Poll: Home invasions and the fear thereof.

[rgbecker]

The recent gun talk on DU has led me to come to the realization that there are a lot of people fearful of their home being invaded while they are in the home enjoying their freedoms.

At one time, I lived in a lousy neighborhood. Neighbors and I suffered break-ins and burglaries. But I never remember fearing a house invasion and wouldn't dream of keeping loaded weaponry handy so as to kill intruders. Now I live in a peaceful, heavenly place and of course a home invasion is not within the realm of possibility.

How about you?

27 votes, 3 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	I live in fear of Home invasion because my neighbors have had 'em and I'm probably next.
	0 (0%)
	I live in fear of Home invasion because I've suffered one in the past.
	0 (0%)
	I live in fear of Home invasion because you never know.
	1 (4%)
	I live in fear of Home invasion because........(See below, Examples might include: The mob knows who I am...etc.)
	0 (0%)
	I'm not fearful of a Home invasion but I like to have a gun around just in case.
	4 (15%)
	I'm not fearful of a Home invasion and would be very surprised if anyone tried to break into my house while I was here.
	22 (81%)
	3 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[Eleanors38]

1. Sorry, I don't have any more fear of home invasion than a fire. I have insurance for a fire...

...and a .38 for the punks.

Sleep well.

[Drunken Irishman]

2. Hey, Eleanors!

Rock on! I have no guns in the house and also don't fear a home invasion.

[Eleanors38]

6. We have something in common! Lack of fear (except for that 64 yr. old's urge to piss).

I lived for times without a gun, and now have one. Can't run fast anymore, esp. since these punks don't take off when you say: "I'm calling the cops!" Apparently, they just keep right on.

[yellerpup]

3. I have had a home invasion.

I do not fear another one. I have a huge lock (3 of them on my front door) and all my windows are 4 stories up with no ledge or fire escape and all the entrances are on camera 24/7. I wouldn't have another gun in the house. When I did have a gun the intruder beat me to it and tried to shoot me. It didn't fire because it wasn't loaded and I managed to escape. I refuse to let fear rule me. If I wanted another layer of security, I'd get a dog.

[renate]

7. OMG.

How terrifying! And thank goodness your gun wasn't loaded--which I bet isn't always the case in a situation like yours. I'm so glad you made it through that experience safely.

I think dogs are a great security system. Cuddly, too.

[yellerpup]

11. I never kept the gun loaded.

The clip was nearby. Thank you for the hug, renate, I took advantage of his surprise (that he didn't shoot me) to escape. Dogs are fab all the way around. Living in an apartment, though, we keep cats because they don't bark while you are out.

[sarisataka]

9. I am curious

how did the intruder get to your gun first? Was it out in the open?

IMO a dog is the first and best defense a house can have. The barkier the better.

[yellerpup]

15. I believe he was tipped off as to where I kept it.

It was under a ledge on the kitchen counter which was near the back door. I kept the clip in the drawer adjacent to it and could have loaded it in under 2 seconds. That day, I was packing up to leave and filing for divorce. I do miss having a dog. I think it's unfair when they can't go out and sniff the breezes or play in the back yard.

[sarisataka]

17. Sounds like he had inside info

happily it was incomplete thankfully you ended up ok. May you live where you can have a dog again.
Stay safe

[yellerpup]

24. Thanks, sarisataka.

I would like to have room for a dog. You stay safe, too!

[stevenleser]

27. I'm glad you are OK. Your experience is not unusual.

Having a gun on you makes it 4.5 times more likely that you will be shot in an assault. If there had been rounds loaded into your gun, you would probably now be part of that statistic.

Glad you aren't!

[yellerpup]

39. I lived in a red state then.

When I left the next day I left the gun behind. A few years later I moved to NYC and remarried. He moved to Houston and was murdered in the parking lot of his apartment building. He was shot in the neck while his pistol lay in the trunk of his car. We mailed this poster to all 100 senators back in 1984 to urge them to defeat McClure-Volkmer bill.





I won't go into the history of that bill because I'm almost ready to sign off for the evening. The point is that we have needed sensible gun laws for a long, long time.

[bluerum]

4. I am prepared.

[sarisataka]

5. I would call it more

recognition of reality than fear. My neighborhood is not the best; we have 2-3 SWAT raids or no knock warrants on the block each year. Our family has a reputation for 'snitching', not completely undeserved.

Last year I had 3 flat tires in one month after not one the previous six years. My tires suddenly stopped getting flat when I let it be known I put up a concealed camera. There has been some other petty vandalism. I doubt an invasion is likely, but it is possible.

[rgbecker]

13. I wasn't thinking of a "no knock warrant" or "SWAT raid" as something anyone was arming for....

but I guess it might be something someone would consider.

I think vandalism, burglary/break-ins and are really different from Home Invasion and having a weapon in the house for these would probably not work out very well. Even in my old neighborhood, waving a gun around at someone stealing your battery wouldn't go over at all.

[sarisataka]

16. The police do not bother me

I am getting to know them on a first name basis.

The people who are being raided, well they will be happy if/when we move later this year.

[rgbecker]

18. You didn't mention keeping a weapon.

Do you? Do you think the unruly neighbors are aware that you do?

[sarisataka]

23. I am a licensed carrier

I am not completely sure but IMO it is suspected that I am armed but not known for sure. They do know about our noisy old dachshund and most are afraid of the little beast.
So far no one has been directly confrontational. We heard 'discussions' wondering who tipped the cops as we walk around and the anonymous annoyance crime. The neighborhood is well aware that I am prior military but unsure if I have any LEO authority.

I think it is best to keep everyone guessing. There are other good people here too which I believe helps keep the peace, I thank god for nosy old neighbor ladies.

[fishwax]

8. I don't fear a home invasion--but, otoh, I don't think one need fear it to wish to be prepared

I've had a burglary in the place that I live now. I was not home at the time; I believe I came home when they were still here and that caused them to flee. The neighborhood, I think, has gone downhill a bit since then, but I don't really fear a repeat of it happening.

I certainly don't live in fear, and didn't right after the incident, either. I did find, though, that my senses were heightened when a sound would wake me up in the middle of the night. So I moved a golf club from deep storage to a place of quick and easy access if need be. I think fear is too strong a word for a simple desire to be prepared or to take a small precaution. (That said, I'm sure there are some people who are inspired by fear to do such things.)

[Coolest Ranger]

10. The town in which I live now I'm related to about

sixty percent of the people here and all the neighbors here look out for each other and plus my natural father is one crazy cat. No one would dare mess with him. So I feel safe.

[Recursion]

12. I have a very loyal mastiff

I think an invader would prefer being shot, really

[rgbecker]

14. You gotta love "Man's best friend".

Used for centuries for warning and protection.

I think there is strong correlation between lousy neighborhoods and big, bad looking dogs....for good reason.

[Recursion]

49. I read an interesting journal article about co-evolution

We're the only primates whose eyes have whites. The strongest theory to date seems to be that it's part of our co-evolution with dogs: it's a way to signal direction silently (when your eyes have whites, the dog can see where you are looking). Evolution is cool.

[rrneck]

22. Nothing worse than being drooled to death. nt

[Recursion]

48. I say that ("she might drool you to death", etc.)

but, I imagine that if somebody actually threatened me in her presence... well... it would not end well for that person.

[rustydog]

19. I have guns because I'm too lazy to get rid of them

I amnot afraid of home invasion, I am not afraid of beingrobbed on the street.
I am not delusional enough to believe I will wake up at 2am after hearing a door being kicked-in and be oriented enough to retrieve my firearm, and defend myself and my wife without shooting my own foot off.

combat shooting is way different from gunrange paper target shooting under good lighting conditions.

[rrneck]

20. Fear? Nah.

I live in a very safe community (way out in the sticks). Of course, there was the escaped convict in the area for a while. And the guy that came to the house claiming that his wife was in the woods with a sprained ankle and asking for my next door neighbor for help. When I drove up unexpectedly he beat a hasty retreat at the earliest opportunity. We figured he planned to get my neighbor out in the woods, hit him in the head with a rock and plunder the house.

When I got word of the escaped convict I made sure the windows and doors were locked and went to bed.

[HockeyMom]

21. I had an attempted home invasion in Queens

It woke me up, not my SNOORING husband. The perp was trying to break into a basement window. I woke up my husband who ran for the closet to get and load his gun. We had a 2 year old at the time and could not leave a loaded gun in the nightstand.

I went to the window and pushed out the big metal window fan. I don't know whether he had a gun or not, but the sight and noise of the fan hitting the concrete below was enough to make him run. This happened faster than my husband could get and load his gun.

We have owned homes since 1974 in Queens, Long Island, and two differenent places in Florida. We only had ONE attempted breakin in what amounts to a generation. This does not include the time growing up, or living alone, which nothing ever happened.

[llmart]

25. If anyone broke into my house.....

with the intention of stealing something that they could pawn or sell for some spending money, well, they are going to be sorely disappointed.

I have no jewelry, keep maybe $10 in my wallet (on a good day), don't own a cell phone, have a TV with an antenna, and the thing that is probably the most valuable is this old laptop that can barely hold a charge any longer.

I don't need any guns.

Oh, and I have a dog.

[madrchsod]

26. i have a very protective dog

and she has very sensitive hearing

[shanti]

28. i've had a home invasion

and yes, i was home at the time. the perps didn't know it though, because my car was parked in the garage and i was by myself and asleep in my locked bedroom. this was about 16 years ago, during thanksgiving week. i usually had my son with me (he was 6 at the time), but he was with his dad's family that year (thank god).

i was wearing earplugs because the neighbors were having a loud party and i didn't feel like calling them out on it, (and the police here don't respond to noise calls). anyway, i heard a loud bang (thru the earplugs) and instantly came awake. i thought it was my water heater, but when i looked at the floor near the bottom of my door, there was a light on, and i never leave the lights on. without thinking, i whipped open the door and ran out to see about 3-4 late teen/young adults standing around in my living room. they'd already taken my vcr and speakers, and a leather jacket, and were trying to get the teevee. i just started screaming at them and they ran out. i attempted to grab the back of one kid's hoodie, but he smacked me away and got out the front door. i was pretty hysterical by then. i was only dressed in a tee shirt and undies, so i couldn't chase them. i made a lot of noise though!

i'm pretty sure that my neighbor and these kids were the same ones who broke in. the neighbor kid was always a slimy little tweaker. the cops didn't come for at least an hour after i called them to report this. long story short, i didn't have a gun, and i wouldn't have one now. i ended up buying bars for my side window though.

pretty frightening experience that i definitely don't want to happen again!

[rgbecker]

33. I had a guy bust open my front door and come into the hallway and start into our bedroom.

I pretty much slept through it but my smart wife, who woke up, started shouting out guys' names to make the guy think the place was full of people ready to let the intruder have it. That woke me up, as I thought some old friends of hers had showed up for a party! By the time I figured out what was going on the intruder left, wandering off into the snow. The police thought maybe the guy was a little tipsy and maybe used to live in the place and got confused.

I kept a 22 to shoot pigeons off the cornice of the house but never dreamed of using it on people. Glad it wasn't handy, nevertheless.

[appleannie1]

29. Someone broke into my house twice. I live along a 2 lane main highway. So none of the options fit.

That being said both times the intruders left when I cocked a shotgun. Facts are that most intruders are not armed.

[rgbecker]

32. So you're saying you don't fear an invasion because you have the shotgun?

I wonder if you had to confront the intruders with the gun or just rattled around in another room acting like you were getting ready to lay them out?

[appleannie1]

37. The first time whoever it was was in the attached garage going through tool boxes. I stood

on the other side of the door and cocked the gun, I heard their shoes slap against the cement as they ran. The next thing I heard was the screech of brakes as they ran across the road in front of a car. The second time I felt the floor vibrate as someone broke open the basement door. I got the shotgun but could not find ammo. I went to the door to the basement, opened it quietlt, turned on the light and cocked the empty gun. They dropped the wheels they were stealing and ran. Whoever it was had a loud muffler because I heard them start their car and went to a window. They did not turn their lights on for about 500 yards.

[madville]

30. I don't fear them but I know people it has happened to

A friend from high school was murdered in Jacksonville, FL in one. The intruder actually got the wrong apartment, thought it was one selling drugs he later confessed. My friend fought with the intruder and was shot in the stomach in front of his wife.

[rgbecker]

31. Wow, that's a story!

Did your friend have the gun and lose control or did the intruder have it and pull it when your friend attacked?

[madville]

43. The intruder had it

When my friend fought back he shot him

[raccoon]

34. If a home invasion is not within the realm of possibility, are you deceased? nt

[rgbecker]

36. Well, as I said, I live in a heavenly place where stuff like that never happens to people like me.

See post #33 for life in my old neighborhood. Back when I was alive.

[appleannie1]

38. I live in the country. It can happen anywhere

[rgbecker]

41. Could be your location on a busy road attracts folks who see an easy target.

To get to my little spot, they would have to find me first, cross a moat and then figure out how to get back to wherever they came from. A home invasion by anything other than mice or an occasional wild bird is the least of my worries.

[nick of time]

40. I live in the boonies.

My attack chickens and ducks would get them before they got to my door.

[elfin]

42. Well secured home (deadbolts and rear entry fence) and an alert dog AND

A bedside phone to call 911, as well as a close hiding place if intruders come.

No guns, coins etc. in this geezer's home. Just a well regulated and attentive police department.

Will not EVER have a firearm in this house with visiting, smart and curious grandchildren. EVER.

[MrSlayer]

44. Home invasions are not random events.

It's almost always done by people that know you and know you have something to take. No one just risks being killed on the off chance you have a wad of cash, jewelry or drugs on hand.

[shanti]

47. exactly, that's it!

in my case, i had my teen sons staying with me a couple of months before my break in. unbeknownst to me, my sons had let the neighbor's son INTO my house when i was at work, so he had a chance to check out my "stuff". the items stolen were certainly not high end or anything, but they were things that were probably easy to fence.

[Matariki]

59. Excuse me - but bullshit.

As a victim of a random home invasion I strongly disagree.

One thing I learned was that many people wanted to figure out a way to blame me for why it happened. Women in my life especially.

I realized they were doing this because the idea that something so scary could happen to anyone, happen to them, was too scary to consider. So they preferred to think it was because I lived in the wrong neighborhood or whatever.

[MrSlayer]

61. In general, I'm right.

I'm sorry this happened to you and I'd never say I don't believe you but it's a rare occurrence to be targeted for no reason at all.

People come to rob you when they know you have stuff. It's senseless to risk all that for a maybe. Perhaps they got you by mistake, thought you were someone else, that happens sometimes.

[rgbecker]

62. I'd like to hear more about your Home invasion.

Did you confront the invaders? Was anyone hurt? Were there many or just one? Did they come in the daytime or night? How did they get in? Did they seem to have a particular objective? Was there a police response and if there was, what did they do and say? Drug or alcohol related? Was anyone armed? This little survey reveals that random home invasions are pretty rare so it would be helpful to the discussion to hear more about it.

Thanks.

[union_maid]

45. We don't worry about it

I don't know of any real home invasions that have occurred in this neighborhood since I've lived here, which is about 40 years. There was one horrible situation, about 25 years ago, where a man down the street shot and killed an intruder in his garage. The intruder turned out to be a friend of his son. Not sure what the kid was doing there, but i don't think the guy would have wanted to shoot him even if he was up to some mishchief. The shooter was or had been a cop. He was well within his legal right to have the gun. The family moved away as soon as they could after that. That was the only home invasion situation I've heard of.

There have been occasional burglaries.Vehicle theft or, more often, vehicle break-ins do happen from time to time, too. All those are pretty much done by local teens. They seem to come in waves when there's a generation of particularly troublesome kids. Everyone seems to know who the culprits are, too. It's just not the kind of neighborhood that people bother coming to for criminal activity. There's stuff here, but no one's really wealthy enough to attract pros. It's not poor enough to suffer the problems associated with poverty, either. And it's suburban so unusual activity is generally noticed by someone. Seriously, there have been home invasions in communities not terribly far away, but they always happen in distinctly more upscale or downscale areas than this one. Also, someone is almost always home. Most usually more than one person. When my adult son is living here - which he is now - his hours and schedule are so variable you could never be sure someone wouldn't be about to walk in. That's well known and probably obvious. Anyway, we've never had guns in the house. We've always had dogs, though. So far, so good.

[undeterred]

46. Aren't home invaders afraid of libruls with dogs?

[HiPointDem]

50. I'm wondering when the term 'home invasion' became current. We used to just say 'burglary'.

and specify whether the occupants were home or not.

i don't recall hearing that term until maybe the 2000s.

[rgbecker]

53. Good question! Here's some definitions from Dictionary.com

I wanted to be clear that I was talking about break-ins when the occupant was there....when he/she could possibly use a gun kept for "Personal protection". In fact, from the discussions on DU, it seems a lot of gun owners are afraid of their weapons being stolen by burglary when they are away from their homes. (Remember the posts about the press publishing the names and addresses of gun owners?)

Dictionary.com seems to use the terms as I do. I remember the Home invasion term gaining a lot of use in the 80's with the crack cocaine/meth adicts barging into folks home and just wasting the places looking for anything they could steal to pay for their habit. You certainly don't hear much about home invasions now. This little survey shows just a few fearing home invasion. Could those with guns for personal protection be thinking of something else or are they not fearful because they have the guns. Maybe there are not many on DU who have the guns for personal protection but rather some other use. I don't know.


bur·gla·ry
noun, plural bur·gla·ries. Criminal Law.
the felony of breaking into and entering the house of another at night with intent to steal, extended by statute to cover the breaking into and entering of any of various buildings, by night or day.

home invasion
noun
an act or instance of entering an occupied residence with the intent to commit a burglary or other crime.

[Recursion]

54. "Home invasion" is a burglary when you're there (nt)

[HiPointDem]

55. yes, i know. perhaps you could address my question, though.

[Recursion]

56. In my anecodtal experience, the mid 1990's

when it became a thing to intentionally burglarize with the occupants there

[Igel]

51. One neighbor had one. I'm not in fear of one.

It happened about 4 months afte we moved in. Somebody backed their truck up to the garage door then broke down the front door, assuming that the owner was out and they could burgle at their leisure. IT was 10:30 or 11 am.

She was in the living room watching the tv the robbers wanted to steal. She stood up and reportedly asked them what they thought they were doing.

A minute later she was on the floor, shot in the legs.

The robbers took off. She called an ambulance and was taken to a trauma center.

Unless she had a gun loaded and next to her chair, it wouldn't have helped her in the least.

Then again, it's not like the robbers needed it. They also didn't own their guns legally.

[tularetom]

52. I don't think it's fear 'cause if it was we'd move away from here

But it is a matter of taking responsibility for your own safety.

We live on 40 acres with one neighbor about 1/2 mile away and no other houses within 2 miles in either direction. The sheriff has basically told us to go to hell when we asked him to provide regular patrols to our isolated area. Pleading budgetary constraints.

We sit back about 400 feet from the road up a little rise and the place is well lit. We have several out buildings that have motion detector lights on them. We have an alarm system in the house and in the shop.

There is a loaded coach type shotgun in the hall closet (mostly for snakes) and a 1911 style pistol in the night stand. And I have to confess that we very seldom think about the possibility of a home invasion type incident. What concerns us the most is a burglary while we are away.

We are both in our 70's and I suppose we have to consider the likelihood that we won't be able to continue to live out here and take care of this place for too many more years. Mrs. t is already complaining about being so far away from the great grandkids. We don't have many animals anymore so moving will be that much easier.

[Warpy]

57. The only home invasion I truly fear

is by a gang of amped-up SWAT cops who have the wrong address on a "no knock" warrant.

That one scares the hell out of me.

[Matariki]

58. Been through that.

And my first hand knowledge tells me that it's a complicated issue.

[Kaleva]

60. I don't even lock the doors.

[rgbecker]

63. I guess there are a few of us left in America.

I tell my neighbors around here they are wasting their time locking up. The houses are so isolated, anyone could get in and out of any of them without much effort at all, so why risk getting a broken window or door. I've found the police state here knows who has been naughty and who has been nice. They keep a good eye on the situation.

[raccoon]

64. I suggest you and the other poster read IN COLD BLOOD.

The Clutter family lived on a farm near a small town. They didn't lock their doors either.