We had a burglar pay our apartment complex a visit last night (1 Viewer)

[Todd H]

Here's how it happened...

My fiance was returning from work around 11:35 PM last night when she ran into our next door neighbor who also returns from work around the same time. As they were chatting in front of our door, my neighbor noticed someone at the window of an apartment down from ours (our complex is small with only six apartments side by side).

At first he thought it was the guy that lived there. As he looked harder, he realized that it was someone trying to get into the apartment through the window. He screams at the guy, which causes him to take off running. My neighbor then takes off after him. Seeing this, my fiance runs in the door crying and screaming. She runs up the stairs and wakes me up telling me about it. I get dressed and walk outside to check it out.

In the end, my neighbor didn't catch the guy (he does come close though). And what about the guy that lived in the apartment being broken into? He was actually at home at the time and heard the guy trying to get in. Fortunately for the burglar, he was run off before he got in since the guy that lived there was waiting for him with gun in hand ready to defend himself.

Needless to say, I got zero sleep because my fiance was freaked out the entire night. Now I have to worry about her when she gets home late. Looks like I need to start staying up every night and make sure she gets in the front door safetly.

 

[Mort Corey]

Sounds like the friend chasing the thief made an error. Had the burglar made entrance it sounds as if it would have been a one way ticket. Is there sufficient exterior lighting in your complex?

Mort

 

[Joe Szott]

Get your fiance some pepper spray she can hold in her hand on the way home every night, and never surprise her when she comes in.

 

[Mort Corey]

And to make sure the wind isn't blowing

 

[Claude M]

get a gun, make sure it was reported to the cops.

 

[Todd H]

There's plenty of lighting. From what they said this guy was pretty blatant about it.

Me and my fiance discussed buying a gun last night. I have my reservations about it however.

 

[Mort Corey]

If you are not extremely familiar with using firearms, it's probably not the best of ideas. A shotgun, for home defense purposes, is the best weapon to stop an intruder. That said, you must thoroughly think about using deadly force before the fact. If you're not 110% sure that you (or your SO) are able and willing to use that kind of force and are aware of the ramifications (both legal and moral) then it's not the solution for you.

Mort

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

A 12 gauge Mossberg model 500 shotgun set can be purchased for about $225 on sale most places. It will include a 18.5" straight "home defense" barrel and also a longer barrel with a modified choke for shooting birds and skeet. This is an inexpensive and very useful firearm. Bird shot is cheap at Wal-Mart for about $14 for 100 shells. Shooting skeet beats any video game I ever saw. Get a small box of OO buckshot for home defense.

So far I've shot hundreds of skeets but no burglarers.....

 

[SethH]

If you have any reservations about the gun, I would hold off on it. Either don't do it, or you should both take a class to become comfortable with them.

I would suggest a tazer if it is legal in your area. They are a little controversial, but IMO they get the job done, and they do it without killing people 99% of the time. You could also go old-school and just have an aluminum baseball bat handy close to the couch or bed.

 

[Paul Simmons]

One of these babies should do the trick.



Small diameter to get a good grip, light enough to swing with ease, hard enough to knock someone out cold. In dire situations, you could lunge it at the perpetrator

 

[Todd H]

I've used plenty of guns in my life. I live in the South and grew up hunting. I just don't have a lot of interest in owning a gun again. I do own a few softball bats though and I know how to swing them.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

A pump shotgun would be the best home defense. Easy to use, easy to aim, birdshot is less likely to go through walls and injure neighbors, does not require the training or legal loopholes of a handgun and there is no sound more distinctive and frightening to intruders than racking the pump of a shotgun.

 

[Micheal]

Forget the gun, your wife will probably end up freaking out and killing an innocent person.

She doesn't sound like a calm person under pressure by your description so far. Definitely not the type that should have access to a gun in the house.

 

[Dennis*G]

The guy heard someone trying to get in, and instead of turning on a light or making noise to scare them away, he armed himself and was going to kill?? Did he call the cops at all?

I'd stay away from that guy!

 

[Glenn Overholt]

Forget the pump - how about just a good recording that you can turn on? If I heard a pump from the other side of whatever I was breaking into I'd run like hell!

Glenn

 

[Joe Szott]

Unless you are serious about learning to use a gun you buy for home protection (ie - classes or range shooting), you are better off without one. Statistically, when someone is shot during a robbery/whatever and they had a gun, the majority of the time they were shot with their own gun. Essentially, they didn't know what to do and it was either taken from them, a struggle fired the weapon, or they simply shot themselves trying to figure it out in the heat of the moment.

Don't get a pistol for her to carry, get something else (taser, pepper spray.) Or best of all take a one day self defense course that gives you a huge improvement in your chances to escape/control the situation.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

This is information from a flawed study that has been debunked numerous times, even by (honest) pro-gun control groups. Unfortunately, it has taken on a life of it's own due to "a lie repeated enough becomes fact", despite being highly inaccurate both statistically and factually. I don't want to get into the same old debate because this is not the place, but if someone wants the information about this oft cited study, please PM me, I'll give you the links.

 

[Eric_L]

according to whom?

 

[Scott Bourden]

I would have given him a pat on the back. Almost took out another scumbag.

 

[Joe Szott]

I don't know, the cop trainers that were teaching us self defense vs. guns seemed pretty sure that the best way to get hurt was to carry a weapon you don't know how to use.

After years of martial training if someone pulls a knife or gun on me and doesn't know how to use it, I'll have that weapon in my hands before they even know what happened. If someone is hesitant to pull the trigger and doesn't know to keep proper distance at all times (~6 ft), that's all it takes. Even if you didn't know the take away techniques, given that same situation a normal criminal could grab the weapon/hand and a struggle ensues.

Bottom line whether you believe the study or not: don't carry a gun if you don't know how and when to use it. It just isn't worth the risk.