Everyday, I scan the Internet looking for personal safety stories that I can learn from. After all, there’s so much going on in this world that we can always learn something from a natural disaster, mall shooting, or a home invasion, to name a few.
When thinking about home invasions some people probably believe it’s going to be a lone intruder or maybe two people at most. But recently, a woman in Alabama had to defend herself against four people trying to bust their way into her home.
What happened is that earlier in the day, the four people knocked on the woman’s door and asked to use her phone. The woman told the group no and refused to let them in.
This was obviously a smart move because it’s never a good idea to open the door to a stranger, especially when there are four of them. It’s also important to remember that a significant number of criminals case homes before they break into them. They’ll pretend to be a vacuum cleaner salesman or to work for a pest control company.
Again, don’t open the door to these guys and in a firm voice let them know you won’t open the door. The last thing you want to do is sound weak or scared because then the criminal will think you’re going to be an easy victim.
Apparently, the group of four wasn’t deterred from the woman refusing to open the door, because later that evening at around 9:30pm they went back to the house. But this time, instead of knocking on the door they began kicking the door down and eventually forced their way inside the house.
The woman was armed with a gun and opened fire as the four came into the house. The first criminal was shot several times and ended up dying at the scene. The other three home invaders fled on foot and were eventually caught.
Thankfully, the woman wasn’t injured and thank goodness she had a gun and was prepared to use it.
After reading this woman’s story, the important question we should all be asking ourselves is would we survive if four people kicked their way into our home?
On my nightstand is my home defense gun inside a rapid access gun safe made by Gunvault. The current home defense gun I’m using is a Sig Sauer P226. (picture below.) This gun can hold 15 rounds, plus one in the chamber for a total of 16 rounds. I’m confident that I can get the job done with 16 rounds but I have a spare magazine on my nightstand with an additional 15 rounds just to be safe.
You’ll notice on the picture above that I have a Viridian laser/light combination attached to my home defense gun. This allows me to have a light on my gun so I can see at night and also a laser to help insure I’m hitting my target.
Again, if four people bust through my door I’m confident with my current set up. Plus, my wife also has her Glock 19, which holds 15 rounds plus one in the chamber and she’s got a spare magazine too.
Most likely, since criminals aren’t too intelligent they’ll also come through the same door making it easier to defend yourself. But what if you were dealing with highly sophisticated criminals who all entered through different doors?
Well, you could secure yourself in a bedroom, call police, and only open fire if they kicked their way into the bedroom. However, if you’ve got kids or guests living in a basement then it may not be possible to quickly get everyone into the same room.
In this case, you’ll have to move and shoot and deal with each intruder as they present themselves. This is why if you have a gun for home defense, it’s critical to take firearms training where you practice moving and shooting and dealing with multiple threats.
Also, if your spouse has a gun too, each of you could take a different exit but you would obviously want to train together to make sure you don’t accidentally shoot each other.
The bottom line is, every home invasion is different and it may be one person or five people who are high on drugs and willing to do whatever it takes to get valuables from your home.
So, take a few minutes today and play the “what if” game. What if four people kicked their way inside your home at 9:30pm tonight? Would you become a victim or would you be able to defend yourself?
