Shadows in the Night

[Glock Girl in CA]

My little sister married a wonderful man who is an Army pilot. He is currently serving on his first deployment overseas. She is waiting patiently for him at their home, accompanied by their black lab.

Before he left, he taught her to shoot, and then got her a Glock 17. While he has been away, she hasn't thought much about the gun, and it has remained in its case, unloaded.

Well, that is, until two nights ago.

At 4 am Sister awoke to the sound of footsteps *crunch, crunch, crunch* on the frozen ground. The footfalls also awoke the dog. Both dog and Sister looked at one another and were paralyzed with fear. Crunch, crunch, crunch, and then a shadow passed over her as the figure crossed the bedroom window. She managed to grab her empty gun, and remained frozen in her bed with her frozen dog. Nothing more transpired.

Her bedroom window is in the backyard, and the backyard is in a cul-de-sac with a retaining wall in back. There is no earthly reason ANYONE should have been back there. My thinking is that whoever it was tried the patio door and then left upon discovering it locked. What else would he be doing in the freezing cold at 4 am in a yard that offers no shortcuts?

I Facetimed her and made her load a magazine to keep in her case with her gun and show me she understands how to grip the gun. She does. She will need hollowpoint ammo and plans to purchase some soon. I suppose the lesson here is that we should all have planned exactly what we would do in the case of a home invasion at night. She had never really thought about it, and found herself frozen in fear when a bad situation arose. Her gun was empty, and there is no way in her state of panic that she would have possessed the manual dexterity required to load a magazine. Her doors were locked, but her gun was empty.

If you haven't made your plans, let this be your motivator. I'm fond of you girls! Be safe!
GG

[Spyguy]

Glad to hear she's safe. Since it appears she doesn't have children in the house, she should probably keep the pistol in the nightstand instead of in a case. But my concern is that she doesn't have enough experience to handle a semi-auto pistol in a just-awakened, high-stress situation. A revolver may be a better choice inside her nightstand, with all cylinders loaded except the one under the hammer. That said, I prefer a shotgun for home defense.

May I suggest a home alarm system for her. And some outdoor lighting on a motion sensor in the back yard.

[Glock Girl in CA]

Glad to hear she's safe. Since it appears she doesn't have children in the house, she should probably keep the pistol in the nightstand instead of in a case. But my concern is that she doesn't have enough experience to handle a semi-auto pistol in a just-awakened, high-stress situation. A revolver may be a better choice inside her nightstand, with all cylinders loaded except the one under the hammer. That said, I prefer a shotgun for home defense.

May I suggest a home alarm system for her. And some outdoor lighting on a motion sensor in the back yard.

Thank you, me too! You're right; no kids yet, so gun doesn't need to be locked up. It's currently lying in its case under her bed.Their home is a rental (they have to move every couple years as he continues in his Blackhawk trng) so I doubt she'll put an alarm system in it.

I don't necessarily think a semi auto is more complex or more dangerous than a revolver. I have found that whatever you learn on is fine. I agree that she needs more practice, and so does she. She needs to know how the gun works, comes apart, what the legal issues are, etc. But she's got the tool and knows how to use it if she must. That's worth something.

Oh, and I read lately that experts are starting to change their opinions about shotguns for HD. If I remember right it was that spray of shot could endanger innocents, BG has to be too close, long guns difficult to maneuver... I think Massad Ayoob says to have the hand gun in hand to clear your home/answer the door, but if anything happens, fight your way to your long gun and barricade yourself in your safe room with it until police arrive. What do you think of that?
Best, GG

[Spyguy]

Thank you, me too! You're right; no kids yet, so gun doesn't need to be locked up. It's currently lying in its case under her bed.

Under the bed is not the best place for a pistol, especially a semi-auto (more on this below). She should invest in a nightstand. One with a drawer can be had for about $30 new; can probably find one very cheap at a garage sale. Since she's alone, should probably avoid any Craigslist transactions (unless they can be done somewhere safely away from her home, preferably with a male relative, friend, or coworker).

Their home is a rental (they have to move every couple years as he continues in his Blackhawk trng) so I doubt she'll put an alarm system in it.

There are inexpensive battery-operated wireless alarm systems that can be easily installed and taken to their new residence when they move. Better to have an alarm scare away an intruder, than having to confront him in her bedroom with a gun (assuming she wakes up and gets to her gun before he attacks her).

I don't necessarily think a semi auto is more complex or more dangerous than a revolver.

A semi-auto is significantly more complex than a revolver. Your sister already proved that by picking up an unloaded semi-auto pistol and freezing without being able to load a magazine and chamber a round.

How good is she at racking the slide? Has she tried it with sweaty palms and a racing heart? If she has a mis-fire, can she rapidly clear it? What if she has an FTE or FTF?

Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of semi-autos and Glocks in particular. But it's damn near impossible to beat the operational simplicity of a DA revolver. If you pull the trigger and it doesn't go bang, you just pull the trigger again. Granted, a revolver lacks the round capacity of a full-sized semi-auto, and reloading a revolver is not going to be as fast and easy as changing mags in a semi-auto. But most self-defense shootings involve 3 or less rounds fired.

I have found that whatever you learn on is fine. I agree that she needs more practice, and so does she. She needs to know how the gun works, comes apart, what the legal issues are, etc. But she's got the tool and knows how to use it if she must. That's worth something.

Unfortunately, she's already demonstrated that she's unable to use her pistol in a high-stress situation. This is not intended as a criticism, just an impartial observation. She needs a lot more practice, and some professional training would be a good investment. More importantly, she needs a lot more pre-thinking about what to do under various circumstances. The more important and valuable defensive weapon is one's brain.

Oh, and I read lately that experts are starting to change their opinions about shotguns for HD. If I remember right it was that spray of shot could endanger innocents, BG has to be too close, long guns difficult to maneuver.

First thing, the "spray of shot" is a dramatic myth (just like the myth about racking the pump shotgun to scare away bad guys). At most indoor defensive distances, a shotgun's "spray" will be about the size of two fists or less. Not only do you have to aim to hit your target, but you will not be hitting more than one person at a time. In any case, she's living alone so she doesn't have to worry about innocents in the crossfire.

As far as bad guy having to be too close, does she live in a football-field-sized mansion? If not, then the BG will be more than close enough, even if she's shooting reduced recoil loads.

Long guns are more difficult to maneuver when you are maneuvering. But she should NOT be maneuvering. (More on this below)

I think Massad Ayoob says to have the hand gun in hand to clear your home/answer the door, but if anything happens, fight your way to your long gun and barricade yourself in your safe room with it until police arrive. What do you think of that?

Your sister is not a tactical response unit. She should NOT be clearing her home. And there's no reason for her to be answering the door with a firearm. If her "spidey senses" are telling her to arm herself, then the very last thing she should ever do is open an outside door (unless she's fleeing someone already inside).

If she detects or suspects an intruder in her home, she should immediately arm herself, take up a FIXED defensive position (e.g., behind the bed with firearm pointed at the doorway), and then call 911. She should not be wandering about trying to clear her home of bad guys, even with a pistol.

[Glock Girl in CA]

Under the bed is not the best place for a pistol, especially a semi-auto (more on this below). She should invest in a nightstand. One with a drawer can be had for about $30 new; can probably find one very cheap at a garage sale. Since she's alone, should probably avoid any Craigslist transactions (unless they can be done somewhere safely away from her home, preferably with a male relative, friend, or coworker).


There are inexpensive battery-operated wireless alarm systems that can be easily installed and taken to their new residence when they move. Better to have an alarm scare away an intruder, than having to confront him in her bedroom with a gun (assuming she wakes up and gets to her gun before he attacks her).


A semi-auto is significantly more complex than a revolver. Your sister already proved that by picking up an unloaded semi-auto pistol and freezing without being able to load a magazine and chamber a round.

How good is she at racking the slide? Has she tried it with sweaty palms and a racing heart? If she has a mis-fire, can she rapidly clear it? What if she has an FTE or FTF?

Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of semi-autos and Glocks in particular. But it's damn near impossible to beat the operational simplicity of a DA revolver. If you pull the trigger and it doesn't go bang, you just pull the trigger again. Granted, a revolver lacks the round capacity of a full-sized semi-auto, and reloading a revolver is not going to be as fast and easy as changing mags in a semi-auto. But most self-defense shootings involve 3 or less rounds fired.


Unfortunately, she's already demonstrated that she's unable to use her pistol in a high-stress situation. This is not intended as a criticism, just an impartial observation. She needs a lot more practice, and some professional training would be a good investment. More importantly, she needs a lot more pre-thinking about what to do under various circumstances. The more important and valuable defensive weapon is one's brain.


First thing, the "spray of shot" is a dramatic myth (just like the myth about racking the pump shotgun to scare away bad guys). At most indoor defensive distances, a shotgun's "spray" will be about the size of two fists or less. Not only do you have to aim to hit your target, but you will not be hitting more than one person at a time. In any case, she's living alone so she doesn't have to worry about innocents in the crossfire.

As far as bad guy having to be too close, does she live in a football-field-sized mansion? If not, then the BG will be more than close enough, even if she's shooting reduced recoil loads.

Long guns are more difficult to maneuver when you are maneuvering. But she should NOT be maneuvering. (More on this below)


Your sister is not a tactical response unit. She should NOT be clearing her home. And there's no reason for her to be answering the door with a firearm. If her "spidey senses" are telling her to arm herself, then the very last thing she should ever do is open an outside door (unless she's fleeing someone already inside).

If she detects or suspects an intruder in her home, she should immediately arm herself, take up a FIXED defensive position (e.g., behind the bed with firearm pointed at the doorway), and then call 911. She should not be wandering about trying to clear her home of bad guys, even with a pistol.

I should have been more specific - I am not asking about the shotgun/house clearing scenario for Little Sis; that was meant to get you to expound on your thoughts of SG for YOUR choice of HD. Giggling at the thought of her "clearing the house"!!!!

[Spyguy]

Well, making you giggle has got to be worth something!

I recommend a shotgun for HD for the following reasons:

1. A long gun is easier to aim accurately than a pistol. A pistol is much more prone to the ill effects of flinching, improper grip, and improper trigger squeeze. Also, the sight radius on a pistol is smaller. One way to demonstrate the advantages of a long arm over a pistol is to get a pistol and a rifle and clear them of ALL ammunition. (Do not even have any ammo in the same room.) Next take a 3' long wood dowel and insert it in the barrel of first the pistol, then the rifle. Practice sighting and dry firing with each and watch the end of the wood dowel. Even better, have someone video tape the session to show you. (Of course, never have the person standing in the line of fire, even if you're sure the firearms are unloaded. Safety first!) For most people, especially inexperienced shooters, the end of dowel will dance around a lot more in the pistol than in the long gun.

2. A shotgun has much greater stopping power than most pistols.

3. Compared to most pistols or rifles, a shotgun is less likely to over-penetrate walls.

4. Although shotguns do not spray wide patterns at typical home defense distances, they do present a larger area of destruction than a single bullet from a pistol or rifle, even if you hit center-of-mass. In other words, when you deliver 9 pellets of 00 buckshot to a bad guy's chest, you have 9 times greater chance of hitting a vital organ or rupturing a major blood vessel.

[Off the Roster]

+1 for the motion sensor exterior lighting. there are many models available which do not require hard wiring that are easily obtained at the big box hardware stores. the mounting hardware is very basic and is easy to patch over when it comes time to move.

http://www.amazon.com/Beams-MB393-300-Lumen-Weatherproof-Spotlight/dp/B00BCCNZ7K/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1386577186&sr=8-6&keywords=motion+sensor+light

[movie zombie]

my understanding of starting with a handgun and retreat to your long gun is that you're not retreating to a shotgun but to a rifle to take out BG's at a distance. personally? I think both would be good to have as a "retreat to" option.

[kaligaran]

OP, I'm so happy that your sister is safe and the bad guy didn't try anything stupid.

I hope she learned a few valuable lessons.
1. She should have called 911 immediately. Had the bad guy tried to get in, she would have wanted the backup coming.
2. I hope she now keeps it loaded and chambered.
3. Practice practice practice.

Consider getting her a Christmas gift of snap caps. So when she's at the range she can load them in randomly and pretend they are mis-fires and also so she can practice in her home.

[Spyguy]

2. I hope she now keeps it loaded and chambered.

Ah, thanks for reminding me. I was going to mention it in my long post last night but forgot. A Glock with a round in the chamber is definitely not something I would want to keep on the floor under the bed, especially if it is not cased or holstered. Even in a nightstand, it should be in a holster that covers the trigger.

And I reiterate that a chambered Glock is not the ideal home defense firearm for an inexperienced person. Does OP's sister know, understand, and practice trigger discipline and target identification to the point of properly exercising these very important skills under high-stress situations?

[Epaphroditus]

Fear is the mind killer.

Cheap and loud alarm for the high risk doors/windows.

No need for a "system" and this motion widget is great for no tools install.

Training, experience and confidence will win over fear.

[kaligaran]

Ah, thanks for reminding me. I was going to mention it in my long post last night but forgot. A Glock with a round in the chamber is definitely not something I would want to keep on the floor under the bed, especially if it is not cased or holstered. Even in a nightstand, it should be in a holster that covers the trigger.

And I reiterate that a chambered Glock is not the ideal home defense firearm for an inexperienced person. Does OP's sister know, understand, and practice trigger discipline and target identification to the point of properly exercising these very important skills under high-stress situations?

I agree that all chambered weapons shouldn't be kept without a trigger guard of some sort (even a cheap holster would do if it's not being worn - I only say that b/c I don't like cheap holsters for wearing as I don't trust them).

I assume you say Glock isn't good for the inexperienced shooter b/c the lack of the manual safety? If my assumption is correct, I have to say I respectfully disagree.
I do however, completely agree that it's all about the trigger discipline.
Which applies just the same to ALL firearms including those with a manual safety and even the revolver you suggested in a earlier post. I don't think it has anything to do with it being a Glock.

I've seen self defense situations (on CCTV footage) go wrong where someone with a CCW carried their weapon with the safety on (or the safety was accidentally engaged) and in the moment pulled it out and pulled the trigger but no bang b/c the safety was engaged.

[Spyguy]

I assume you say Glock isn't good for the inexperienced shooter b/c the lack of the manual safety? If my assumption is correct, I have to say I respectfully disagree.

I do however, completely agree that it's all about the trigger discipline.
Which applies just the same to ALL firearms including those with a manual safety and even the revolver you suggested in a earlier post. I don't think it has anything to do with it being a Glock.

I'm not a big fan of manual safeties. For one thing, I don't trust them to prevent the firearm from going bang. Second thing, it's all too easy to forget to disengage them during a high-stress situation.

And we both agree that good training and proper trigger discipline is critical for any firearm. But the reality is, an inexperienced person is more likely to have a negligent discharge with a chambered Glock (or similar pistol) than the same person with a DA revolver or even a DA semi-auto pistol like a Sig P226. A factory Glock has a short 5.5 lbs trigger. With a round in the chamber, it's all too easy for a frightened, inexperienced shooter to grab the pistol with a finger inside the trigger guard and negligently discharge a round. On the other hand, a typical DA revolver or DA semi-auto pistol has a fairly long and heavy (10+ lbs) trigger. Even with improper trigger discipline, it's more difficult and takes a much more deliberate action to inadvertently squeeze off a round.

[RogueSniper]

I'd like to pop in here and mention the alarm option, again. My sister lives alone with two cats. Her place is the first house in a row of townhouses and the street is next to her fence. Easy to just jump over and get in. Just like the Cul-de-Sac, intruders are usually unseen.

I bought an installed alarm system for her. If she had to move to another place, the alarm company will move her alarm system with her. Most companies are like that now. The cost of the alarm system is minimal, sometimes free. You pay mostly for the monitoring, $20-$30/month. Check with the Landlord. Any Landlord in their right mind would welcome an alarm installation. Adds value to the rental. Another good, but passive, deterrent are alarm monitoring stickers from ADT or Protection One, or any one of the more prominent companies.

I've also given her a choice of firearms in my safe. She chose my Dad's old 32 Auto. Easy to shoot, easy to operate. Yeah, not much on the stopping power but when the BG is getting shot at, do you think he cares what caliber is whizzing by?

I also gave her a can of pepper spray. Bear spray works just as well - it looks like a mini-fire extinguisher and it sprays a massive cloud/stream.

She's trained with me in Defensive Tactical Handguns - instructors were SJ Police, SWAT, and DOE Tactical. Good training for both of us. You should see her with my SIG. Does anyone you know that lives by lil sis? She has to get out to the range once/week to train. Most ranges have a Ladies Night, and it's usually 1/2 price. It makes it more economical to shoot.

Here in the Bay Area, we have a Newbie event in San Jose. Check in with Asphodel (Carla).

[katokat]

I have my M&P in a bed holster (Crossbreed holster) - the metal piece slides between the mattress and box spring and gun is tight against the side. Perfect distance to reach, up off the floor, in a holster made for the gun. Had it on the nightstand, but it took up too much room and I was always worried which way the muzzle was pointing. Gun is always loaded, and gets put in the safe when we're away from the house. Had my wake-up moment one night 5-6 years ago when two prowlers in the backyard tried to get in, and realized I didn't want to be unprepared again.

The shotgun is in the corner for my husband. I'm more comfortable with the semi-auto, since that's what I shoot in IDPA.