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If a you suspected an intruder in your home, would you confront them or hide?


Road Runner

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It's all in the news this morning.  A NC couple thought they heard an intruder downstairs during the night, so they hid in their closet and called the police.  

The "intruder" turned out to be their 2 day-old robot vacuum cleaner.  Apparently it went into some sort of automatic mode and started vacuuming and bumping into stuff which caused the brave homeowners to go into hiding.  The police arrived and subdued the wayward robot.  Everyone had a good laugh.

But if I was the husband in this case, I could never hide from the intruder.  I'm not the bravest guy in the world, but I'm going to take some sort of action to confront or chase the intruder away to protect my wife and my home.  I'm absolutely certain that I would not just seek safety by hiding in a closet.

 

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5 minutes ago, Road Runner said:

But if I was the husband in this case, I could never hide from the intruder.  I'm not the bravest guy in the world, but I'm going to take some sort of action to confront the intruder and protect my wife and my home.  I'm absolutely sure that I would not seek safety by hiding in a closet.

Probably, the most rational choice - if it is an option - is for ALL residents to evacuate and have the police sort it out.  But, unless you can easily get out of a home, sheltering in place comes in second.  Obviously, specific circumstances would tweak the proper response, but generally, cops are 1000x more prepared for taking the proper action than a homeowner if there is an intruder involved.

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I would try to confirm that it was an intruder and not just the cat making noise, (or a closet falling down) but I wouldn't confront.  I might go out the back door and see if I could confirm from the outside.  But if I were asleep, I might do something stupid like wander into the living room just because I wasn't thinking clearly when I woke up..

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8 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Probably, the most rational choice - if it is an option - is for ALL residents to evacuate and have the police sort it out. 

The most recent active shooter trainings mention "Run, Hide, Fight."  The best thing to do to to get out of there.  Getting as far away from the situation is best.  Fighting should only be done as a last resort.  It's not just because you might get hurt, it's also because you could be confused as the aggressor.   

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I keep a 12 gauge shotgun next to my bed.  It has a trigger lock on it, but I can still cycle the action.   I think I would grab it and rack the slide a time or two.   Most burglars would know that sound.  That and the big hound dog barking should do the trick.

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4 minutes ago, jsharr said:

I keep a 12 gauge shotgun next to my bed.  It has a trigger lock on it, but I can still cycle the action.   I think I would grab it and rack the slide a time or two while screaming, "No Mildred, I got the double aught buck in here .  It'll do the job."   Most burglars would know that sound.  That and the big hound dog barking should do the trick.

FIFY

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11 minutes ago, maddmaxx said:

Retreat if possible.  Call for help if possible.

Here in CT, the castle doctrine stops at the front door.  The courts frown on you shooting people over stuff.  If you retreat and they keep on coming then you are free to use deadly force.  If the don't, then it's up to the police.

So, your statement to the police is "well, after we retreated..." 

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Well the bedrooms are all on the second floor and the evac plan calls for waiting for the hair on my ass to start burning before I go out on the little roof, down to the roof of the van, and then to the ground. 

I’d holler down the stairwell to identify friend, foe or PtWC  

We’d prolly get behind a closed door, on the side of the bed & if anyone came thru the door, I’d give them about 60 chances to change their little minds. 

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1 minute ago, jsharr said:

We have a single story house and no basement.  I think the addition of the second floor would scare the jackwad off.

No basement - no wonder the tornados chase after you.

 

Plan B - Send Mildred with the rolling pin she keeps on the floor on her side of the bed.

 

 

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13 minutes ago, Road Runner said:

I can't imagine your wife wouldn't lose a ton of respect for you if you hid in the closet and didn't have the guts to go see what was going on.

WoKzoo never gave me the opportunity to lose respect...  The few times in question she has always woken up first and sent me off to check it out.  I've always gone to investigate but I can't say we ever actually thought it was an intruder - just a strange noise that might be an intruder (or a stick that fell against the house).

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If I had an intruder I thought was dangerous and could phone the cops, I'd hide until they arrived.

If I had an intruder and was cut off from help, I'd confront him, with some potential weapon in my hand - making sure there was a clear path between him and the door.

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7 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

If I had an intruder I thought was dangerous and could phone the cops, I'd hide until they arrived.

If I had an intruder and was cut off from help, I'd confront him, with some potential weapon in my hand - making sure there was a clear path between him and the door.

Obviously you've laid awake at night thinking this through.

< bump >

 

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This is an excellent question, and I think a lot depends on context.

Does it sound like there are multiple intruders or just solo, do you have a confusing layout for intruders, are there rapey and torturey types in the hood, or are they garden variety meth heads, do you have guns/knives/dirty looks to use?

What is the smart play?  Do you have an intercom system or app that can make announcements without giving away your position?  Are there others in different bedrooms you must account for?

I guess first step is announcing that 911 has been called on an intercom.  If all the people you care about are in one room, can you close and lock door, flip a mattress and load some weapons?   Can you pop a window and skedaddle?

I would want to shoot to kill, but that might be troublesome, knowing I have no guns.

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1 minute ago, Randomguy said:

This is an excellent question, and I think a lot depends on context.

Does it sound like there are multiple intruders or just solo, do you have a confusing layout for intruders, are there rapey and torturey types in the hood, or are they garden variety meth heads, do you have guns/knives/dirty looks to use?

What is the smart play?  Do you have an intercom system or app that can make announcements without giving away your position?  Are there others in different bedrooms you must account for?

I guess first step is announcing that 911 has been called on an intercom.  If all the people you care about are in one room, can you close and lock door, flip a mattress and load some weapons?   Can you pop a window and skedaddle?

I would want to shoot to kill, but that might be troublesome, knowing I have no guns.

Say it's a 90% chance you will kill them, and a 10% chance they will kill you (and perhaps the rest of the folks in the house).  So, you get a dice roll on being a "winner" and protecting your hard earned Samsung LED or ...

I can't see how, unless in BFE, you wouldn't let the pros handle the situation.  Just seems like Russian roulette over easily replaced and likely insured shit you don't even really want/need anymore.

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24 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

I can't see how, unless in BFE, you wouldn't let the pros handle the situation. 

Because if you suspect personal harm probability, the pros are minutes away at least.  Plus, if you let the crackheads get your stuff one time, they are coming back.

Realistically, you don't know who you have stalking your house and getting rapey thoughts about the occupants, or deciding you have a safe full of gemstones and maybe torturing you might help reveal the location and combo, or just like making sure no witnesses are alive.  Lotsa psychos out there, too.

Anyway, if you know the pros will swing by in time, you let them handle things.  If not sure they will arrive in a reasonable span, but you are reasonably sure of your capabilities, why take a 50% chance when you can take a 90% chance?

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5 hours ago, maddmaxx said:

Retreat if possible.  Call for help if possible.

Here in CT, the castle doctrine stops at the front door.  The courts frown on you shooting people over stuff.  If you retreat and they keep on coming then you are free to use deadly force.  If the don't, then it's up to the police.

Interesting.  Not so in Washington. 

LAWFUL USE OF FORCE IN SELF DEFENSE

Washington law allows for the use of force under certain circumstances. RCW 9A.16.020 outlines the circumstances under which a person can legally use force. The lawful use of force/self-defense most commonly arises under three situations:

  • Self Defense
  • Defense of Others
  • Defense of Property

Washington's Self-Defense statute specifically states:

No person in the state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting by any reasonable means necessary, himself or herself, his or her family, or his or her real or personal property, or for coming to the aid of another who is in imminent danger of or the victim of assault, robbery, kidnapping, arson, burglary, rape, murder, or any other violent crime as defined in RCW 9.94A.030.   

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20 minutes ago, Dottie said:

Interesting.  Not so in Washington. 

LAWFUL USE OF FORCE IN SELF DEFENSE

Washington law allows for the use of force under certain circumstances. RCW 9A.16.020 outlines the circumstances under which a person can legally use force. The lawful use of force/self-defense most commonly arises under three situations:

  • Self Defense
  • Defense of Others
  • Defense of Property

Washington's Self-Defense statute specifically states:

No person in the state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting by any reasonable means necessary, himself or herself, his or her family, or his or her real or personal property, or for coming to the aid of another who is in imminent danger of or the victim of assault, robbery, kidnapping, arson, burglary, rape, murder, or any other violent crime as defined in RCW 9.94A.030.   

Brave men in Washington.

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17 minutes ago, maddmaxx said:

Brave men in Washington.

I never knew the law. I just assume keeping a hand gun off premises, but with the opiate crises across the valley destined to work it's way here, I have familiarized myself with it. The goal is to neither be shot or have to shoot someone. Or have to defend it in a court of law.

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5 minutes ago, Dottie said:

I never knew the law. I just assume keeping a hand gun off premises, but with the opiate crises across the valley destined to work it's way here, I have familiarized myself with it. The goal is to neither be shot or have to shoot someone. Or have to defend it in a court of law.

It is your civic duty to shoot crackheads inside your home, even if you invited them in.  

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Our neighborhood is quiet, but break-ins have happened. We also enough to the edge of town in a quiet neighborhood that police officers are at least 10 minutes away most days. 
WoW usually wakes me to check if she hears a noise. One advantage I have over intruders is I know my house in the dark... and our house is quite dark at night. I have a baseball bat where I can find it. I would hope not to have to use it except for self defense. But hide is not really an option and escape would want passing by them if they are upstairs. If they go downstairs, i can call 911 and keep them down there long enough for help to arrive. 

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With all of Ylva's faults (extreme insanity as the main one), Ylva would defend and protect Tude from an intruder.  Ylva would trade her life. 

Ylva would leave me high and dry, however.  I'm on my own if someone breaks in.  That's okay though, I look forward to a good fight. If I die, AWWC can have all my stuff. 

Mudkipz 

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On 12/27/2019 at 8:18 AM, Road Runner said:

It's all in the news this morning.  A NC couple thought they heard an intruder downstairs during the night, so they hid in their closet and called the police.  

The "intruder" turned out to be their 2 day-old robot vacuum cleaner.  Apparently it went into some sort of automatic mode and started vacuuming and bumping into stuff which caused the brave homeowners to go into hiding.  The police arrived and subdued the wayward robot.  Everyone had a good laugh.

But if I was the husband in this case, I could never hide from the intruder.  I'm not the bravest guy in the world, but I'm going to take some sort of action to confront or chase the intruder away to protect my wife and my home.  I'm absolutely certain that I would not just seek safety by hiding in a closet.

 

Didn't they already make this movie?

Image result for runaway tom selleck

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