A few days ago near Nashville, Tennessee, a particularly dumb criminal managed to catch some hot lead. After trying multiple times to get into the home and hearing the occupants threaten to shoot him should he get through, he kept f-ing around and ended up finding out:
While details aren’t yet available, what we do know is that this was a situation that went on for some time, perhaps for minutes. The residents were smart to not go outside to confront him, instead warning the man of what was coming his way if he found his way inside the home. Despite the warnings, the man ended up finding his way into a kitchen window, and then found out that the homeowner wasn’t bluffing.
The robber received a non-fatal wound to the arm, was hauled off by police and will face charges once doctors get him patched up a bit.
What I want to do real quick in this article is talk about some ways this could have gone far worse and some ways it could have gone far better.
You Can’t Count On Pain To Incapacitate
Again, I don’t know exactly what happened to lead to the robber getting shot in the arm. There could have been a struggle, the lighting could have been poor or the homeowner could have just been too stressed out to deliver a shot closer to center of mass. Fortunately, getting shot in the arm was enough to get this guy to stop trying to rob the house, and if that wasn’t enough, fear of getting shot again probably did the trick.
But, we can’t always count on things working out that way. Ideally, I’d rather have a phaser from Star Trek than a gun. Nobody in their right mind wants to kill people, but everyone in their right mind wants to protect themselves and their families. If there was a way to incapacitate someone without seriously injuring or killing them, I’d be 110% for having that solution on hand. The latest episodes of Star Trek even show phasers that hide in a bracelet when not in use, and can be extended into a rifle as needed, so they’d really be the ultimate concealed carry solution!
Sadly we don’t live in the 22nd-32nd centuries. We’re stuck in the 21st century, and we have to rely on fast-moving pieces of metal to incapacitate. That usually means connecting a shot with the central nervous system or causing rapid blood loss to stop the action. Due to the effects of adrenaline, drugs and sometimes just mental illness, wounds to places like the arms or legs can be ignored for long enough to hurt or kill you.
So, shot placement is key. This particular thief is probably glad that he didn’t get a bullet in a more vital area, but the homeowner took a big personal risk by not delivering a shot that produces more reliable incapacitation.
People Shouldn’t Be Able To Break In
Another big problem with this story is that the guy was able to get into the home in the first place. Nobody wants to live in a prison-like structure with no windows, especially in a beautiful wooded area. But, there are modern solutions to this problem.
The most compelling solution is to add anti-shatter film to your home’s exterior glass. You can get the stuff tinted or transparent, but when someone tries to break in, the window refuses to get out of the way without some serious work.
Other things, like replacing door screws with longer ones, adding secondary door locks and adding taller fencing outdoors can all prevent or delay forced entry. If all of these things fail, having a weapon is still good for your defense. But if you can avoid shooting somebody by taking these other measures, you’re miles ahead.
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