unwanted person in your home?

[patandhisruger]

chose #3...my response is identical to kevmans...+1...just to clarify tho, right where i keep my gun at night there is a 8 led retina searing flashlight, so i will be able to identify friend or foe from the get up...

 

[VERT]

I choose #2 because I am not going to yell out without reason and I want an opportunity to possibly evaluate the situation. If they are trying to escape then I would let them go. If they are in the house and I am not, I see no reason to go after them. I own nothing that can not be replaced, all that matters is the safety of my children.

Now if I wake up to find an intruder...I do not have the option of staying in my room and calling the police. My children are very young. If an intruder is advancing into my families bedroom area I will fire. If that means shooting them in the back, I will fire. Unfortunately the only way to stop a person/threat is to take away their ability to be a threat/fight or take away their will to fight. That means facing that threat swiftly and aggressively.

 

[eldirector]

Too many variables to know for sure, but I voted #3. They have made their decision, and can reap the rewards.

#1 - I'm not announcing my presence and letting them take the first shot/swing/whatever.
#2 - I'm also not waiting around to see if they grab my TV or my daughter.
#3 - so, of your choices, that leave me with #3

Coming home to intruders (we are outside, they are inside) is VERY different than waking up to intruders (we are all inside). Home Invasion = immediate action. Rolling up on a burglary = move to safety, call 911, and play defense.

 

[darrent]

I picked #1. Being that I would be armed, I would make an announcement for the intruder to leave. A thief will do so and I'm not going to shoot someone over personal possessions. If the person stays, then I would use the appropriate amount to force to stop the threat. I like to think that I am skilled enough to handle pretty much any threat and wise enough to avoid the confrontation until it becomes necessary.

 

[jblomenberg16]

I picked #1. Being that I would be armed, I would make an announcement for the intruder to leave. A thief will do so and I'm not going to shoot someone over personal possessions. If the person stays, then I would use the appropriate amount to force to stop the threat. I like to think that I am skilled enough to handle pretty much any threat and wise enough to avoid the confrontation until it becomes necessary.

I went with #1 as well, although there are certainly circumstances where I would pass this step and go straight to #3.

Like others have said, it really depends on the circumstances. If I come home and know that my wife and daughter are not in the house (i.e. they are with me) I'm going to stay put and call LE.

If I come in the house and catch them red-handed, I'm going to quickly assess if they are in a position to harm me and then either ask them to freeze while I call LE, or defend myself as necessary.

If I'm awaken at night by somebody forcing entry, I'm going to #3 after positively ID'ing the perp(s).

Like many of us, I'm prepared to defend my family and my home as it is my right and duty to do so. However, I sincerely hope and pray that I never have to.

 

[nate1865]

2 very different scenarios requiring very different responses in my opinion.

 

[finity]

No way to answer the poll as written because the two included questions are completely different scenarios.

If I'm awakened by somebody in my house I will give no warning so they could come find me before I find them. If I can be sure my family is safe before I find them then I stay where I'm at & call the police. If I find them first the only warning they will get is a click as I pull the trigger a millisecond before the muzzle blast.

If I come home & realize someone is there who shouldn't be then I'm staying outside & calling the police (unless my family is inside then see above).

You can't shoot someone for stealing your stuff (no matter how tempted you are). You can shoot someone for being a threat to you or your family.

 

[Mrkeller]

Honestly, I couldn't say what I would do. I just hope it would be the right thing.

 

[Expat]

I don't like the phrase shoot first and ask questions later. I will not shoot if it could be family. I will observe with gun at the ready, until I know it is a stranger and appears to be involved in criminal activity. Then at that point, I will neutralize the threat. I do not believe in yelling to give them a chance to shoot.

 

[88GT]

I couldn't vote. I don't have a cookie cutter response to being the victim. The only thing I can say for sure I would do is to call the cops first or as soon as possible. I would NOT enter the home if I found it compromised when I came home.

However, I will do whatever needs to be done to protect me and mine. Gun or no.

Re: UPDATE/DOCTOR'S FAMILY KILLED IN HOME INVASION

Connecticut home invasion | jennifer hawke petit | petit family murders | News Today

This should eliminate ANY second thoughts one may have of protecting their loved ones with every means necessary! Never underestimate the capacity for evil by man.

Stay safe!

I posted a thread about this awhile back. Made me physically sick when I read the article as I stay home with my two young boys. *shudder* Mean people suck.

 

[Captain Caveman]

If you shoot first and ask questions later, count ono going to jail. People who choose to carry a gun have the responsibility to know what Deadly Force is and when to use it.

 

[Blackhawk2001]

I didn't like any of the alternatives given. In the first place, I'd want to identify friend-or-foe; it might possibly be a trusted neighbor or my son making an unannounced visit. Then, I'd probably give the intruder a command to "get down on the floor"; if I got a negative response, I'd be prepared to shoot to neutralize the perceived threat to my family.

 

[Hoosier8]

None of the above. I would probably have to call the police to get my relatives out of the house.

 

[Ram-jac]

hard to vote........too many variables.
But with that being said, I do not believe in some kind of warning, thereby giving up my element of surprise. If you have entered a residence not belonging to you......then the consequences of your actions may already be determined and the warning, whatever that means, is understood.....if it's not, it should have been. Once the threat is validated, it will be neutralized where it stands. I'm not a LEO and will not make an attempt to take BG into custody. Would never shoot someone over material "stuff"....but I have no idea what value the BG places on said "stuff" and what he's willing to do to keep it or to keep his freedom........and I wouldn't be particularly interested in trying to figure that out at that moment. Guess in this case....BG made a really bad choice.

 

[MasterAtArms]

Depends on their advantage over me. Protecting myself and family is utmost important.

 

[88E30M50]

I voted #3, but it could be any of them given specific circumstances. If all they wanted is stuff and they run, I'm not going to shoot. If they give any indication that they are attacking, I'll shoot to protect my family. As much as I don't want to shoot someone in my own home, I'd rather do that than have to live with the experience that the doctor up in the northeast will have to live with.

 

[SemperFiUSMC]

See signiture line.

Someone breaks into my house they had to subdue my dogs, who gave me enough warning to get up on of bed, wash my face, brush my teeth, and grab my weapons. Mine is the wrong house to break into.

 

[dross]

Depends. If I'm alone in the house, I'd probably take the chance of ordering him in the prone position while I called 911.

If my wife and or daughter are in the house and I know where they are, and he can't get to them besides through me, and there's a door he can leave through by moving away from me, I'd probably tell him to leave.

If I don't know where my wife and daughter are at that moment I have to assume they are in danger and I would take action to ensure he couldn't harm them in the next second.

 

[INMIline]

Well if a grown ass man bursts through my door then my wife and three daughters are in danger. I'll do my job reguardless of what happens in the end.

If you shoot first and ask questions later, count ono going to jail. People who choose to carry a gun have the responsibility to know what Deadly Force is and when to use it.

 

[littletommy]

If you shoot first and ask questions later, count ono going to jail. People who choose to carry a gun have the responsibility to know what Deadly Force is and when to use it.

If someone enters my house, in the middle of the night, by kicking in a door let's say, I'm going to shoot in all probability. I don't know anybody who would enter my house in that manner, so, I HAVE to assume they are a threat to me and/or my family. Asking questions could get me and/or my family killed, and that's not a risk I'm going to take. I'll go to jail if that means the rest of my family doesn't get killed.