Why not just flip the light switch?

Depends on where you live. Some states have no problems with you opening fire on someone in your own house if they don't belong.
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Castle law varies from state to state depending on how the statute is written or what the legal precedent is. For example, in Texas, I must know that someone: 1)forcibly and 2) unlawfully entered my home before the protections offered by Castle Doctrine kick in.

A neighbor checking on me/the house because they noticed the door to the house had been forced open, or a firefighter or police office responding to a wrong address, would be just two examples of people not entering forcibly and unlawfully.

And to look at it from another angle... I've been in a force-on-force scenario where I was standing 5' away from a grown man who was speaking to me fairly loudly and all I heard was "garble wabblke blah warble gabble!" Was that "Don't shoot, it's your neighbor Bob!" of "I am going to make you eat that pistol!" I couldn't tell you. Auditory exclusion is one of the commonly reported side effects of a big shot of adrenaline. You may well see a silhouette and hear shouting or speech that you can't identify.

Personally, I think any plan that revolves around shooting an unidentified target has a bad foundation to it.
 
I just put Christmas tree ornaments under each window. That way I will hear the intruder's entry.

In reality, I do flip on all the lights before I investigate. I have bedroom activated indoor, and outdoor lighting which will illuminate everything BEFORE I enter the room.
 
This is just my opinion of my own observations of people's writing on this subject - but I have noticed that the military guys tend toward back lighting and silhouetting the target.

Maybe people learn a different mindset in the military?

I personally like the dark, I want it very dark where I’m at and I feel fine shooting a silhouette.

I have my house setup so that my defensive position is pitch black but unless intruders unplug night lights – they are going to be back lit.
Yes – your muzzle flash gives the enemy / intruders something to shoot at, but hopefully that’s only after they’ve been hit and hopefully they will not be able to return fire. A flash light gives them something to shoot at while you’re trying to shoot them.

Dogs haven’t really been mentioned in this discussion so far, but they are probably the best alarm system money can buy. Yes they are expensive and they only last 10 or so years but the dogs that I’ve had have been great.
I know not everyone can get dogs. It depends on a lot of factors. Some people live in apartments that don’t allow them. I now live in a condo and I have no front or back yard – that means walking a dog several times a day instead of just letting them out. I was traveling for weeks at a time in 2009 and wouldn’t have been able to take care of a dog, and my daughter is allergic to dogs… But having said all that, I know that they have great value in defending the home.

One thing that I ran into is that the motion activated lighting doesn’t work well when you have a dog, I had motion activated lighting and I also had a German Shepherd who would patrol the house regularly, so the lights were going on 4 or 5 times a night. Maybe that in itself is a deterrent, but not so useful in determining if you really have an intruder.

As far as just turning on the lights to a room…

If people’s houses are like mine – there are the light fixtures in the ceiling and the lamps that are plugged in. I don’t have a lot of control over the location of the light switches or the light fixtures. If you were your own general contractor for your home you could have planned the lighting with defense in mind but any of us that were married would have had wives that would have told us that we’re out of our minds… women expect lighting to be decorative, to light up a room optimally and make it a bright and cheery living space. They also want convenient switches. The people who build houses seem to have this in mind when they build houses too.
They are not concerned with backlighting a potential attacker and ensuring that you can operate the switch without being backlit yourself.

The switches in my house either put me in a backlit situation with respect to the room – usually backlit by a window – so I am visible to the occupants of the room but the occupants of the room are not visible to me, or the switches put me directly under a light fixture, or both.

Right now I’m just controlling the lighting to make sure I’m in darkness and intruders are backlit.
 
People's situations are different.

If you have older teens, or people in your household that are working night shift or something... you can't just shoot anyone who is sneaking around.

You might end up shooting your own kid who is getting a midnight snack or something. Or shoot your daughter's boyfriend who is trying to sneak out - although maybe he deserves to get shot :D

People's situations are different and I suppose we could do scenario spinning ad infinitum.

I know for my situation - if someone is in my house they are not an acquaintance, friend, family member or neighbor.

My house is made of normal drywall with hollow spaces in between. I really have no good cover anywhere, and I think yelling out “Who goes there?” or “freeze !” or something like that is just going to put me in danger.

I’m not trying to lay a trap for anyone, and if someone is trying to bust down my door from outside the home, I’m all for shouting and advising them that I am armed and calling the police… but if they’ve gotten into my home, I’m not a big fan of revealing my location. I have no idea how many intruders or their locations. For me, I think it’s just a recipe for getting shot.
 
If someone's eyes are fully night-adapted, it doesn't take much light to actually hurt and cause reflexive blinking and flinching. As mentioned, just a quick flash will blind someone who is fully night-adapted.
I was at an IDPA match where we had a "night" stage, and even in low-light (for safety) and standing behind the firing line, a flash of light was dazzling.
A quick flash of light into the corner of a room can give time to ID anyone present, yet avoid covering them unintentionally with the gun muzzle, if the light is mounted on the gun; with the added benefit of briefly blinding them, if they are looking towards you.
We are all hoping, of course, that "they" aren't wearing NVGs...:(
 
I came across a good read concerning a self-defense shooting in a Houston home invasion, using a weapon mounted light. Unfortunately, I've been unable to find it again to link to it; but here are the details as I remember them:

Homeowner knew he had intruders. He and his wife forted up in the master bedroom and announced they were armed and would shoot if they entered. Attackers responded by shooting into the master bedroom from the hallway. Homeowner exited to bedroom to deal with this. He used his weapon light to spot/ID attacker #1, who actually stopped shooting and lifted his gunhand to shield his eyes - just in time to catch a load of 00 buck in the upper torso/head. Homeowner turned off light and moved location slightly, then shined light where he thought second guy was, located him and fired second shot of 00 buck. He again turned off the light and moved. He turned light back on and confirmed second attacker was down and not moving. He then confirmed attacker #1 was still out of action.

Somewhere in all the hubub, the homeowner caught a round in the abdomen but was souped up on adrenaline and did not realize it until afterwards and therefore doesn't know when it happened. IIRC, he had around $68,000 in medical bills ultimately; but survived and no other innocent was injured.

Some of the things that struck me about the incident were:

1. Despite the fact he had warned he was armed and the first attacker was actively shooting, attacker #1 stopped shooting when he was lit up and did an instinctive reaction to the light that gave the homeowner an advantage.

2. At some point, the homeowner got shot, so it is entirely possible the light drew fire from the second attacker while he was dealing with the first.

3. I don't have a crystal ball to see into alternate futures; but it seems like a light switch in the hallway would have left the homeowner more exposed in this case.
 
FWIW, . . . I've been an electrician since 1964, . . . running a light circuit throughout the house, . . . one switch in the bed room, . . . is a real no brainer.

Also, . . . putting the light switches at the edge of the entrance to all rooms is easy to do.

Either one gives the home owner the advantage, . . . especially the first one. It would depend on the location, of course, . . . but almost any house with either a basement or an accessable attic, . . . could be wired up so lights come on in each room with one switch, . . . and it should not be that hard to do, . . . unless you live in Chicago. That should "light up" the bad guys.

May God bless,
Dwight
 
I personally run a light/laser on my carry and HD guns so I can always identify my target. That being said, if you're in my house and I shoot you legally, but accidentally it sucks to be you. Life isn't fair and you got screwed by the dice. I'd rather be safe than sorry later on.
 
Motorhead, you can't just open a discussion like this without a propper acronym; it's a TLS (Tactical Light Switch). All kidding aside, why is your house dark to start with?

Our homes are the one place that we have the most control of our own circumstances, our own environment. It is also the one place where we can actually implement a plan for the increased safety and security of our family.

Take advantage of the newer flourescent lamps that are available. They boast longer life and higher energy efficiencies - use them. How much could it cost to leave a few well thought out lights on in your home full time? A few bucks a month?

The propper use and employment of hand held lights is a noteworthy discussion, as there are many different opinions; however, if your question is why not use the TLS, why not leave it on?
 
That being said, if you're in my house and I shoot you legally, but accidentally it sucks to be you.
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It's going to suck to be you too when you get through paying the damages for the "accidental" shooting in civil court. It may be a legal shooting, but if it's accidental, you're going to be paying for it big time.
 
Shawn Thompson
Motorhead, you can't just open a discussion like this without a propper acronym; it's a TLS (Tactical Light Switch). All kidding aside, why is your house dark to start with?
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Shawn, I have been enjoying the comments and wanted to maintain the general nature of my question without getting too specific. But since you asked, my house is not all that dark, at least on the main floor. I have a ranch style house with a walkout basement. On the main floor I have several LED nightlights and we leave a low-watt fluorescent bulb on over the stove. I don't like stubbed toes and this takes care of that problem. Except for in the kitchen, though, I'm not sure how well I could identify friend or foe. So, I'll flip on the TLS before making a life-changing decision.

We have wood floors that have squeaky places. This would probably be my greatest advantage, since I known where they are and what each one sounds like.

In the basement, I just have an LED at the bottom of the stairs. After that, it's quite dark and quiet down there.

BTW, we have an empty nest, just the wife and me. We had a dog when the boys were still here, but she has now passed. She was a golden retriever. Great dog, but she would have met an intruder by wagging her tail and wanting to play.
 
If Im on the street there is no switch to flip.. I cant guarntee what the environment will or wont provide for me....

Now I understand some people also want them for the home which isnt the worst idea unless you have power that never goes out and there is no way you might ever be subject to a civil disturbance or natural disaster.

After hurricane Rita I had no power at all for 8 days and people were going wild.... The odds of needing a light might be low but better to have it an not need it than need it and not have it.
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You had people going wild after Rita? Why? Where do you live? Up Waller way we had no issues in either Rita or Ike.
 
I use cheap nightlights that plug into wall outlet in my house...not to bright, but you can see things at night.
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Ditto. its not for security but to see about at night and get downstairs if an ancient wiener dog decides its time to go out. It does have a good effect in illuminating reasonably well for someone familiar with the house, but less well for someone not experienced with the house.
 
Here are some thoughts. When we are pie-ing a room with a flashlight, how is that not giving away your position when you have a flashlight? Guy in the dark sees you blinking your light on and off all the way to the room he is hiding in. He knows you're coming. He probably even heard footsteps or noise from the squeaky floor, or you kicking a child's toy left on the floor that your blinky flashlight didn't pick up. Then when you pie his room with your fancy flashlight, suppose you don't shine the light in his corner? Suppose he's in the other corner. Think he ain't gonna know what direction to shoot? Suppose you blind him with your flashlight - so what? He's the bad guy. He doesn't have to identify his target before he shoots. He can just blaze away with his eyes closed at room distance in the direction the light came from.

This is all assuming there is someone out to get you or willing to fight you for what you have. A more likely scenario is as soon as the burglar hears someone get out of bed and someone turns on the lights (or sees a blinky blinky light coming from the hallway) he'll get the heck out of there. Most don't want to die for a laptop or some extra oxy. But for the ones that do, that's why we have firearms, to fight if we have to.

I don't think there is a right answer here. But in my house at night I turn on the lights. I consider flashlights to use when power's out or if I have no other way to illuminate an area. Not saying I'm right, just what I do.
 
zenner22 said:
Here are some thoughts. When we are pie-ing a room with a flashlight, how is that not giving away your position when you have a flashlight?
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OK, let's think this through. We are entering a room and "pieing" the room to clear the corners. That room is so dark that we can't use ambient light and dark adapted eyes to identify where a person might be or move, so an external light is necessary.

Now, unless the room/hallway I am exiting happens to be even darker still, I am going to be backlit as I move through the doorway. Even in relative darkness, I will stand out clearly to someone in the room. So is it better for the person in that room to see me; but I don't see him? Or is better for me to turn on a little can of sunshine as I move through that door that will cause his pupils to constrict and allow me to see into the darker room as well?

And yes, even in good conditions, clearing a house is dangerous. Even more in low-light. That is why people who do it for a living tend to have long guns, body armor, flashlights and friends with all of those things.

However, mostly you are describing poor tactics in using light as a reason not to use a light. A better approach is to get some formal training in when and how to use a light, and then use it that way.
 
Mr Roberts, you have some good points. I wonder, however, if flashlight techniques are more valuable for law enforcement applications or when the power is out as opposed to a homeowner searching his own house for a potential burglar? I don't have the answer to that. I still wonder whether a homeowner should search his own house in the dark for no reason or if it makes more sense to turn on lights as he goes.

I guess this thread has me thinking, which is good. I'll do some experiments in my house in the next couple days and see what would work best in my situation. I have small nightlights on in various rooms throughout the house too. Don't know if that changes anything or not.
 
mostly you are describing poor tactics in using light as a reason not to use a light. A better approach is to get some formal training in when and how to use a light, and then use it that way.
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And /thread.
 
While I'm not a fan of pistol mounted lights... A person who's been properly trained in the use of one IMO may have an advantage. Any flashlight will give away your general position, and progression. I suggest that people use a method not discussed here as well as others that have been suggested.
Patience. Wait and see what happens... Say nothing do nothing. Give the police time to arrive. Be prepared to use deadly force... but dont become the agressor. Even in your own house. Give the intruder time to make mistakes. Wait for help. Just because a law says you MAY do something dont mean you MUST do it.
 
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