Almost shot him....

[pedalman]

I have no law enforcement experience, but I tend to agree with Steve on this. Specialty rounds require training to know their potential and limitations. With standard firearms, we know what the potential end result is.

Without training, we would forget that less-lethal (notice that I didn't say NON-lethal) rounds could still have the possibility of killing somebody, given that the correct circumstances exist.

[Excaliber]

The Engineer,

Beanbag rounds are easily purchased by almost anyone. Most good gun shops can get them for you to fit a standard 12 gauge shotgun. Here is one mail order supplier for you (note they are expensive this way).

BUT, you need to understand that at close ranges, even these rounds tend to be lethal. There are minimum distances you can use them at where they have had time to bleed off some of the velocity.

Even more importantly, even a beanbag round is a shot from a firearm. The law defines firearms as deadly force, so you would need the exact same justification to use them as a regular round.

As a result of the above, I don't recommend this for non-law enforcement specialty situations. I can see several reasons why you might want them, but I would be afraid the subconscious thinking of less or non-lethal might make me to quick to shoot. And if I did NEED to shoot, I would want real rounds for the obvious reasons.

If you face a situation where deadly force is the only reasonable way to protect yourself or others, it would be wise to be prepared to use the full measure of deadly force.

If you have a situation that doesn't rise to that level, you could consider less lethal options like tasers or OC projection tools like the one from Kimber. These are not currently classified as deadly force tools in Texas, but keep in mind that these and others like them are specialized devices that have their own significant downsides that cause them to either not work well enough or to work too well and cause serious injury or death. I see these devices as more useful in public settings where a threat justifying use of force may be present, but a deadly force situation is not.

Also bear in mind that, if you're being attacked in your home, the realities of time and distance are such that you almost certainly won't have the opportunity to run through a bunch of escalating options and recover from one and use another if the first one you try doesn't work.

[Excaliber]

Excalibur,

Very thoughtful, but here is where knowing all the details makes all the difference. The side door in question is a practically useless entry/exit due to the recliner situated in front of it so his coming through there is not likely...we have other exits. While he is concentrating on that door he is blind to the other potals and illuminated by area lights. The wife also armed and maintained control of the interior while on the phone with police advising them where I was with description and advising the dispatcher that I would disarm once I saw that he had us both covered.

I know every nook and cranny of my wooded lot and also understand that rinky dink house would not stand a whole lot of assault. Tactics and SA have also been part of my entire adult life (I won't bore you with details) and there IS an advantage to concealment and cover open air rather than hunkering down in some circumstances. The layout of the house would place the BG between me and the kids in two of the three entries. No, I'm not going to wait for the fight to come inside...especially if there is more than one.

Added in Edit: By the time the police had arrived he was seated, cross legged with fingers interlocked at the back of his head.

Thanks for providing the additional detail. As usual, there was a lot more to the story and it's another reminder that no single strategy or tactic is applicable in all circumstances. The course of action you chose worked out well for you, and by definition, since it got the result you intended, it was an effective way to manage that situation at that time.

As always, I think it's productive to think through events that happen to others and consider how we would handle them if they happened to us. This gives us an internal "library" of plans that can be called upon quickly instead of trying to figure out a novel solution under the pressure of a fast breaking incident.

My concern in planning for a similar situation is that, by going outside, I would be exposed to attack from additional individuals I didn't see in time, or that an intoxicated individual (who could turn out to be a neighbor's teenager who got drunk for the first time) would lunge at me when challenged and force me to make a deadly force call instead of seeing the wisdom of surrender as the offender in your instance did. Situations like that happen a lot, and, although a deadly force response might be legally justified in the situation after I had chosen to put myself in that position, it might well not be necessary if I stay inside to protect what's really important and let the PD manage the outside issues.

If I can confidently protect my family inside and the bad guy stays outside until the police respond, I see that as a no lose. If he does something stupid with them outside, he's their problem, not mine, and they've got immunities and legal protections that I don't. If he makes entry before that, especially if he couldn't quickly get past an obstacle at the door, he would be in a tactical and legal position that I see as much easier to manage with a lot fewer questions and much less risk of legal issues and costs.

Your mileage may vary.

[03Lightningrocks]

You should have shot him dead and posted all about it here on the internet. Then kept us up to date during your trial and subsequent residency at Huntsville. With any luck, one day you'd be a star in "LOCKDOWN" on the Discovery Channel.

....I love that show. Knowing guys like that really exist keeps me from road raging.

[marksiwel]

Why did you leave 30k worth of anything in your car?

[nedmoore]

Why did you leave 30k worth of anything in your car?

I sell/rent surgical equipment for a living. I had to be in the operating room early the next morning. Believe it or not, I have left the house before without said equipment! I like to load up my truck before I go to bed. I never thought there would be a problem that far up in my driveway.

By the way, I could have grabbed my Mossberg home defense shotgun, or my ar-15 with a flashlight and laser sight..

I just picked up the first gun I saw, kind of funny when it happens for real.....

[nedmoore]

FYI, the K-9 LEO did an outstanding job. He later told me how scared he gets running through peoples yards in the middle of the night trying to catch a BG.

[KD5NRH]

By the way, I could have grabbed my Mossberg home defense shotgun, or my ar-15 with a flashlight and laser sight..

I just picked up the first gun I saw, kind of funny when it happens for real.....

Yep: when the guys were messing around with our cars, I went right past two shotguns and three rifles to grab a .357 Blackhawk. Rationalizing on the way to the door, (with my .357 snub in my pocket the whole time) the 7.5" Blackhawk with 158gr XTPs has all the range and accuracy I could need under those circumstances, is intimidating as heck, can be pretty well hidden behind a leg if intimidation isn't necessary, and still allows me to use a flashlight separate from the gun. (The last two turned out to be pretty useful, since there was a lot of clearing to do between the interior door of the garage and the back of the cars in the driveway.)

[jroberts1968]

Stay in the house. Never engage or pursue or search for a BG. Fight from from defendable position with a clear field of fire. I just went through a assult case that was dismissed and still cost me 7k, I would hate to see what a shooting would cost.

[03Lightningrocks]

Why did you leave 30k worth of anything in your car?

I sell/rent surgical equipment for a living. I had to be in the operating room early the next morning. Believe it or not, I have left the house before without said equipment! I like to load up my truck before I go to bed. I never thought there would be a problem that far up in my driveway.

By the way, I could have grabbed my Mossberg home defense shotgun, or my ar-15 with a flashlight and laser sight..

I just picked up the first gun I saw, kind of funny when it happens for real.....

I keep valuable stuff in the bed of my truck. It is easy to have 20-30 K in tools and what not. I bought a hard cover for it that locks. My tailgate also locks. The only way to get into the back of my truck is to break the locks, which will set off my vehicle alarm. My alarm pages me so I can decide what I want to do about it. If I had 30K of equipment in the back of my truck...I am afraid I would have gone outside too. I'm not saying it would be a bright idea, but I would probably do it anyway.

[heliguy972]

Call 911 and stay in the house. Confronting someone outside like that can be dangerous. Be a good witness from the window and stay where you are protected. You never know if they have an accomplice that is hiding in the bushes waiting for you to open the door, ambush you and then enter the house.

+ 10 on this piece of advice! Just because we are armed does NOT mean that confrontation is the best strategy...