Posted on 07/09/2012 8:53:16 AM PDT by LibWhacker
Hi... Sorry to post this here but something strange just happened and I need some Freeper advice.
I was sitting at the computer about 7:15AM this morning reading FreeRepublic when the doorbell rang. Really? At 7:15AM? Most likely, it could only be one of two things. My friends and relatives wouldn't show up unannounced at that hour. It had to be those skinny religious dudes in white shirts and black ties, or... Our house was being cased!
From our master bedroom, I hear my wife asking, "Who is it?" Don't know, I tell her, pausing, straining to hear. Then the doorbell rings again, this time four or five times, rapidly, impatiently.
Okay, gotta see who it is now. I get up and approach the front door. Through the little frosted pane on the inner door I see a large, very dark shadow, looming, shifting from side to side, with the head almost pressed up against the outer security gate, trying to peer inside. Dammit, I'm an idiot for not grabbing my gun!
I open the door and there standing before me is this skinny black guy with dreadlocks, in his late teens. He's got on a dark stretchy psychedelic t-shirt and both of his arms are inside the shirt, out of view. But you can see they are moving around a lot inside the shirt, wrapped around his thin frame. Like he's simultaneously hugging himself and scratching himself all over at the same time. Holy crap, that's weird right there. I can't see his hands. Does he have a gun?
"Is JAZZmeen home?"
Jasmine? Do I look like I have a daughter named Jasmine? Or Shemika? Or Qwanisha? NO! Maybe Amber or Victoria. JAZZmeen ain't happening. Ridiculous even to ask, and he'd know that if he wasn't on drugs and stupid.
"No, you've got the wrong address."
He turns and goes. I go to the side window and look out. He's with another tall skinny black guy now. They don't stop at my neighbor's house, but walk to the corner, turn right and disappear from view.
Okay, what should I have done? The police say you should report suspicious activity. But what did I see? Some guy rang my doorbell at seven o'clock in the morning. Okay, maybe he was an itchy crack addict in dreadlocks. But so what?
OTOH, I KNOW we were being cased and by not reporting it I may have contributed to one of my neighbors getting ripped off, or worse.
So here I sit, with my 1911 locked and loaded one foot from my right hand, wondering... should you report something like that as being "suspicious?"
Suspicious.......Yes, Illegal.........No. Keep your eyes open and your gun handy.
...or he is just an innocent guy who was coming by to give his friend a ride to work and got the wrong house.
Maybe someone going around the ‘hood collecting used lead for recycling?
they were walking the neighborhood probably ringing bells to see who works and who is at home. Thank the lord mostly people always at home where I live.
That being said, why o earth did you open up? Just say “what?” through the glass to someone you don’t know or aren’t expecting.
I’m sure you already know this, but next time you answer your door, do it w/ gun in hand......with a bellowing WTF do you want?
Also, I would contact my neighbors and tell them what happened.
I’d report it. And not because of the weirdo’s race.
It is totally out of the ordinary for a stranger to ring your bell at 7:15 am. His behavior with his shirt/arms is also weird. Suppose you had been a frail old lady or a young mom at home and answered the door?
Also, it is obvious they were not looking for “Jasmine.”
Your report may help them to get a description going if any burglaries or worse occur in the area.
then why did he ask for Jasmine, genius
YES! The police are good for a few things and this is one of them.
They can patrol and find these two, ask them who & where this “Jasmin” person is, her last name, her purported address, and otherwise collect ID and run a warrants check.
If correct answers are not forthcoming I think things would get a bit edgy right there
Because that was the person he was looking for to give a ride to, genius.
The old ploy goes something like this: They ring the doorbell to make sure nobody is home. If someone answers, they ask if someone is home. You say the person doesn’t live there and they leave. But if nobody answers they break in and rob you.
MarkTwain has posted a lot of articles about armed people who don’t answer the door and then when thy guys break in they get shot and/or killed.
considering that they *walked* away I consider that rather unlikely...
He should have never opened the door completely to talk to a stranger. He could have been rushed, robbed, or worse. It was most likely a test run to see if anyone was home, before a break-in ensued. Many people go to work early. Letting the neighbors know what is going on and putting in a call to the police are prudent things to do.
another GUY met up with him
you are kookoo
Sadly, I can’t advise you on that except to recommend you install a perimeter fence and a lock so no one can come ring your doorbell ever again.
For the last 10 years I haven’t lived where anyone could approach the front door. We also have large dogs (XTRA LARGE GREAT DANES) and a yappy little hound mutt to bark like nuts if someone even tries the gate.
Any area that is open to public to walk up to, is too easy a target. 1911 aside, that is a later layer of defense of the home in this day and age.
Next time it happens, don’t answer the door but go down with your 1911 aimed at the door. When they break in, ensure they never come back.
oh, AND THEY WERE WLAKING
sheesh, wouldn’t want to rely on you for anything
Standard Operating Procedure for me and my wife.
Good point. Yeah, I always worry about doing that. But I figure if he's going to shoot me, he can do it through the closed door as easily as through the open door. The outer door is a heavy wrought iron security gate. I didn't open that one.
LOL, I should’ve.
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