Armed Citizens Defend Themselves at Home and in Public

You probably didn’t see these stories covered by the mainstream news media, but again last week, responsible gun owners defended themselves and the people they love. Self-defense instructor Robyn Sandoval joins the Self Defense Gun Stories Podcast to look at four new examples. Were these gun owners lucky, or did they have a plan?

It is just afternoon and you’re playing a video game at the corner market. Two men wearing hoodies and masks enter the store. One news story says the two men tried to rob the cashier. Another news story says they tried to rob you. Both of them are armed with a handgun.

You own a gun too. You also have your Pennsylvania license to carry a firearm. You are carrying concealed in public today.

Neither news story explains how you did it, but you shoot the closest robber. Again, one story says the attacker was shot twice, and another article says your attacker was shot twice in the abdomen and twice in the chest. You stop shooting when the attacker drops his gun and falls down. The other robber runs from the store. You and the store clerk retreat and stay at the store. The news story didn’t report which one of you called 911.

Police recover the attacker’s firearm. They also take your firearm as evidence. Emergency medical personnel transport your attacker to a nearby hospital.

You give a statement to the police. You show them your identification and your carry permit. The clerk makes a statement also.

Later, you found out that your attacker died in the hospital. You are not charged with a crime.

Second Story- Do you have a gun nearby at night?

You and your wife are woken up by a man’s voice and a crashing sound outside. It is midnight and you look outside and see a stranger smashing the windows of your truck. You open the front door of your home and yell for him to go away. He moves toward you, so you close and lock the front door. The stranger yells for you to give him the keys to your truck.

You see that he is armed with a handgun, so you go and get your shotgun out of your gun safe. The intruder goes to the back of your house and tries to open the back door. He manages to tear the back door open part of the way. You shout for him to stop and the intruder shoots at you and your wife. You shoot back. Now, he stops shooting so you stop shooting. You and your wife call 911 and ask for the police.

Police and Emergency medical services find your attacker outside. He dies at the scene. You give the police a brief statement, show them your truck, and show them the bullet holes inside your home.

Your attacker has a criminal record going back two decades for drug offenses, vandalism, robbery, and armed robbery. He was wanted for parole violations when he broke into your home. Police also think your attacker stole two other cars this morning.

You’re not charged with a crime.

Third story- Do you have a firearm nearby in your apartment?

It is 1:30 in the morning when you hear a crashing sound from downstairs. You are up and answering email, so you walk into the center of your apartment and grab the gun you keep in your closet. You hear a sound outside in the hall, and a few seconds later two masked men break down your apartment door. They run into your home and you shoot them twice. Your attackers turn and run, so you stop shooting. You stay in your apartment and call 911.

Police arrive several minutes later. The news story does not describe any evidence that your shots hit your attackers, or that the attackers sought treatment for their wounds. You think the attackers sought you out because they went directly to your apartment after they broke through the common door in the apartment complex.

You are not charged with a crime.

Fourth story- Do you have a gun nearby in your motorhome?

It is after midnight when you hear someone at the door of your motorhome. Your son answers the door. You hear an angry argument, so you grab your gun and get out of bed. A stranger is pointing a gun at your son and threatening him. You shoot your attacker one time. Now your attacker turns and runs. You and your son stay inside the RV and call 911 for help.

Police arrest your attacker when he seeks treatment for a gunshot wound to the mouth. He is transferred from the local hospital to a larger medical center. Police also arrest the woman who drove your attacker to the hospital. She says she found him on the highway, but your son knows her.

Your son helped the woman a few weeks ago when she was trying to get her children back from Child Protective Services. Your son became afraid of her.

Both of your attackers were charged with first-degree armed robbery. The female getaway driver was also charged with possession of methamphetamine.