...

[Notblake]

Hi all, update from my friend the police never showed up or called back, again this was a 911 call! Most important this was a wake up call he said having newborns and kids wife, at times you forget to plan! During our usual conversations after what happened he will keep a 870 in a discrete location in his most occupied room in his home, when he's home so if this happens again he will be readily to protect his family. Lastly, please cut the argument I hear from some of the responses.

Oh good loaded guns and kids.......... in the most occupied room in his home ......... GOOD

[Foriegn power]

Just thinking about the situation pissed me off how the so call, LA's finest was no where to be seen! Again this was a 911 call, my friend had somewhat of an emergency this suspect running around his yard could have just burglarized or even worse committed a 187 on the neighbors who knows if he came back.

[FatalKitty]

Hi all, update from my friend the police never showed up or called back, again this was a 911 call! Most important this was a wake up call he said having newborns and kids wife, at times you forget to plan! During our usual conversations after what happened he will keep a 870 in a discrete location in his most occupied room in his home, when he's home so if this happens again he will be readily to protect his family. Lastly, please cut the argument I hear from some of the responses.

911 call:
"uh yea, I was just minding my own business, watching the Office when some dude jumped over my FENCE INTO MY BACKYARD! i got scared, and yelled at him, then he ran away! please send help!"

i'm not surprised they didn't show up

[Notblake]

Police are dispatched in order of severity of the emergency, if your friend calls 911 and said, "someone jumped in my back yard, then jumped out..." the 911 operator would probably say, "okay, what is your emergency sir?" your friend is in NO immediate danger. the cop is being dispatched to take a report, your friend can wait a few hours to tell the cop about the guy that did him no harm. The police were probably busy responding to actual emergencies.


I'm curious is your 'good friend' actually you?

[MossbergMan]

Interesting thread on the handgun side about carrying your gun in the home. Being prepared or paranoid? The OP's friend got a reality check/wakeup call. It really does happen that fast without any warning. One minute you are safe and secure and the next there is someone (or more) in your space with intentions unknown, what do you do?
Good suggestions and not so good suggestions have been made. But perhaps we could morph a few and come up with a fairly comprehensive plan.
Early warning, essensial. Dogs and alarm systems. Even if you are home, arm the alarm. Lock the doors. If you like the breeze invest in security screen doors. If you can't afford an alarm system, make it so that anyone entering your home will make noise. That's where dogs come in, even the "ankle biters" will alert you to strangers.
Plan to deal with an intrusion. Just like a fire or earthquake, nobody wants one, but we plan for one...or at least you should.
If someone gets in, what is your PLAN? Safe room? Firearms access? Communications?
Don't rely on land lines to work. Have a cellphone and flashlight accessable to you also.
Know the difference between cover and concealment.
Your best defense is usually going to be in your own home (both tactically and legally). You know your layout, they probably don't.
Start your plan today and be sure everyone in your family KNOWS their role in the plan.

[Foriegn power]

MossbergMan, great suggestions you have just laid out.

[BigDogatPlay]

After reading through all the posts I'm still trying to figure out just what laws were broken, aside from a simple trespass which does not warrant the use of deadly force.

Side note.... once 911 is called, it's best to not be up and wandering around, even inside you home, visibly armed. A responding LEO, assuming for a moment that they actually showed up to the call, seeing someone armed, is going to put that person at gunpoint. Once that happens, anything can happen.

[nrakid88]

If you call 911 and you know your going to stay armed until they get there, it wouldn't hurt to mention that your armed to the operator, along with a good description of yourself (clothes, ethnicity, height, weight) so that the responding officer knows who not to shoot.

[ZombieTactics]

Holy crap ... threads like this make me wonder if we should just admit that some people really are too stupid to own weapons and leave it at that.

[resident-shooter]

Holy crap ... threads like this make me wonder if we should just admit that some people really are too stupid to own weapons and leave it at that.

Or too paranoid, as I said before?

[Merc1138]

I don't get it. So after the guy took off, then "your friend" went and grabbed the unloaded shotgun, and loaded it, and went back downstairs?

First, if your shotgun is your home defense weapon, keep it loaded. I keep mine loaded and unchambered, I can quickly actuate the pump and make it ready if I need to, a lot faster than loading the magazine.

Second, the guy left, and your friend and his family were not in any danger, 911 is not going to respond to that. "Help, a man appeared, didn't do anything, and ran off!" they aren't going to send cars to your house with lights and sirens blaring to save the day. Seriously, what do you expect them to do? Give you a hug? Yes, tresspassing is an issue, but the guy took off after it was apparently made clear that he wasn't wanted on the property, didn't actually break in to the house. There isn't much, if anything the police can do without knowing exactly who the man running through the backyards was.

Now yes, it is correct to contact the police regarding the incident, as the person may have indeed been someone they were looking for, but beyond that, if the cops don't have anything to go on, they'll treat it as a non-emergency, which from your description of your friend's incident, seems to have been the case.

[Notblake]

Holy crap ... threads like this make me wonder if we should just admit that some people really are too stupid to own weapons and leave it at that.

QFT


I'd say there should be an IQ test involved but we cant give the hippies even one inch, they will take a mile.

[Jicko]

"Not a wise"(I would want to use stronger words) move to "confront" the adversary without any defensive means.

Situational awareness 101....

Even if you are surprised by the adversary, you should RUN! Retreat into your home, secure your perimeters (lock windows and doors).... and arm yourself....

Forget about the "talk to" or "verbal challenge"..... "tough guy" mentality should not apply here.... if you can retreat and prepare yourself BEFORE you are detected, that is even better....

And once you are "setup", and if the threat escalate, you will be in a much better position....

PS. time for him to take some martial art and self defense training..... to get himself to an awareness elevated state....

[DHart]

I stumbled into this forum through a Google search for some Mossberg 590 information.

Clicked into this thread... I don't know why. This is the first thread on this forum that I have read.

Even as a former Californian (I now reside in Washington State) the tone in some of the posts in this thread amazes me.

"Call 911". Well, that's a good thing to do for sure, but very unlikely to keep yourself ALIVE. One can never know the intent of a trespasser. Regardless of the seemingly benign appearances of the trespasser, your life could well be at risk.

I seriously doubt that I will ever need to defend my life against an evil-doer. I live a relatively tranquil life devoid of bad places and desperate people... but that doesn't mean that through some weird twist I won't come face to face with another human being, on my property, in my home, or while I am out exploring the countryside... someone who could unflinchingly take my life (for a few dollars of goods or to just to keep from being identified!) just easily as some people swat a fly. There are people like that amongst us.

I'm armed nearly ALL of the time. Pistols, sometimes pistols and a shotgun or three. I do it because I believe it is an individual's responsibility to recognize the potential need for self defense and to be prepared to take on that responsibility. And I also enjoy having and using firearms responsibly. I am fortunate to live in a state which recognizes my right to carry concealed weapons. I am also licensed to do so in Oregon and Utah, which covers quite a few other states as well.

Most of the time when bad stuff goes down, calling 911 is likely to bring good people who will arrive...sometime... to ask questions, write reports, put up yellow tape and begin an investigation. Much of the time, they arrive well after the bad stuff has gone down and is long since concluded.

When seconds count, the police are only minutes away (if you are LUCKY).

In the account reported in this thread, apparently, the police never did arrive. Good thing the trespasser didn't have more evil intent than he did.

Wake up, some of you. 911 is great. But only YOU can defend yourself when evil stares you in the face SUDDENLY, UNEXPECTEDLY. Chances are you will never face that (thank God), but don't think that because you have a phone handy you can rest at ease and rely on the police to protect you. FAR from it. And don't think that because you have a firearm somewhere in your house that you're prepared. Unless you can access that firearm, in a loaded and ready state, immediately or close to it... you may well be SOL when darkness crosses your path.

I do not advocate taking on your own house clearing or citizen's arrest behavior. But I do advocate being proactively armed and skilled at all times. Retreat whenever possible. Call 911 whenever possible. But be armed and prepared to confront evil with great force when and if necessary. It is your responsibility to your self, to your family, to your neighbors to be competent to defend yourself and those close to you whenever possible.

Yes, my life was threatened once and I was fortunate to escape unharmed physically. (Occurred at the Sutro Baths ruins in S.F. while I was taking pictures of a girlfriend there.) I don't ever want to be at the mercy of people who are scumbags ever again. And I'm prepared to NOT be at the mercy of anyone who has no respect for my well being or my life.

If you're a civilized, prosperous, genteel person (what I consider myself to be), it may well come as quite a shock to find yourself suddenly at the mercy of a violent individual who has no more respect for you than for a mosquito. THAT's quite a wake up call! And hopefully, you don't have to learn this stuff at that late point in time.

On another note... think Katrina. Tens of thousands of people living in a major US city suddenly had no 911, no emergency response of any kind, no law, no order. Every man for himself. People were at the mercy of dark-hearted opportunists who took full advantage of the situation - against people who were not prepared to defend themselves or take care of themselves. Any number of events (can you say MAJOR earthquake event? biological terrorist attack?, etc.) could bring about a similarly unexpected sudden turn of events where YOU live, a breakdown of civil order, a loss of law enforcement services. Be prepared, folks, and hope you never need it. Liberal sheeple will look to you for help when they become feeble victims of their own mentality.