Do I need a less-than-lethal weapon in my home?

[BIKER13]

yep he was in the wrong house.

 

[greg vess]

Do civilians have access to bean bag rounds, and rubber slug rounds?

 

[kuduman]

Folks, pepper spray is the answer to an awful lot of these kinds of questions. It's cheap, it works, and it won't really mess up your house but for a few minutes.

 

[ShooterG]

What I find hardest is trying to determine "level of threat" during the moment. What tool to use is just a matter of a google search or a walk down an aisle at Walmart. Problem comes when it's go time. I'm not worried about a drunk wandering in my house at night - my doors are locked, alarm on, and I don't live near bars (but did have a drunk dropped off across the street years ago). My hypothetical would be middle of the day - I'm out mowing the lawn so doors are unlocked and I come in for some gatorade and some dudes in my house between me and my kids. You want me to ask questions about his intentions, discuss his physical abilities, assess if he could overpower me if I politely asked him to leave? Or do I just neutralize the situation immediately? I know...hypotheticals are just that.

 

[ADAduckhuntr]

Nun chucks and throwing stars

 

[BanjoJohn]

Home intruder gets non lethally restrained, only to cut or stab the homeowner to death.

Don't get drunk and enter the wrong house, it's a good way to get shot.

 

[Bear44]

You have the RIGHT to remain silent. Do not willingly throw your rights away.

What does that have to do with it?

 

[Bear44]

Hypothetical situations. If a drunk wanders in through an open door, and it is obvious that the drunk poses no threat, call the police, however I will protect my family until the police arrive. But, if a drunk, who means no harm, breaks a locked door and enters the room, then the drunk is in real danger. How do I know that he means no harm? How do I know he is just drunk? I would have no way to determine his intentions. I would feel very threatened in that hypothetical situation. Wouldn't you?

Again, the word reasonable is the key. Regardless of what their real motivation is, if you have reasonable cause to believe they are a legitimate threat, the use of deadly force is justified.

"Reasonable" works both ways. It protects an obviously harmless drunk, but also means you don't have to wait to see if they are going to actually try and kill you and your family. If it's reasonable to believe from the available evidence that they will... kill them.

Just make damn sure that others looking at the situation after the fact are going to agree with you.

 

[BanjoJohn]

Again, the word reasonable is the key. Regardless of what their real motivation is, if you have reasonable cause to believe they are a legitimate threat, the use of deadly force is justified.

"Reasonable" works both ways. It protects an obviously harmless drunk, but also means you don't have to wait to see if they are going to actually try and kill you and your family. If it's reasonable to believe from the available evidence that they will... kill them.

Just how far away would an intruder be from you inside the average home?

21 feet?

If you aren't locked, loaded, and have pressure on the trigger, there's a good chance you could be gutted by the drunk intruder.

 

[Bear44]

Just how far away would an intruder be from you inside the average home?

21 feet?

If you aren't locked, loaded, and have pressure on the trigger, there's a good chance you could be gutted by the drunk intruder.

There's a huge difference between being prepared to use deadly force and actually using it. Even someone that seems to be a harmless drunk is going to be looking down a barrel until the police arrive.