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Intruder last night

Tekman

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Apr 22, 2008
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I was woken up at 2 AM by my dog (120lbs of fur and fangs) barking his head off. Pistol and flashlight in hand I went out to the garage where Teddy was trying chew his way through the door. I opened it, looked out and Teddy ran past me around the house. I called him back and closed the door and locked it again.

I went to check the front door (which I locked before bed). A second later the knob rattled then stopped. I opened the curtain to the front room window and there he was standing in front of the window. I blinded him with the flashlight, yelled "Get the f**k off my property or I will shoot you" and he took off like the proverbial bat outta hell. I called 911 and less then 3 minutes later Kennewick PD was on my doorstep.

Turns out he broke into the neighbors house behind me. She's a little old lady that has to wear an oxygen mask lives there. I didn't get any details about what happened there but I will go check on her in a bit.

Kennewick PD came back an hour later and told me that despite the K-9 they had with them that they couldn't find the guy.
______
 

bomber

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Tekman wrote:
Kennewick PD came back an hour later and told me that despite the K-9 they had with them that they couldn't find the guy.
______



You shoulda shot him, I bet they would have found him then. Unless its the law in your state, I don't understand why people give so much fair warning.
 

Tekman

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Cause he presented no immediate threat being outside my window. Had he busted in my door I would have sent him to hell with ragged holes in his body.
 

bomber

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I guess each person has to define their own threshold for what constitutes a threat.

My threshold is a lot lower than that. If they are on my property, and they are trying to enter, they are a threat to my safety and the safety of my family. Someone tried to break into my house awhile ago and they were long gone before the cops arrived. They never found the punks, and I still worry about them coming back.



But, I'm glad you're alright.
 

sha-ul

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asbrand wrote:
/me waves from over at the Armour Archive.

:cool:
you are not the only one registered here:p

unfortunately I barely have time to keep up with the archive.:(
 

Kildars

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bomber wrote:
I guess each person has to define their own threshold for what constitutes a threat.

My threshold is a lot lower than that. If they are on my property, and they are trying to enter, they are a threat to my safety and the safety of my family. Someone tried to break into my house awhile ago and they were long gone before the cops arrived. They never found the punks, and I still worry about them coming back.



But, I'm glad you're alright.
Each person can not define their own threshold -- the law does and the law states shooting through locked doors = bad.
 

bomber

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Kildars wrote:
bomber wrote:
I guess each person has to define their own threshold for what constitutes a threat.

My threshold is a lot lower than that. If they are on my property, and they are trying to enter, they are a threat to my safety and the safety of my family. Someone tried to break into my house awhile ago and they were long gone before the cops arrived. They never found the punks, and I still worry about them coming back.



But, I'm glad you're alright.
Each person can not define their own threshold -- the law does and the law states shooting through locked doors = bad.


a lot of people hold their fire even when they would be within the law. thats what I am talking about.

I'm not talking about shooting through doors. When the bad guys tried to come into my house, they were trying to come through a window. I wasn't very clear about that in my post.
 

Dreamer

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Kildars wrote:
Each person can not define their own threshold -- the law does and the law states shooting through locked doors = bad.

Unless you live in NC....

Here, we can use deadly force to prevent a forcible entry to our home if we are in fear of serious bodily harm or sexua assault, or have reason to believe the intruder is about to commit a felony.
NC GENERAL STATUTE 14‑51.1. Use of deadly physical force against an intruder. (This is commonly called the "Castle Doctrine.")

(a)A lawful occupant within a home or other place of residence is justified in using any degree of force that the occupant reasonably believes is necessary, including deadly force, against an intruder to prevent a forcible entry into the home or residence or to terminate the intruder's unlawful entry (i) if the occupant reasonably apprehends that the intruder may kill or inflict serious bodily harm to the occupant or others in the home or residence, or (ii) if the occupant reasonably believes that the intruder intends to commit a felony in the home or residence.

(b)A lawful occupant within a home or other place of residence does not have a duty to retreat from an intruder in the circumstances described in this section.

Now, I'll admit, that I would probably let an unknown intruder kick the door in before I'd pull the trigger. My house is laid out like a maze, and there is a lot of good cover between the entryway and the rest of the house (especially if I'm upstairs). A BG would have to be moving pretty fast and know the layout of my house to have any sort of advantage once inside, especially if it's night-time.

Plus, a busted-in door frame makes for a much more "easy to explain situation" when the LEO's show up to "collect" the BGs...
 

REX681959

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compmanio365 wrote:
You don't shoot through a closed door or through a window......now the moment said BG crosses the threshold into your domicile, all bets are off.

One of the great things about living in NC.

As Dreamer said you Can ( & I most certainly will ) shoot through a window or door.

:monkey
 

protector84

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One of the key safety rules with firearms is "Know your target and what is beyond it." Shooting through a door does not allow you to see your attacker let alone who is behind him. It could also cause the bullet to go off course or ricochet. Unless the suspected intruder is showing or openly carryinga weapon, I would wait until at least one foot or one hand is already inside the house before firing. It is just a better strategy. There are also legitimate reasons someone may be trying to get in although they would be very rare. Suppose the roof of your house is on fire and you don't know it and the neighbor is trying to save you. Use some common sense. If you cannot even see who is at your door or window, you don't just start firing unless they are actually threatening you. If you don't know your target or what is beyond it and one of your shots hits an innocent person, you will be held liable.

I have an example of something that could have gone bad for an apartment resident. I went to a friend's apartment who I had not been to in such a long time and late at night making it confusing as to which apartment was which. Two identical looking properties were located on each side of the private drives and they all looked the same and the numbers were duplicated as well since the actual addresses had different street numbers. So Apt. 7 would be on one side of the street as well as the other and four other areas and they all looked identical. Sure enough I knocked on the wrong"Apt. 7"and immediately a pitbull comes out of nowhere nearly attacking me and I nearly shot the dog who was unleashed in the front yard. The tenant came out and I realized it was the wrong apartment and went away. Had the dog have bitten me I would have had legal right to shoot it. Had the tenant come out with a gun in a threatening manner I would have also shot him and it would have been a legal shoot. Since I wasn't trying to force entry into the apartment and was simply in the front yard for a legitimate purpose (locating a friend), that doesn't give the tenant the right to use deadly force (such as a vicious dog). State laws differ of course but overreacting is likely to get you prison time. Even if I had banged loudly on the front door trying to get my friend's attention, that doesn't mean I am "breaking in" and the option of the property owner/renter would be to tell me to leave the property or call the police. They couldn't just shoot. If they bang on your doors and windows with their hands, that is disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, and perhaps trespassing in the yard. You better wait until the door starts coming off the hinges or the glass breaks or they have a shovel, hammer, or other weapon in their hand or you are in big trouble.

Some people here sadly seem to be so quick to shoot. Not only is it unethical it is often illegal.
 

Rugerp345

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, North Carolina, USA
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"I guess each person has to define their own threshold for what constitutes a threat. "

So true. Having served in Iraq, it would take a little more for me to decide my life was in danger than it would the average Joe. I've had mortar shells going off near me and bullets kicking sand up in my face.
Unless the badguys bullets are passing within 1 feet of me, my life aint in danger yet! LOL




.
 

SouthernBoy

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May 12, 2007
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Western Prince William County, Virginia, USA
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protector84 wrote:
One of the key safety rules with firearms is "Know your target and what is beyond it." Shooting through a door does not allow you to see your attacker let alone who is behind him. It could also cause the bullet to go off course or ricochet. Unless the suspected intruder is showing or openly carryinga weapon, I would wait until at least one foot or one hand is already inside the house before firing. It is just a better strategy. There are also legitimate reasons someone may be trying to get in although they would be very rare. Suppose the roof of your house is on fire and you don't know it and the neighbor is trying to save you. Use some common sense. If you cannot even see who is at your door or window, you don't just start firing unless they are actually threatening you. If you don't know your target or what is beyond it and one of your shots hits an innocent person, you will be held liable.

I have an example of something that could have gone bad for an apartment resident. I went to a friend's apartment who I had not been to in such a long time and late at night making it confusing as to which apartment was which. Two identical looking properties were located on each side of the private drives and they all looked the same and the numbers were duplicated as well since the actual addresses had different street numbers. So Apt. 7 would be on one side of the street as well as the other and four other areas and they all looked identical. Sure enough I knocked on the wrong"Apt. 7"and immediately a pitbull comes out of nowhere nearly attacking me and I nearly shot the dog who was unleashed in the front yard. The tenant came out and I realized it was the wrong apartment and went away. Had the dog have bitten me I would have had legal right to shoot it. Had the tenant come out with a gun in a threatening manner I would have also shot him and it would have been a legal shoot. Since I wasn't trying to force entry into the apartment and was simply in the front yard for a legitimate purpose (locating a friend), that doesn't give the tenant the right to use deadly force (such as a vicious dog). State laws differ of course but overreacting is likely to get you prison time. Even if I had banged loudly on the front door trying to get my friend's attention, that doesn't mean I am "breaking in" and the option of the property owner/renter would be to tell me to leave the property or call the police. They couldn't just shoot. If they bang on your doors and windows with their hands, that is disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, and perhaps trespassing in the yard. You better wait until the door starts coming off the hinges or the glass breaks or they have a shovel, hammer, or other weapon in their hand or you are in big trouble.

Some people here sadly seem to be so quick to shoot. Not only is it unethical it is often illegal.
Good post. Nicely handled.
 

ocgso

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Mar 2, 2009
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Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
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+1 to that.

You always have to consider him coming back with friends. You try to get into my home, it is the last attempted invasion of your life if I have anything to say about it.

My 2 cents
 

ocgso

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Mar 2, 2009
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Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
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compmanio365 wrote:
You don't shoot through a closed door or through a window......now the moment said BG crosses the threshold into your domicile, all bets are off.
This HIGHLY depends on the state you live in and applicable laws.

In NC, it is more legal to shoot you through the door while you are trying to force entry than to wait until you clear the threshold. I know that is ridiculous, but you are more protected legally by firing before they gain entry in my state.
 
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