I have to say up front that I have no special training in security consulting, I’m not a law enforcement officer. I have some training in physical security from military days but it’s hardly applicable to home defense.
If multiple armed perpetrators are inside your house and in control of your family then the fight is for the most part lost. That’s just the reality. You can decide to go down in a blaze of glory but the fact is that your life is in their hands.
So the question is, how do you minimize the chances of that happening.
Are you being followed home?
I’m over 200 pounds, intimidating appearance, trained to kill, have combat experience and I have blown past my house when I thought a car has been following me for too long. If you’re out in public, especially if you’re a woman you might be followed home.
There are cases of women being out shopping and then being tracked home only to become targets. Fear is natural, it might keep you alive, there’s nothing wrong with taking a lap around the neighborhood to see if that car that followed you off the highway is still on your tail.
Making it difficult to get in
The goal of everything that adds to the security of your home is to first of all is to increase the amount of time that it takes someone to enter your home. Secondly the goal is to call attention to them trying to get into your home. So what we’re doing is buying time and sounding the alarm. These two goals allow you to get your weapon and possibly get your family to a safer area.
Heavy doors buy time. Taking a crow-bar to a door sounds the alarm. Dogs hopefully would sound the alarm. A breaking window doesn’t buy much time but it sounds the alarm. You get the idea.
Alarm services work
In the past I have lived in sketchy neighborhoods. At that time I used an alarm service. We had a false alarm once and the police came incredibly quick, guns drawn and ready to assist. I don’t have an alarm service now but if the threat is likely enough it is a viable option.
Depending on the breed and disposition of the particular animal, dogs can be a good deterrent. Unless a criminal thinks you have something of particular value they will move on to an easier target if you have dogs in the home.
Lighting around the home helps sound the alarm. Having your exterior free of heavy shrubs also denies a criminal any concealment.
Don’t answer the door
If it’s someone I don’t know and I’m not expecting someone at my door it doesn’t get answered. I don’t care how rude it is or if they can tell you’re home. I owe nothing to someone that is trying to disturb my privacy to sell me something. If you think a chain lock is going to slow anyone down you’re mistaken.
Within arms reach
Ideally at night you should have three things withing arms reach
- Telephone (hopefully cell phone)
- Flash light (dual use as clubbing weapon)
- Weapon (ideally a handgun or shotgun, bat, pepper spray and knife are better than nothing)
If you have children in the home you have to use your head. At a minimum you should have a gun in the bedroom. Anyone who might to use the gun should have familiarity with using it. The phone is to call the authorities. If you have a cell phone then charge it by the side of the bed. Keep a cell phone by the bed even if you have a land line (those can be cut).
Consider having weapons and flashlights in other areas of the house if they can be safely stored there. For example if you work late at night in a basement office.
Bump in the night
If you have a weapon consider how you would use it in the home. Are there positions you shouldn’t fire from because any missed rounds would go into another room? If you have a shotgun consider using bird-shot as the first few rounds so shots wouldn’t go through drywall.
Urban fighting is the most difficult of any combat. It’s slow and tedious. The scenario where you are at the most disadvantage is coming down stairs. Depending on how you do it your entire body is exposed before you are able to see the area of the house you are entering. Criminals are cowards looking for soft targets, if you think someone is in your home turn on lights, yell down. There’s no need to get into a situation where you are at a tactical disadvantage.
House clearing
If you feel you must clear your house you need to account for all family members before proceeding. Pro tip: don’t carry your handgun or shotgun pointed up in a tactical situation. If someone gets into a struggle with you then they can keep the weapon pointed up while wrestling you. If you had the weapon pointed down you could turn their feet and legs int hamburger while they’re struggling to take the gun away.
With a pistol you should not have it extended farther than needed especially when taking corners. For both pistol and long gun it should be in the ‘hunt’ position, perhaps slightly lower than when you’d be all out firing. This gives you good field of vision and quick response time.
