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Old September 23, 2012, 08:21 AM   #1
1911Alaska
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GF calls at 4am "drunk guy at front door"

Ok so just got a phone call from my girlfriend at 4am. I am at work and she is up doing homework, and she calls me saying "there is some drunk guy banging on the front door and yelling" and in the backround I can hear him knocking on the door, and it must be pretty loud because she is upstairs in the office.

So I tell her to grab my shotgun and lock herself in the office, she says she doesn't know how to use it, so I tell her to grab my 1911 and my shotgun and lock herself in the office, stay calm, don't answer the door or yell anything out the window to the guy. So she does.

I leave work and head over there. On my way over though I got to thinking. I have my Glock 17 with me with golden sabers, spare mag, and some pepper spray that I had in my car. But its 4am in September in Alaska, It is pretty dark out if I get there and God forbid I have to shoot this guy, I don't have a flashlight or night sights. So I won't be able to see who I am shooting or what I am aiming at.

Lesson learned right there. I am back to work now and I plan on getting online and ordering some night sights and a surefire light.

So back to the story, I get home and guess who it is???

Its my idiot roommate lol. He got back from vacation a night early and for some reason he does not have his keys or his phone on him

So anyways I let him in and now I am back at work.

Now that I am thinking about it, first thing I should have done after I knew my girlfriend was ready, armed and knows to stay in the locked office until she hears from me is to call the local police.

I think I should have just called them explained to them whats going on and have them send an officer over to check it out. At the time the thought never even crossed my mind, my thoughts were "girlfriend is scared and there is someone banging on the front door at 4am, I need to get home and see whats going on".

So my lessons learned from this situation are

1- Call local PD next time
2- Get night sights
3- Get tactical flashlight (any recommendations?)
4- Teach girlfriend how to use the shotgun

So all that being said how do you guys think I handled the situation? I am proud that I remained really calm, especially since my girlfriend called me practically crying over the phone lol.

Anything I should have done different besides what I have pointed out already?

Thanks!
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Old September 23, 2012, 09:00 AM   #2
kgpcr
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Call 911 first!!
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Old September 23, 2012, 09:23 AM   #3
shortwave
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1) Tell room mate to have the courtesy to call next time he's showing up early in the wee hrs. of the morning to avoid a potential disaster.

2) First call made by girlfriend should have been to 911.

Thought for additional security...Maybe install some outside motion detector lighting.

Last edited by shortwave; September 23, 2012 at 09:33 AM.
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Old September 23, 2012, 10:02 AM   #4
MLeake
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If either you or the GF had a smartphone, you could have initiated a 3-way call to include 911.

If you'd had a traffic accident during your rush home, and if the drunk had been something more serious, what would have happened?
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Old September 23, 2012, 10:17 AM   #5
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Get rid of room mate.
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Old September 23, 2012, 10:29 AM   #6
4V50 Gary
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What shortwave said. He should have called. That would have prevented the drama.

GF should have called 911 first.

BTW, GF needs more training to familiarize her with the firearms that are available to her.
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Old September 23, 2012, 11:45 AM   #7
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someone banging on the door at 4am, Call 911



I am not one of those peopel who feel like everything I could possible need should be mounted to my weapon. If it were me.. I would just get a decent 2x cr123 flashlight and stick it in my back pocket. As far as "tactical" goes, I guess I would be a black one.
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Old September 23, 2012, 11:55 AM   #8
ChaseReynolds
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I have the Streamlight TLR1-S. I don't have the box so I can't give you the numbers on how bright it is, but I am just saying I think Gotham City used it for the Bat Signal. It also has a strobe feature. It fits on my S&W M&P .40 perfectly but doesn't fit well on the wife's FN. I don't suggest buying the one with the laser mostly because of the price just to add a laser. Hope this helps.
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:02 PM   #9
Frank Ettin
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I agree that the first call should have been the police.

As far as flashlights, they are important and useful for so many things, one should always have one handy. I always have a flashlight with me and several handy in the car.

I favor Surefire, but there are a number of good lights out there, including Streamlight and Fenix.
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:12 PM   #10
Archer 9505
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Call the cops!!

Golden Sabers, Glock 17, night sites... MAN, SO WHAT? CALL THE COPS!! What were you thinking or not thinking? If you have given this any forethought at all; why was CALLING THE COPS not part of your action plan? Good Navy SEAL quote from 60 minutes "Don't run to meet your death", I'll add "Don't run to cause your own arrest, imprisonment or getting accidentally shot by the good guys".

CALL the COPS!!!

911 "I am reporting an attempted HOME INVASION IN PROGRESS at address XYZ."
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:27 PM   #11
maestro pistolero
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Why doesn't your roommate have a set of keys?
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:31 PM   #12
wayneinFL
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Quote:
1- Call local PD next time
2- Get night sights
3- Get tactical flashlight (any recommendations?)
4- Teach girlfriend how to use the shotgun
I'm not going to beat you up too bad for not calling the police. You already see the mistake.

One thing that I would have mentioned to her long ago was that you have a roommate. Might not have hurt to let her know what he looks like. All those precautions would be pretty useless if he had gotten in and been shot, or if the cops showed up and shot him.

He wouldn't have been the first person ever shot for trying to break into his own home.
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:34 PM   #13
wayneinFL
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Quote:
Why doesn't your roommate have a set of keys?
I'm assuming drunk and home early might have something to do with it.

I usually put my house/car keys in my checked baggage, because I have a pocketknife on that ring. Occasionally, I do find myself in town with no luggage and therefore no keys. So I've been there and done that. He might have been in a similar situation.
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Old September 23, 2012, 12:35 PM   #14
manta49
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My first reaction would be ring the police. The police here are unlikely to be more than ten minutes away. They would probably get there quicker than me.
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Old September 23, 2012, 11:17 PM   #15
Buzzcook
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Having the GF learn to recognize the roomie's voice might be a good idea.
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Old September 24, 2012, 06:43 AM   #16
rebs
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First immediate call should have been to 911 by your girl friend then call you.
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Old September 24, 2012, 07:49 AM   #17
Edward429451
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So your GF was a little shook up. Perhaps she will see the benefit in learning to use the guns now JIC. I'm glad everyone is ok and it turned out well.
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Old September 24, 2012, 11:16 AM   #18
Tactical Jackalope
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lol..not going to say what everyone else said..they've already said what I was going to.

What I will say, is that I've been there before too. It's laughed at now. Wouldn't have been so funny if I shot him in the face.
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Old September 24, 2012, 12:07 PM   #19
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+1 for what's already been said. Not gonna beat a dead horse at this point.

I park outside on the side of my house, and it's usually pretty dark when I get home. I got thinking about this the other day and drew my USP to see how well I could see my sights if I needed to. I was very surprised that I couldn't even begin to see them, even with a little light from my neighbors houses. I'll definitely be looking into night sights and a good surefire light.

Great thread, thanks for sharing.
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Old September 24, 2012, 01:58 PM   #20
Vermonter
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I am going to answer your direct question

Quote:
So all that being said how do you guys think I handled the situation? I am proud that I remained really calm, especially since my girlfriend called me practically crying over the phone lol.
If I were grading I would give you a D+ which maybe barley passing in todays high school standards. The only Grade that matters however is the outcome which seems to havve been positive. No one was hurt and it has awakened you it would seem.

1. My first reaction were I in the home would have been to call the police. Your GF's reaction should have been no different.
2. If she didnt call them you should have
3. She needs training on the effective use of firearms the time you need it is not the time to be learning to use it. ( same goes for first aid and any other useful tool)
4. I don't begrudge you going there as I would have done the same however had she not notified athorities I would have informed them that I was en route in such and such a vehicle and given them a general description. I may have even held the line with 911.
5. If you can carry a firearm you can carry a flashlight.
6. There is no reason not to have night sites on a gun that will accept them they can only help.


Those are the negitive points. The thing you did very well seems to have been calming her down and instructing her to stay put. I don't know your layout but perhaps there is a safer room than the office. If not then may as well stay where you are.

Like I said I am simply answering the question you asked at the end of your post. Not here to beet you up. Actually I will end this with a compliment............At least you are here and I assume elsewhere as well researching how to be more prepared for next time!

Kind Regards, Vermonter
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Old September 24, 2012, 03:45 PM   #21
357 Python
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It sounds to me that you have analyzed your situation and have a plan to correct the deficiencies. There is one thing you could put on the back burner though and that is the night sights. Not that they are a bad idea but with a flashlight you may not need the night sights. There are many flashlights out there that are very good for your purpose. There is the Surefire brand of flashlight that is a top performer. I carry a HellFighter X-8 in a plastic short ASP holder. It just snaps into the ASP holder like it was made for it. The ASP holder also protects the on/off button so the flashlight isn't turned on by mistake. The HellFighter puts out 150 lumen. The scalloped bezel in the front can also act as a defensive weapon if you need to go hand to hand. I carry my ASP in the nylon holder I got for the HellFighter. You may also wish to get some police strength OC spray since not all situations are going to require a firearm. It is better to have options available.
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Old September 24, 2012, 06:10 PM   #22
MLeake
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+1

Night sights offer the most advantage in low light, where a flashlight isn't necessary for near identification, but iron sights may not stand out well. In darker conditions, the reflected light of a good flashlight often seems to wash out night sights - but that typically means it puts the sights themselves in fairly sharp silhouette.

If I had to choose between the two, due to limited budget, the flashlight would win hands down.
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Old September 24, 2012, 06:22 PM   #23
Deaf Smith
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1. Teach your GF how to shoot (and get her a gun if you can.)

2. Get a good flashlight.

3. Have 911 on your speed dial (and GF's to) and call 911 before going over there.

Don't worry about night sights. You have to identify your target first. THEN the night sights might (and that's a maybe) be of some help.

Deaf
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Old September 24, 2012, 06:27 PM   #24
Nnobby45
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Since, essentially, you were rolling to what you believe to be a serious crime in progress, I have to agree with those who advocate calling the professionals who are empowered and trained to handle such matters. They would have beat you there and you would have rolled up in time to see your roomate in handcuffs.
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Old September 24, 2012, 07:17 PM   #25
Eghad
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If someone is banging on my door and exhibiting bad behavior the first thing is have the wife call 911. Secure my shotgun and only use it if the door gets broken down. I am not going outside to go stumbling around in the dark. If he is banging on the door and stays outside the police can handle him.
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