money from me or my other 2 sisters and my mom. She has lost her home, her kids ( and its all OUR fault cause we would not give her money) and now lives with a convicted child rapist. We offer help such as counseling and such. We beg her to break ties with the people she runs with. and all she says is they are her friends and she doesnt do drugs. She has lied to us repeatedly, stolen from us with no remorse. prostituted herself for her habit. Even placed us and her children in mortal danger at times. As she has made NO attempt to help herself, my sisters and i have even been discussing funeral arrangements for when the inevitable happens. And that hurts. She makes us feel like we have abandoned her and cast her into this nightmare that is her life. We constantly wonder if maybe their is something more we could do. If i could tell you one thing from all this. it would be. Keep drugs away from your family at all cost. because once it is there it doesnt go away and the pain just gets worse.

 

A free piece of advice from someone who has been in the situation to pull the trigger, far too many times before.

Avoid it anyway you can, getting into a situation where it escalates to that point, is the one place you NEVER want to be.

Quit running outside to chase these people, one night you will run right into the business end of a 12 gauge, and then you become completely useless to your family's security.

If you have a weapon, stay inside with it and protect your family, nothing is so important as to make you leave your family unguarded. Keeping them safe, IS your most important duty.

Leaving your wife armed inside to keep the children safe, has ended up tragically for many families. The husband looks around outside decides, there is no threat and comes back in through the rear door.

The wife still left inside terrified, not knowing what is going on, shoots the husband coming in the back door thinking he is the bad guy, after all she saw her husband go out the front, and expects him to return the same way.

The point I am trying to make here is, call the police, let them do their job, keep your priorities straight, and don't abandon the rest of the family, at the very moment they need you the most.

Too many unknown variables can pop up in these situations, by you going out the door, you leave it open for someone else to enter behind you.

I agree completely with the camera and flood lights, they alone will do more to discourage this behavior than your chasing them will.

If you are inside protecting your family, and have to shoot someone who enters with intent to do harm, then there are few reasons that it will not be considered self defense.

Remember, if you chase somebody, you can shift from the victim to the aggressor in the eyes of the law. He may get scared and pull a weapon forcing you into a shoot out. Now you are in a situation where it has to be determined whether you are at fault here.

If a jury decides that you are only 10% at fault, because you forced the confrontation, and you are sued by the perp's family in a 10 million dollar wrongful death suit.................

That is 1 million dollars YOU will have to cough up.

True I have simplified all this and there are tons of variables, but I hope this gives you an idea of what can actually happen in todays society.

Stay inside and keep your family safe

 

One hint I've got from my instructor. Lighting is one of the most efficient deterrents. Floodlighting your house and also the inside just leaving some darker spots that can't be seen to from the outside are a good situation for you. Different places to hide in, good sight on the potential aggressor. And good means to determine his or her intentions and to identify. Usually (over here) they'll look for some easier place if everything is lit brightly. (Motion detector or the like)
Taking pics or better filming the situation creates evidence. (Will only be useful if you act according to the laws, but even if there's no violent encounter you have proof of him breaking the law and some good pics to identify him)
I second Top's notion on protecting the family. IMHO they could take my truck, my cash, my computers etc before they can touch my wife. I simply love her so much more than material goods that I think that protecting her is my first objective.

Just my 2c

AlpineRAM

 

I have two Rotties and a Shepard in the house so I'm not too worried about them coming in. I would be very upset if they were stealing my car, truck, or something outside but I don't believe I would go out after them. You never know how many there are. Unfortunately where I live, it would take the law about an hour and a half to get here so whatever they are taking will be gone. Now if they do come in and get past the three doggies somehow, there is always a firearm usually within about a ten foot reach and they are fair game then. The interior of this house is the last place on earth that I have to call mine and I will protect it and all occupants to whatever level is needed.
A friend I use to know up the road about three miles shot a guy in the house. He came in the house naked in the middle of the day. She shot him twice and took any evil thoughts right out of his mind. Unfortunately, he lived because she didn't hit anything vital and was using wad cutters and a low power load in a 38. The police got there, took her gun, and one of the officers gave her his personal gun to keep until she got hers back. She had just had a baby two months earlier and you know what they say about a mother protecting her young. Never heard another word about it.

 

Top- My point exactly. Very well put.

 

Humbling words from Top....and good advice too.

 

We taped a guy breaking into my neighbor's house. Four times! Got footage of him rolling the 32" TV out on my neighbor's dolly and up the alley, then a car drives by with the trunk lid up, TV obviously in the trunk. On one of these occasions he was in the neighbor's house while I was home for lunch; on the tape you see my truck pull out of the driveway and literally 25 seconds later (I was using a time-lapse VCR with an onscreen time display) the guy emerges out the back door with a six-pack of Dr. Pepper and a nail gun.

If I'd known he was there, I probably would have tried to hold him with the shotgun, but I'd not likely have shot him unless he acted aggressively towards me. Anyway, we turned all the tapes over to the detectives working the case and between that and the evidence from some of his other burglaries the guy got a nice long sentence for his stupidity.