My gun proves itself worthy

This goes to show you never know when something will happen.

Living in a house off campus of Murray State University

Friday night my girlfriend and I went to a rodeo event got a blizzard and came home to watch a movie. While we went out, my roommates met up at the bars with their buddies for a regular night of safe and fun drinking. Went to bed after the movie around 11:30.

I am awaken at 2:30 AM to very loud banging on my window as if someone is trying to break it. I reach only a foot away from my head and grad my new Springfield XD .40 and assume the position that someone is coming through the window(I cannot see outside due to a closed blind and condensation. Seconds later the banging stops, followed by the sound of someone kicking the front door. I leave my bedroom and position myself behind the front door to have a position when he enters.

Almost immediately the door is kicked in and I am prepared to defend my life and that of my girlfriend. A man charges through the door and starts running into my kitchen. I run behind him and push him as hard as i can into the wall by the kitchen door. He hits hard, turns around, and runs out the front door as soon as he sees i have my gun drawn on him.

The man never returned. It was later found out that before he came to my house he had knocked out two innocent guys at the bar from behind(including one of my roommates) and was eventually picked up at the hospital with a broken hand.
When he came into my house I had my adrenaline flowing but my body was still not awake for a fight if it was to come about. If i did not have my firearm with me while I was sleeping something very bad could have happened considering the man was twice my size and under the influence of some substance.

I am proud my gun did its job even if it wasn't fired. This is why i believe law abiding citizens should be allowed to carry their guns on campus.

Faith, Freedom, and Firearms is the life I choose to live.

I would have to say that you did well. You are both safe and no one was hurt. You cant go wrong there. The only thing i would have done is yell at him before he entered so that he knew what he was getting himself into. Then when he came through the door he would have had a very bad ending.

I agree with tat2ed_guy. I would have given him a verbal warning, had my GF call 911, and if that door opened he'd be lucky to make it past the threshold.

Edit: Sorry, forgot to say the first thing I wanted to say. You handled it very well. Yet another example of a gun being used to stop a crime without a shot being fired.

your gun didnt do anything, niether did you!

i call BS, or stupid..
you should have yelled at the window!
you should have yelled at the door!
you should have SHOT the man that came thru that door,, IMMEDIATELY!!!

This is a copy and paste from the other identical thread on this,


Let me get this straight . You have a gun in your hand ready to defend yourself and you are positioned where you could defend yourself before he actually bust your door open and he still gets into your house runs into your kitchen and you make physical contact with this guy ? I wasn't there but I can't see it going this way if it were to happen to me. Maybe I read your post wrong but if the guy busted your door down while you were in a good position waiting and ready to defend yourself and he still gets in, runs through your house, makes physical contact with you and runs out of your house, I don't see where you ever did anything to defend yourself or your girlfreind. I hope you called the police and are at least pressing the burglary charges. Like I said I wasn't there and I'm withholding judgement ( kinda) untill I have more info. Glad you were not hurt though

Sounds like you just got lucky, lucky that you did not wind up westling on the floor of your kitchen, losing control of your firearm and getting shot with your own gun.

In this case, I don't think the pistol helped you much at all. You need to think about what a firearm is for, and it anit for wraslen.

Steve

Glad it worked out okay. As for your poll, I don't know the laws in KY--are you allowed to shoot someone for breaking into your home if they haven't displayed a credible threat to you? I know that most people like to respond with "he would've been dead as soon as he stepped foot in my home" but that really is horrible legal advise in some states. If it is legal in your state to shoot and kill someone because they break into your home, then yes, you should have shot him as soon as he did so. If your state has one of those "if you have legitimate fear for your safety" laws then just make sure you have a phone number for a lawyer so you can shoot a BG when they break in and have some legal help ready right away. You may also want to work on your voice commands, because it seems like you just stood there silently while he broke down the door. A firm, strong command could have sent the BG running before he had the chance to hurt your door, and may save you from having to kill someone in the future. Also, reinforce your doorjamb so it can't be kicked in so easily

Did you do it right?

Yes you did. Nobody can you tell you screwed up if your uninjured, your loved ones are uninjured and the guy is technically in custody.


Your alive, no shots fired no possibility of civil suits for shooting another individual, lesser chance of mental issues to due to the taking of another human beings life. I say you did it right.

Where you prepared is the real question? I guess that is up for debate.

Not a good idea to not call 911 or direct your girlfriend to call.
Not a good idea to give up your ambush point, especially if you have cover or are concealed from the invader.
Not a good idea to leave your girl friend unarmed to try and apprehend the invader.

However, learn from this experience. Carrying a gun is a false safety unless you answer this question yourself. Am I capable of using deadly force?

If you can’t answer this question then a gun is not a good option for you to use in your self defense plan. If you are not capable of using a gun, then maybe you should consider a can of pepper spray or a taser.

My outside opinion, take it for what its worth, is you either you may not be capable of using deadly force, or you need to take some serious training teaching you when you can and can’t use deadly force.

Not calling 911 was a mistake however; you walked away from it. So in the grand scheme of themes it may not have even mattered in this instance.

In the future, probably not to a good of an idea to give up your biggest tactical advantage by trying to apprehend somebody that is not your job. Whether you think you did or didn't your actions suggest you tried to perform an apprehension of some sort.

I have to agreed with .45ACP. Your gun is to protect your life and the lives of your loved ones. You were lucky this time. You are going to be "armchair quarterbacked" no matter what you do or did. You and your girlfriend need to work out a defense plan together in the event something like this happens again. You don't say whether or not she is into guns and would like to learn to shoot. Regardless of that, she needs to call 911 immediately, without being told, so the police are on their way to your location. I would have yelled at the BG that you're armed and will shoot if he comes in your house. I don't think that behind the door is a good place; I would have taken cover in the event that HE is armed. A total stranger is breaking into your house in the middle of the night; you know nothing about him, whether or not he has a gun or a knife, etc. Protect yourself first by taking cover where you can observe the intruder. Your girlfriend needs to have locked herself in somewhere after she calls 911. This is why it is so important to work out in advance what you will do should this happen again. Things happen quickly, which I am sure you know by now, and you can't be making it up as you go, there's no time for that. If, after you have warned the BG and he still breaks in, I would shoot. Don't know what the laws in Ky are, but Washington is a "stand your ground" state, which means you have a right to defend yourself anywhere you have a right to be, not just in your home. Of course it's wise to retreat and get away if you can, but if someone invades your home, retreat is not an option. I also agree with not making physical contact with the BG if you can help it, especially someone who is bigger and stronger than you. You got the gun so you wouldn't have to do that, right? Just some things to think about. I am glad you and your GF are okay. I also sleep with my .45 beside my bed, within arm's reach. I have a 65 lb chocolate lab that will let me know if someone tries to break in. I sleep pretty good at night.

Since you came through it unharmed you obviously didn't do it "wrong", but you didn't do it right, either. You should have yelled at the guy when he was knocking on the window or the door and told him you had a gun. As SOON as he broke down the door and entered your home it should have been a double-tap to center mass.

NEVER get within arms reach of a "perp" if at all possible.

All that being said, I'm glad you and your girlfriend are okay.

A couple of points

Everyone is going to armchair QB your story. Off the bat, things turned out OK for you, but in my opinion you were extremely lucky and things could have gone quite a bit differently.

As it's been said over and over, always call 911. Not only will it get a cops and ambulance on the way, but it'll serve you well if you wind up in court because you shot an intruder. 911 tapes go a long way to prove that you called for help, and were in fear of you life and the life of your girlfriend.

Shouting a verbal warning when the intruder was at the window, and again when he was at the door might have dissuaded him. If nothing else the warning would have wound up on a 911 tape (had you called) and if you have neighbors in close proximity they would also act as witnesses to say that yes, you did everything you could to warn him off before he busted down your door. Also, you mentioned you have room mates who were out at a bar that night. There is always the possibility that they got drunk and decided to play a prank on you. (We all do stupid things when we're drunk). Shouting the verbal warning that you have a gun and WILL shoot would have given them an opportunity to quickly sober up and identify themselves, lest they become bullet riddled.

Finally, when the man kicked your door in and entered the house, the second you saw that it WASN"T one of your room mates and identified him as a threat (you state he came all the way into your kitchen, which means he definately had an intent to violate your home and God knows what else) you should have shot center mass. If you wanted to tackle him down and try to apprehend him then perhaps you should have worn some football pads and carried handcuffs instead of a .40 pistol.

The intruder was obviously under the influence of something, and if he managed to get the upper hand during your scuffle he could have killed you. Maybe he was armed himself. Never know. Even if he wasn't I'm sure he could have strangled the life out of you, beat you to death, or found a way to take your gun from you and then you and the GF are basically at his drunken and perverted mercy, and since you DIDN"T dial 911, the cops aren't even on their way yet.

Glad you survived to fight another day. I'd suggest making a mental 'after action report' and work out things to go a bit more smoothly/safely in the future.

From http://www.kentucky-lawyer-dui.com/castle_doctrine.htm


Kentucky Castle Doctrine Deadly Force KRS503.080 KRS 503.080
In Kentucky the castle doctrine says that there is no requirement to retreat when you are threatened with deadly force or when you are defending your home from an arsonist or burglar that is attempting to commit a crime.
Under the castle doctrine you are permitted to use deadly force.
However, just because the law permits you to use deadly force to protect yourself does not mean that you wont be prosecuted or sued anyway. Essentially here is the Castle Doctrine Statute. A short paper on the Castle Doctrine is here however this is a draft and it is not yet complete.

KRS 503.080 Protection of Property (Castle Doctrine)

(1) The use of physical force by a defendant upon another person is justifiable when the defendant believes that such force is immediately necessary to prevent:

(a) The commission of criminal trespass, robbery, burglary, or other felony involving the use of force, ...

(2) The use of deadly physical force by a defendant upon another person is justifiable under subsection (1) only when the defendant believes that the person against whom such force is used is:

(b) Committing or attempting to commit a burglary, robbery, or other felony involving the use of force, or under those circumstances permitted pursuant to KRS 503.055, of such dwelling; or

(c) Committing or attempting to commit arson of a dwelling or other building in his possession.

(3) A person does not have a duty to retreat if the person is in a place where he or she has a right to be.

Effective: July 12 2006
http://www.lrc.ky.gov/krs/503-00/080.pdf


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Castle Doctrine use of Deadly Force KRS 503.080

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Thursday, August 26, 2010

I can sum up real simply how I would have handled it:

Trespassers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.

Glad you are safe. However I personally would never make physical contact with any one with a firearm at the ready. If a struggle ensues you could end shot or the gun going off and hitting someone else. Always keep an intruder at a distance if you are armed. Just my two cents.

On reflection, how do we here on this thread know that this even happened? The OP has not posted again on this thread and offered no link to a police report, newspaper article, etc. We may have just been trolled.

protector84 said:

I can sum up real simply how I would have handled it:

Trespassers will be shot. Survivors will be shot again.

Click to expand...

I agree with Protector84's quote. Instead of BEHIND the door I'd have been in front of the door, about 8 feet maybe, and in my case having options it would have been 12 guage 00 Buck in my lil Coach gun. No civil suits if there's no survivor. Break through my door and be forcibly blown back out.

I think the story is partially or completely fabricated. What are the odds that a crazed drunk person is going to knock somebody out at a bar then immediately go to that person's place of residence and kick in the door? Either the assailant knew the victim well enough to know where he lived, or stole his ID(to get his addres) or the story is BS. I'm leaning towards BS.

Luke said:

I think the story is partially or completely fabricated. What are the odds that a crazed drunk person is going to knock somebody out at a bar then immediately go to that person's place of residence and kick in the door? Either the assailant knew the victim well enough to know where he lived, or stole his ID(to get his addres) or the story is BS. I'm leaning towards BS.

Click to expand...

Psh. If it was fake, the OP would've had two girlfriends, three blizzards, and an UZI.

Welcome to OCDO!

Luke said:

I think the story is partially or completely fabricated. What are the odds that a crazed drunk person is going to knock somebody out at a bar then immediately go to that person's place of residence and kick in the door? Either the assailant knew the victim well enough to know where he lived, or stole his ID(to get his addres) or the story is BS. I'm leaning towards BS.

Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum, Luke. I agree with you. Usually in the case of a real encounter, the OP(original poster)does post again on the thread and engages in conversation with the other posters. This hasn't happened on this particular thread and he never offered any proof that his story was factual, such as a police report or media report. This happens from time to time, but not often. I have found most of the people on here to be knowledgeable and helpful.

Ruby said:

On reflection, how do we here on this thread know that this even happened? The OP has not posted again on this thread and offered no link to a police report, newspaper article, etc. We may have just been trolled.

Click to expand...

Yeah...I'm starting to think the same.....I am surprised though…most of these guys try to make a follow up post explaining that the only reason he did not “bust a cap” on the poor dude is because he was a superduper secret ninja warrior and did not want to kill if he did not need to, but because of his training he could have killed the BG with 1 finger. Ha ha ha ha.