Thanks for this thread, Vendome...
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During my time as a sheriff explorer, I trained with the sheriff department on their range and using the tactics of the day, 30 years ago.
I always felt proud to serve, particularly since the uniform, duty belt and equipment I wore made me look professional.
I purchased every last bit of it at San Jose Uniform, then a supplier of LEO uniform and equipment to many LEO in Northern California.
It was also a point of pride I was able to outshoot most LEO in class, as well on tactic, were you are stressed by running 2 miles, doing 20 pushups and 50 situps before engaging targets at various yardages.
I was further trained when I left high school at 15 and started college in what was called Police Science, where I learned more tactics for offense/defense in weapons and hand to hand control techniques.
I suppose I, like my family was so good, was due to growing up around guns and constantly challenged to shoot certain difficulties.
In later years, my brothers and I would go paint balling, where we quickly learned tactics that work to overcome the opposition and how to think about strategies, by slowing our breathing, dropping our hips/shoulders and quickly assessing the best opportunity to prevail.
We won most of the time but, each paintball we took caused us to ponder what might have worked better, for use in the future and other times chalking it up to "sometimes stuff happens and you get injured or lose a man.
We were fast, in constant motion and always approaching from cover with quick views around an object then moving in as dictated by the scene presented.
I have practiced tactics and strategies in my home as well and I moved exactly as I trained, through my house, this morning.
None of this is to impress anyone. Rather, to impress that this could have been very bad for anyone unauthorized to be in my home.
Some Freepers have been to my home know we have a beautiful home and two of the best buddy doggies ever.
I didn't initially consider sharing my experience, thoughts and concern but, here is what tears it for me: . . " I actually thought about my actions and what my response should be in the future"
As in, maybe I should take my time and maybe not charge through the house.
I really am uncomfortable having this thought.
I mean, I live in a gated community, on one of the top golf courses in California.
Why would I need to charge toward a danger and repel it or maybe learn there was indeed a fire but, worse: "What if SWAT had busted into my home and we both confronted each other?"
I likely would hesitate upon seeing LEO's but, I don't think they would and that is not good.
Now, I have never heard the alarms in my house go off and each on engaging.
So I don't believe there was any other choice. Since I did program myself in case someone did enter my home or if there was a fire. (I have trained myself for fires as well)
Anyone here who has met me doesn't consider me a bad ass, nor do I.
I'm just some guy with life experiences.
My family twice, when I was in grade school, walked in on a burglary.
Still again, my Mom owned a convenience store when I was a teenager.
We were twice robbed, with one incidence the thug putting a knife to my ribs demanding money.
He was lucky as hell.
My brother and I had been out shooting earlier in the day.
We brought our shotgun into the store just before we started our shift and Mom was making dinner in the back.
After the robbery, a coo saw the shotgun leaning against a wall and asked if it was loaded.
We replied "yes".
He then asked if we knew how to shoot it and brother replied we knew and we are all good shots.
He laughed and asked why we didn't grab it and repel the armed robber.
My brother responded " Forgot it was there but, it would not have ended well for the guy".
Cop laughed and suggested we remember next time.
So, no questions, not looking for answers to life but, really bothered that I second guessed what my response should be in the future.
Ow th
Now that I've typed out my thoughts and considered my after thoughts I can't afford to 2nd guess in the future.
Besides, it really is more probable that I would confront a burglar rather than LEO's or that that house was on fire.
I'm going to the range this weekend with my brother and we'll probably run scenarios.
Just unbelievable that I would think like this but, reading the roid raids over the years and learning the horrors of law enforcement abuses, going way the fk overboard in using SWAT and getting a sense of their thought process and the citizen reality but, there it is.
I'm no statician but, you are 1,000's of times more likely to confront an intruder without a badge or a fire than you will an LEO who has invaded your castle...mistakenly.
Gotta go walk my dog right but, current events (shooting a woman welding a 12 volt drill) just really bother me.
Be back in a while and hopefully the electrician will be here to investigate the wiring for the alarm and fire detectors.
Damnit!
Having read numerous stories on this and other sites of the tactics used by American Police during a House entry, a serious floor has become apparent.
The tactic used in the UK may prevent a Householder v LEO encounter at gun point.
They announce the the fact that they are ‘Armed Police’ and they are ‘Entering the property’,as the door hits the floor.
This is shouted continuously as they proceed through the building, not by one officer but by all of them. The noise is impossible to mistake for anything else.
Your response was correct as a householder, it is the Police tactics that are in error.
Both bad guys and cops are likely to shout “Police” as they kick in a door, but real SWAT teams always enter with flash bangs.
If you arent hearing “Warrant” and exploding flash bangs, commence defending yourself...which is why I keep my body armor vest on top of my nightstand gun safe.
I like having an edge. Im also entirely likely to toss a dozen caltrops down my hall to deny ground to a perp. You’ll never go to jail for caltrops on your house floor. Easy to sweep away with a broom after the threat is gone.
I let my alarm out to poop this morning (part of it’s maintenance package). Part of that alarm’s function is to offensively deter any intruder, which is a delay tactic to give me time to ‘get set’ with the main offensive. Unfortunately, that feature is quite likely a one-time thing, and an intruder may very well disable that alarm permanently.
I have some degree of uncertainty as to what I will do when, having heard the alarm go violently silent, I am faced with the man who did so, and he is wearing a badge...
And my son is LEO.
Read all the comments and didn’t see some issues addressed.
I personally have a tendency to what are called “night terrors,” which are sort of like a nightmare that continues for a while after I wake up. My staggering armed through the house while possibly still partially under the influence of a night terror is NOT a good idea. To the point that when I suggested some time ago getting a gun to keep in the bedroom, Mrs. Logan said that if I did, she and the kids would be leaving, and I can’t really blame her!
I disagree with the pro-active shoot and scoot, track em down and kill em guys. The notion that the guy who isn’t moving is dead is based on his being a non-moving shooter. A non-moving, non-shooting guy in a dark house is essentially invisible. BIG advantage. Not to mention that a quiet seated shooter is a LOT more likely to hit what he’s aiming at than someone doing the roll across the floor and shoot TV thing.
Of course, once the shooting starts, the advantage of stillness vs. movement is likely to change a lot.
Think ambush, not assault. It’s your home (literally!) terrain, use it to your advantage.
The purpose of home defense is DEFENSE. Of your family, IMO, not the building. Keep your priorities straight.
It all depends on the layout of the home, but you should have a defensive position between likely intrusion points and the people, most critically children, being protected.
Move to the defense point and wait behind cover. Meanwhile you can call for reinforcements. (Don’t shoot them when they arrive.)
You might want to put together a killing field in front of your defense position. Stairs are a problem for attackers. If it’s dark, prepared spotlights can suddenly blind them, while you put on sunglasses before hitting the switch.
Others have mentioned caltrops. I would think oil or detergent/water on a hard surface stairwell could be useful. Teargas or a homemade equivalent (high-test ammonia, for example) might give you a real edge. Especially if you’re in an appropriate respirator. (I wonder if they make respirators with built-in night vision?)
You should always have a planned fallback/escape route, familiar to the whole family.
Aggressive dogs may not stop an armed intruder, but they’ll likely keep him busy for a while.
Infrared or night vision goggles can give you a huge edge. Just don’t ever shoot based on an IR image. You really can’t tell who/what you’re shooting.
I had similar incident a few months ago. I learned that I sleep on my wrists and my hands fall asleep. Took me forever to rack a round into my pistol. Freakin hands wouldn’t work. Had to rethink my response.