THIS is how stupid people can be in a home invasion...
- Thread starter Manedwolf
- Start date
armoredman
New member
"Momma always said stupid is as stupid does."
The Tourist
Moderator
As a home owner, having the 'deep pockets' of insurance, I always worry about how a lawyer might view my actions. The area where I live isn't going to be a big help either. My 'peers' are most likely to be university liberals.
Had the guy been me, I would have dialed 911 first--but not for the main reason you might think. I would do this to document the time line of events.
It could prove that as I made the call the danger was still outside and I had done nothing to create a deadly situation. It would also document that I had used a proper 'escalation of force' in trying to stem the attack. I would even announce that I was armed.
I think we all know how this was going to turn out. The door would fly off the hinges, some very desperate men would enter my dwelling and from a very weird angle, blinding light would emit from a Surefire 6P flashlight with the purple-band 65 replacement bulb, followed by Gold-Dots from the flavor of the day .40 SW I had.
Of course, I would then be up all night answering questions and having my firearm and flashlight taken as evidence. My home would be stomped into a qualified mess. I would make appointments for my wife and myelf with doctors (both of the physical and mental variety) to help heal the debilitating problems we were sure to have. I would have to spend a large sum of money securing an attorney with a retaining fee.
And I would have to return to my home, wondering if tens of thousands of dollars were worth fixing up a house that would always remind us of being violated.
However, I would also have a confirmed taped account of the incident from a reliable source--that being enforcement's own emergency service.
Having said that, I still believe I would be sued by an attorney respresenting one of the attackers, because with my luck, a hollowpoint shattered his spine.
I also wonder how many years this process would take.
Had the guy been me, I would have dialed 911 first--but not for the main reason you might think. I would do this to document the time line of events.
It could prove that as I made the call the danger was still outside and I had done nothing to create a deadly situation. It would also document that I had used a proper 'escalation of force' in trying to stem the attack. I would even announce that I was armed.
I think we all know how this was going to turn out. The door would fly off the hinges, some very desperate men would enter my dwelling and from a very weird angle, blinding light would emit from a Surefire 6P flashlight with the purple-band 65 replacement bulb, followed by Gold-Dots from the flavor of the day .40 SW I had.
Of course, I would then be up all night answering questions and having my firearm and flashlight taken as evidence. My home would be stomped into a qualified mess. I would make appointments for my wife and myelf with doctors (both of the physical and mental variety) to help heal the debilitating problems we were sure to have. I would have to spend a large sum of money securing an attorney with a retaining fee.
And I would have to return to my home, wondering if tens of thousands of dollars were worth fixing up a house that would always remind us of being violated.
However, I would also have a confirmed taped account of the incident from a reliable source--that being enforcement's own emergency service.
Having said that, I still believe I would be sued by an attorney respresenting one of the attackers, because with my luck, a hollowpoint shattered his spine.
I also wonder how many years this process would take.
Have you ever noticed that nobody EVER offers "home invasion" insurance? I'd guess it's because just ONE event would wipe out any possible benefits due to the cost of all the previously mentioned items (repairs, hardening the house, lawyers fees, medical, etc).
Of course -my- policy in the new place will be a nice little hidden IR based camera that watches the house.
Of course -my- policy in the new place will be a nice little hidden IR based camera that watches the house.
so your first reaction to someone banging on your door at 2am is to call 911, and possibly waste the time of the dispatcher on the other end and the unit they dispatch out to your house?
what if you were awakened at 2am by someone banging on your door. you call 911, get a unit dispatched, open the door and it's one of your friends, who happened to be at a bar entirely to late, and needed a place to crash? or one of your friends had a falling out with thier better half and got kicked out?
don't get me wrong. if someone is banging on my door at 2am, they are met by the business end of a 12ga shotgun. i usually have a pistol within grasping range of the front door (in case i get disarmed or am to groggy to think to grab the shotty). I also have a sign on my front door that clearly states "if you trespass here, watch out for flying objets" and has a picture of a .357 on it.
also a better tactic than immediately dialing 911 is to wake your spouse, hand her the phone and have her ready to call 911 should anything go foul.
by all means you NEVER open the door till you identify the person on the other side.
sucks for whatever state you live in, if you can get sued. alabama just passed a law (now about two years ago i think) that states if someone is on your property and is threating you, your dwelling, vehicle or family, you have the right to shoot thier ass (in self defense only... you actually have to be in imminent danger) and not have to worry about getting sued, as the perp no longer has the right to do so.
what if you were awakened at 2am by someone banging on your door. you call 911, get a unit dispatched, open the door and it's one of your friends, who happened to be at a bar entirely to late, and needed a place to crash? or one of your friends had a falling out with thier better half and got kicked out?
don't get me wrong. if someone is banging on my door at 2am, they are met by the business end of a 12ga shotgun. i usually have a pistol within grasping range of the front door (in case i get disarmed or am to groggy to think to grab the shotty). I also have a sign on my front door that clearly states "if you trespass here, watch out for flying objets" and has a picture of a .357 on it.
also a better tactic than immediately dialing 911 is to wake your spouse, hand her the phone and have her ready to call 911 should anything go foul.
by all means you NEVER open the door till you identify the person on the other side.
sucks for whatever state you live in, if you can get sued. alabama just passed a law (now about two years ago i think) that states if someone is on your property and is threating you, your dwelling, vehicle or family, you have the right to shoot thier ass (in self defense only... you actually have to be in imminent danger) and not have to worry about getting sued, as the perp no longer has the right to do so.
I never answer the door unarmed. Under the conditions described, i.e at night and sounds of violent and tumultuous entry into my domicile, it would be me and the Mossy Persuader loaded with a 3" mag #000 and 7 S&B #00 with 12 in each one (Steyr S9 in the pocket of my robe or shorts) and Mama watching my 6 with a .38 revolver. I realize that a 3" mag in the house would be mighty loud, but being deaf is better than being dead. Never go to investigate something you aren't prepared to deal with. WA is a castle doctrine state and I don't own a house. If I got sued my lawyer would get it all, so there wouldn't be anything left for the lowlife or his weasel relatives. If there was time I would call 911 to document things, but when our lives hang in the balance and seconds count I'm going for the 12 ga before the phone.
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Alstead NH is a REAL small town, probably less than 200 folks. It is REAL rural and that affects people's attitude about things that go bump in the night. I had a friend who grew up there and his pet pig would meet him when the school bus dropped him off at his family's farm!
I know it's small, it's way out there, and people don't so much expect that sort of thing. Unfortunately, though crime is still low, there's been more incidents with heroin coming up from MA (and the subsequent addicts desparate for cash for a hit), Section 8 housing residents, and Mexican illegals.
Just more proof that bad guys can come attack you anywhere, unfortunately. There's no such thing as a "good area" that's completely immune. :/
I am in the Bedford area, which is a nice area, but I still, of course, keep a short 870 with light at bedside. If someone comes through the front door, they'd be in a 90-degree foyer, and could not move anywhere out of the line of fire but back out the door. That was a consideration in my choice of residence.
Just more proof that bad guys can come attack you anywhere, unfortunately. There's no such thing as a "good area" that's completely immune. :/
I am in the Bedford area, which is a nice area, but I still, of course, keep a short 870 with light at bedside. If someone comes through the front door, they'd be in a 90-degree foyer, and could not move anywhere out of the line of fire but back out the door. That was a consideration in my choice of residence.
pinshooter
New member
My doorbell rang last night about 12:30 AM, the dog barked. I looked out the window in the living room that gives me a view of the front steps. My wife turned on the big flood light in the back yard. I then looked out the back windows. I think this was a better approach than opening the door. No one was around. Maybe it was gremlins.
Every single last one of my friends knows better than to "bang" on my door at 2AM and that it would be much better for them to find a phone and call me instead.
If they cant call on the phone, they know enough to politely ring the doorbell and announce their name loudly and often enough for me to hear through the door...because the know that they are a finger tip away from an encounter with my home defense firearm.
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Here in the wonderful state of Tennessee their is a law that says if someone injures themselves in the process of committing a felony they can not sue whoever was responsible for that injury, be it a gunshot, or tripping on the living room carpet. No workman's comp for criminals here.
workinwifdakids
New member
Tourist, you're a...
...genius.
I've always said the same thing. The drill is, I hand my wife the phone and tell her, "DIAL 911 and do NOT hang up!"
I grab the Remington 870 full of 3" 00-buckshot. I start screaming, "STOP! PLEASE STOP!" all of which is being recorded. Then I start in with, "PLEASE, STOP! I HAVE A GUN!" Then I move into, "I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU, BUT I WILL IF YOU MAKE ME! PLEASE, PLEASE..."
At about that point, the dispatchor will hear "KA-FRICKIN-BOOOOOM," and there will be a nice recording for posterity. As I said, Tourist, you are a scholar & a gentleman!
...genius.
I've always said the same thing. The drill is, I hand my wife the phone and tell her, "DIAL 911 and do NOT hang up!"
I grab the Remington 870 full of 3" 00-buckshot. I start screaming, "STOP! PLEASE STOP!" all of which is being recorded. Then I start in with, "PLEASE, STOP! I HAVE A GUN!" Then I move into, "I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU, BUT I WILL IF YOU MAKE ME! PLEASE, PLEASE..."
At about that point, the dispatchor will hear "KA-FRICKIN-BOOOOOM," and there will be a nice recording for posterity. As I said, Tourist, you are a scholar & a gentleman!
Hallucinator
New member
I'm more and more convinced that a big homicidal dog is the answer to the home invasion thing.
Deaf Smith
New member
Thank the Lord this is Texas. The thug would have been DRT. Never ever open the door late at night without someway of saying, "NO" real forcefully, quickly, and in multiple doses.
The guy is lucky he was just shot in the leg. There are times when all are bound, gaged, and shot in the back of the head (and that's after they have their way with the women folk.)
Deep pockets or no, this is Texas and we don't cotton to that kind of stuff.
The guy is lucky he was just shot in the leg. There are times when all are bound, gaged, and shot in the back of the head (and that's after they have their way with the women folk.)
Deep pockets or no, this is Texas and we don't cotton to that kind of stuff.
workinwifdakids
New member
If you're seriously suggesting that planning what I'd do as a victim of a home-invasion robbery constitutes premeditated murder, I'm at a loss for words.
:barf:
Nope, I'm suggesting that announcing (on a public forum) any detailed plans to shoot someone (regardless of how justified the situation might be) may not be the best of all possible ideas.
If, God forbid, you ever found yourself in such a situation I know at least three lawyers who'd rip you apart because of it. I'm sure you intended otherwise but that post could easily be twisted to sound like a pre-set plan to shoot regardless of what the criminal does, or even some (unlikely but possible) accidental situation.
Look, I'm not picking a fight with you, I'm letting you know that you put yourself in a lousy position with that post. You don't like it? You disagree? FINE I have no problem with that and we can just agree to disagree. I'm just saying that a little more discretion might be wise.
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sorry, it's just me, but i have a real problem wasting the city's/county's resources on what may not be a BG trying to enter my home. If i get to the door, and don't recognize him, or they look threatening, then i call the cops.
I mean seriously. you call the cops... they hear you screaming about stopping and that you think you have an intruder (who is currently outside your house) they are going to send a unit. now think about the poor bastard that actually NEEDED that unit to show and help him out. oh well.... i guess that's what flowers are for huh?
oh, and there is a book that my generation was forced to read/hear at bed time as a child. it's the story of the little boy that cried wolf.....
I mean seriously. you call the cops... they hear you screaming about stopping and that you think you have an intruder (who is currently outside your house) they are going to send a unit. now think about the poor bastard that actually NEEDED that unit to show and help him out. oh well.... i guess that's what flowers are for huh?
oh, and there is a book that my generation was forced to read/hear at bed time as a child. it's the story of the little boy that cried wolf.....