Do you like chocolate? Do you carry at home?

[JohnKSa]

This team was apparently going from house-to-house, so this doesn't appear to be a criminals-targeting-criminals type scenario.

Note that the person coming to the door is clean-cut and not likely to arouse suspicion. No reason that the team couldn't have picked a minor for this duty as even bad guys have kids.

I see two possible methods that provide a chance to repel this kind of invasion.

1. Never open your door to anyone. We're pretty careful here, but not to that level. In fact, we bought some fund-raiser chocolate just last week.

2. Carry at home. It's obvious that the homeowner would not have had any chance at all to access a firearm that wasn't already on his person.

 

[redcon1]

When my door bell rings and I don't recognize the person out front, I don't answer the door. What's more, I don't say a word to them. Instead, I quietly grab my gun and sit there in complete silence waiting to see what's going to happen next. And, of course, they always leave and it was probably some JWs or something equally stupid but there's absolutely no reason for me to open that door or to speak to them. I would also add that there are four of these invaders and this kind of numerical superiority is common and should be anticipated and this is a strong argument for why we do, in fact, need a firearm with a high capacity magazine. Also, the ostensibly innocent salesman could also be gathering reconnaissance, trying to get a glimpse inside to see if there's anything worth stealing later or trying to see what the car parked in the driveway means. I like them to see that car and not be able to say for sure what it means.

 

[earlthegoat2]

There is a Mas Ayoob video which is pretty good on how to “answer” the door.

It is not recommended to “not answer” but surely not answering is better than opening the door to an unknown.

 

[ClicheBro]

Guns are low on the list of what they'd have to worry about at my house.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

If I don't know you, I say no thank you. If they say that they're an official person, I ask for ID and if their story or "badge" sends a BS flag, I dial 911 and ask for the cops to come verify things. I never answer a door unarmed, ever.

 

[The Night Rider]

It's been said, if I don't know you, I don't open the door. I acknowledge your presence via the ring doorbell and politely tell you I'm not interested. there's nothing to gain being an ass to people. The only exception to that is Jehovah's Witnesses but they don't come around since I lead one of them down The Romans Road and really made him question his theology

 

[James K2020]

We have a heavy locked security screen door that we talk through if we're unsure of who the visitor is. Normally wouldn't buy anything from kids but we get a few of the usual sellers of local services who are mostly pleasant. Not a lot of door-to-door peddlers here anymore- some solar and real estate. Maybe carpet cleaners.

 

[trackskippy]

We live in a rural area, and and while we usually dont see many people at the house, we get people at the door once in a while due to breakdowns, deer wrecks, church people, ect. If you dont have T Mobile, your phones wont work, so youre basically asking to use someone's phone if you have trouble, or walking a long way.

Im not all that paranoid that Id hide behind my door and wait for them to leave. They honestly may need real help, and that has happened in the past.

Its not like they are getting near the house without tripping the perimeter alarms and the dogs usually go off before the alarms, so we know they are here long before they get to the door. Unless something might look really off (and the way a lot of the locals look, as nice and decent as most of them are, they would scare the bejesus out of city people. ), I'll normally meet them out in the drive before they are out of the car if theyve pulled in, or even up the drive walking.

Nighttime, is a little different, and you just have to judge what youre looking at and dealing with and make a decision. We dont have local police, and unless a Trooper just happens to be in this end of the county, the response time is usually about a half hour or more. Youre better off calling for fire and rescue if you want people.

As far as having a gun, I wear one all day, every day, so I dont have to go look for anything. Its always there on me out of sight. The three 125# Rotties are heat-seeking force multipliers.

 

[citizenconn]

This has been an increasingly common tactic here in the Houston area along with following people home from banks, malls, grocery stores. A few months back the Houston police caught a very organized ring of over 100 crooks working this scam throughout the entire county and even extending into neighboring counties.

Sadly that was just a drop in the bucket to the number of losers running these type scams. I live in the northern part of Harris county and unless I am expecting visitors or a delivery I never answer my door and keep them all locked all the time. Thank the Lord I only have about 4 more years until I retire from my job and can move somewhere where the cops have somewhat of a handle on crime, because I don't see the Democrats running Harris county doing anything to stem the tide of crime.

 

[WrongHanded]

Do I carry at home?

Yes!

I've been doing so for years, with guns such as an LCR in .38 Special. But eventually I got to the point I was carrying a G42 or G43 as a BUG on my non-dominant side during normal daily activities. So the BUG became my primary carry in the house.

That BUG is now a G33, which is carried either AIWB in a kydex holster, or IWB at 3:30 in a leather holster. And yes, I do practice with it (this past weekend in fact). And yes, I do practice drawing from concealment and shooting one hand only (weak hand).

Part of the reason I gave up on the snubby revolvers for this job is that I ended up in a potentially bad spot, outside my front door with 3 strangers that had unknown but likely bad intentions. I learned a lot from that situation, about what not to do, and about how to avoid such a scenario in the future. But I also realized that a 5 shot gun was less than desirable. So now it's a 9 shot and an optional magazine available close by with 10 more.

 

[shafter]

To me it looks like a well planned hit. They picked their target and found a way to get him to open the door. Nothing about that looks random.

 

[luzyfuerza]

I learned a lot from that situation, about what not to do, and about how to avoid such a scenario in the future.

Would you be willing to provide some more details on the situation and the lessons you learned?

 

[WrongHanded]

Would you be willing to provide some more details on the situation and the lessons you learned?

I certainly can.

The long and the short of it is that I ended up outside my front door (which I locked behind me), on my elevated front deck, with a hand in my pocket holding a 5 shot revolver, talking to a middle aged guy with a mosquito net head cover and a can of Raid in his hand. He had a female accomplice standing on the path to the sidewalk, and a male accomplice standing behind a pickup truck parked in front of my property.

They were claiming to be Bee Keepers who'd been sent a video of a yellow jacket nest in my dryer vent. It wasn't my vent. It wasn't my neighbors who'd "reported" it. It was an attempt to gain entrance to someone's home, and had it been my wife answering the door (which she doesn't do), it would have worked. What their plan was after that, I have no idea.

The whole thing began with me hearing the doorbell and lifting the blinds. I saw the guy on the porch and the woman on the path, but not the guy by the truck. I lower the blinds, gripped my revolver and answered the door. He gave me the "story" and tried to step by/through me, into my home. I became a brick wall and he bounded back. I told him to hold on for a moment, closed and locked the door and grabbed my keys. Then I stepped outside and locked the door before closing it, so that I could deal with the situation without any reasonable chance of them gaining access to my home, or forcing me inside it. That was a bad idea. Not calling the police before I did so was an even worse idea. Not wearing sunglasses (which so had time to retrieve after seeing the can of spray) was an even bigger blunder.

It was interesting to see how they worked it. How they tried to put me at ease. They even had the "evidence" to show me. They'd done a good job of working it all out so that it at least looked like a mistake if they were caught out.

My large frame, the dogs barking, locking the door behind me without losing visual contact with them, the gun related T-shirt, and my hand never leaving my pocket, all probably helped dissuade them. But going out there in the first place was a terrible idea. I called the police afterwards to help avoid it happening to others, but I don't think the cops managed to track them down.

 

[Kleanbore]

To me it looks like a well planned hit.

They had a playbook.

They picked their target and found a way to get him to open the door.

The tried several targets, and succeeded with one.

Nothing about that looks random.

What does that mean?

 

[The Night Rider]

What does that mean?

Isn't that self-explanatory? He's saying it looks like it was targeted at them specifically

 

[JohnKSa]

To me it looks like a well planned hit. They picked their target and found a way to get him to open the door. Nothing about that looks random.

The video clearly showed the same person knocking on at least one other door in the general area. So no, not targeted at one specific person.

 

[Hartkopf]

I carry at home from real early until real late in the day. Once you find a comfortable and secure holster/belt set up, it’s easy.

The bad guys in the video had a good plan to just have one person visible to make the opening pitch. My alert level increases substantially when there are two or more unknown people on my property. The video is a good reminder to not size up the potential fight by what you first see. It can get worse than it first appears.

 

[armoredman]

Ring camera - if I don't know you, I can talk to you through the Ring. If the camera is obscured or damaged, that door won't open unless they use a heavy duty battering ram. Gun? Hmm, lost 'em all in a terrible boating accident...but I might have a baseball bat. Made by CZ.

 

[CDW4ME]

We live in a rural area, and and while we usually dont see many people at the house, we get people at the door once in a while due to breakdowns, deer wrecks, church people, ect. If you dont have T Mobile, your phones wont work, so youre basically asking to use someone's phone if you have trouble, or walking a long way.

Im not all that paranoid that Id hide behind my door and wait for them to leave. They honestly may need real help, and that has happened in the past.

Its not like they are getting near the house without tripping the perimeter alarms and the dogs usually go off before the alarms, so we know they are here long before they get to the door. Unless something might look really off (and the way a lot of the locals look, as nice and decent as most of them are, they would scare the bejesus out of city people. ), I'll normally meet them out in the drive before they are out of the car if theyve pulled in, or even up the drive walking.

Nighttime, is a little different, and you just have to judge what youre looking at and dealing with and make a decision. We dont have local police, and unless a Trooper just happens to be in this end of the county, the response time is usually about a half hour or more. Youre better off calling for fire and rescue if you want people.

As far as having a gun, I wear one all day, every day, so I dont have to go look for anything. Its always there on me out of sight. The three 125# Rotties are heat-seeking force multipliers.

I lived in a rural area on 20 acres, carried at home there. (It would have been a 30 min police response)
Now live in a beach subdivision carry at home here too.

I'm usually disinclined to answer the door for unexpected people; if I do, my German Shepherd has already let them know he is here (loudly) and is at my side before I open the door. I've got a Glock 9mm or 40 AIWB and a 145# Bullmastiff that doesn't bark waiting to see if this interaction merits his attention.

A guy was on our street last week, selling something. The woman across from me let him in her house (mind blowing, I know); he didn't come to my house that day. He was back on our street a couple days later and rang our doorbell. My son described what the guy looked like and I decided to answer the door with GSD at my side.
I'm ...
Me: Not interested
I'm ...
Me: NOT Interested
But ...
Me: NO Thank You

My son said he could her me get louder and my tone change each time. I had no intention of listening to him, don't know why I answered the door. Maybe the GSD used telepathy or a jedi mind trick on me, "you want to answer the door". LOL

A Rottweiler is on my future dog list; I'd get one now, but I'd have to be a millionaire to afford vet visits for 3 dogs.

 

[sparkyv]

My house rules:
1. If they're not expected, the door shall not open.
2. When the doorbell rings, arm yourself unless redundant.

my door bell rings and I don't recognize the person out front, I don't answer the door. What's more, I don't say a word to them. Instead, I quietly grab my gun and sit there in complete silence waiting to see what's going to happen next

 

[FL-NC]

There are loaded guns secreted throughout my house. One is in my hand when I go to the door. Someone going door-to-door selling something like candy bars who is clearly not school-aged should be a red flag as well.

 

[Kleanbore]

One is in my hand when I go to the door.

Do you believe that you could use it to stop incoming rounds?

If it were noticed and reported, how would you justify that?

 

[redcon1]

The long and the short of it is...

I had a similar experience or, at least, I learned similar lessons from a not entirely similar experience. I was running low on gas as I drove south through New Mexico on vacation and so I was eager to fuel up. I came across a sleepy little town with a couple stoplights and a couple gas stations and so I stopped at one of them for fuel. It happened to be closed but they were nice enough to let you pump gas with a credit card despite this and so I did and while I was pumping gas, I noticed three individuals come out of the shadows and walk into my general area.

I smelled the ambush coming immediately and told my wife to lock her door. I had a holstered J frame .357 in my door which was open and I managed to grab it and hide it behind my back with one hand while I continued to pump gas with the other.

One of these individuals positioned himself next to the passenger side of the car a foot or two away from my wife in the passenger seat and maybe 10-12 feet away from me but with the truck between us. A second individual, a woman, positioned herself by the road clearly acting as a lookout about 15 yards away.

The third individual was the one I took to be their leader and he walked past me as I pumped gas and muttered some BS about needing to get a drink as he walked around the corner of the gas station to see if there was anyone else in the bathroom I presume. And then he turned around and came back towards me.

At this time, I knew exactly what was happening and I had secured that tiny little 5 shot snub nosed .357 magnum and I knew my wife's door was locked and I had a few seconds to make a plan of attack and my plan was pretty simple, I was just going to shoot this guy as soon as he made his move and as he's looking in my eyes and I'm looking in his, he realized that this wasn't going to be easy money.

And I wasn't just looking at him, I was pretty much snarling like a dog, teeth bared and all and my head was filled with rage and evil and my eyes were locked on his eyes. It was very clear to him that I knew what was going on and i was ready to fight. And so he looked at the guy positioned on the opposite side of my truck by my wife and shook his head "no" ever so slightly and they all immediately withdrew from their positions and disappeared back into the shadows from whence they came.

And my wife and I got the hell out of there with more than a few lessons learned. I learned the lessons of situational awareness, defensive readiness, EDC size and capacity and I learned how criminals are a lot like wolves. They have a organizational structure, they have a plan, they have a leader and they all have a role to play within their plan.

So ever since that day, I have viewed the J frame as a BUG and I have carried some kind of a Glock pistol with a high capacity magazine. I was happy to have that 5 shot .357 revolver for sure but I would have been a lot happier with a Glock and 17 rounds of 9mm. The 340PD would have probably been enough for the one guy closest to me but after that threat was dealt with, I don't know that it would have been enough to contend with the other two threats if they decided to fight. It probably wouldn't have been.

In the case of this home invasion in the OP's video, I would definitely want a low recoiling high capacity 9mm as they entered the "fatal funnel" of that narrow corridor and doorway and a sighting aid such as a laser or a RDS would be pretty handy there too.

 

[Kleanbore]

Isn't that self-explanatory? He's saying it looks like it was targeted at them specifically

Are not all home invasions "targeted" at someone "specifically"? To wit, the occupants of the home?

 

[The Night Rider]

Are not all home invasions "targeted" at someone "specifically"? To wit, the occupants of the home?

Are you being deliberately obtuse?

I seem to remember reading a post by Jeff White stating that the majority of home invasions are criminals targeting other criminals (such as drug dealers) or criminals targeting people like illegal aliens who keep cash at home instead of putting it in a bank or criminals targeting people who have businesses that deal in high cash volume.

I infer from that the home Invaders usually know who they're hitting. It's usually not just some random crime where they walk down the street knocking on doors and kick in the first one that opens.

So what I get from the particular post that we're discussing is the poster believes the home Invaders targeted that house specifically for a reason.