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Walk in on a Burglary last night

4K views 28 replies 28 participants last post by  SonofASniper 
#1 ·
Me and my girlfriend walked in my house last night at midnight. This is earlier than I usually get home since I work nights but I was off because of the hoildays. While unlocking the front door I noticed something was strange because my german shephard wasn't barking. Once in the house I went to deactivate my alarm. While entering the code I noticed one of the sensors activated. At this time I drew my weapon and a surefire flashlight from my pocket and went to investigate. Shining the light down the main hall I noticed the back door was open. I grabbed my girlfriend and went outside to call the police on my cell phone. While outside my dog begin to bark. I shined my light in the direction of the barking and at a distance of 70-80 feet I saw a man in my back yard. He then proceeded to jump the fence into a neighbors yard. It took nearly 30 mintues for the police to respond to the scene. Once the officer arrived he proceeded to clear the house. He discovered that the entry and exit were made though a rear window which was 6 feet off the ground. I have a burglar bar security door on the outside of the back door that requires a key to open. I suspect the perp tried to leave the house though the back door as I entered. He left his black duffle bag inside by the window. Fortunately nothing was taken from the house and I have since removed all non-carried firearms from the house to a more secure location. This is the first time my girlfriend thanked me for carrying. In fact she asked to hold my BUG while waiting for the police and says she now want's to get her permit. Would any of you have engaged the perp inside or outside? What dog should I replace mine with? Should I worry about a recurrence of this incident? Atlanta seems to be in the midst of a crime wave right now. Sorry for the long post.
 
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#2 ·
If he was inside and trying to get out (turning of his back)--be a good witness, get a description...would not shoot BG in the back. If he decides he's going to leave by going through me--he would have made a poor tactical decision.

Where was the dog while all of this was happening? Did you get the dog for companionship? or for security? If it is for the former--keep the dog. If the latter--find out why he wasn't shredding the BG and replace accordingly.

Alarm--why wasn't the alarm going off or alerting the company to notify the PD?? If anything, the alarm should have been shrieking, scaring the hell out of him.

GF--hopefully she had some rudimentary training so as to not shoot you as you came out of the house or anyone else who happened to be in the area (not a threat). Use this experience as a teaching lesson for the GF...be sure she speaks up when other sheep (friends) start going "BAA" about guns.

Other guns--what makes the other location more secure than your house? You house was no more secure last week that is was last night. Mike's recommendation: Invest in a safe.

You did fine (grasshopper)...you reacted to a threat...exercised good judgement and didn't needlessly shoot (either BG or neighbors). Double check the alarm company and train the GF. Be sure to follow-up with the PD.
 
#3 ·
Would any of you have engaged the perp inside or outside?
Absolutely, house clearing is for a well-trained person. It's literally a mine field, irrespective of whether you know the house's twists/turns. You're going into danger, and the BG has the advantage of cover. Outside, for me, every time. Can't fault your actions, particularly since you had someone else's safety to protect.

What dog should I replace mine with? Should I worry about a recurrence of this incident?
With an alarm and dog you still got hit ... worry? Sure. Which dog? Something a bit more astute about GG's vs BG's, with less-refined taste buds (Oreo cookies or bits of meat prolly turned him into putty.)

Glad everyone's okay. Keep safe.
 
#4 ·
my german shephard wasn't barking.

What dog should I replace mine with? Should I worry about a recurrence of this incident?
I wouldn't place much "fault" on the dog, coming both from experience owning German Shepherds and working with our K9 officers.
In defense of your dog, I wouldn't think about replacing, but training. The dog's bonding with you and your family go a loooong way toward protectiveness. I would venture to say that if the dirtbag posed a physical direct threat to you, he/she would have defended fiercely. German Shepherds are among the most loyal and intelligent dogs anywhere (I'm sure someone is going to argue this point). Careful how you train the dog, however. When I was young, a couple went away for the weekend leaving their German Shepherd (a retired Marine Corp working police dog) in the house. 20 year old scumbag pries open a window and crawls in. Dog got hold of him, did major bite damage, the scumbag got away, went to the hospital, got sewed back up and sued... and won. Man's homeowners insurance paid the lawsuit, but part of the judgement was that the dog had to be put down (which broke the couple's heart). Man took him to the vet, the vet wouldn't do it but signed the court papers and put the man in touch with my dad who took the dog. Anyway, you want the dog to be protective toward you/your family to the end, but not as aggressively over property (not a matter of right/wrong, but simple economics due to liability).

As far as clearing the house, leave it to the police. Confronting the dirtbag, do it outside, not inside where you are at a tactical disadvantage every time. You handled the situation well.
 
#5 ·
I think you did exactly the right things. Shooting a fleeing perp would only get you in trouble. Clearing the house yourself puts you at a tactical disadvantage. The police are trained (and paid) to do this.

I don't think you should "replace" your dog. He is a friend, not a biological alarm system. At least I would hope so.
 
#6 ·
I don't see anything I'd of done differently. You and yours are safe and unharmed. That's the biggie right there. You really might want to invest in a better alarm system that covers all openings. If the the dog is kept in one area while you're out, motion alarm the rest as well.

As to clearing a house, I don't care if it took LE an hour to get there. If we're safe outside I'll stay there until the guys trained for it can do the job!
 
#7 · (Edited)
Sounds to me like you did everything correctly given the circumstances. You noticed something was wrong, did an initial investigation, and broke off contact when you established that the bg posed no imminent threat.

I have to agree with Only Glock about your dog. German Shepherd dogs are great animals. You can train them to do just about anything. They are that intelligent. That said, the key word is train. You have to let the dog know what role you expect them to play in your life. Choose carefully as you will have to live with the consequences.

Get a safe!! That is the only way to protect your firearms adequetely. It's a modest investment for the piece of mind that comes with it.

Last but certainly not least, train the gf. If she is interested, take it as far as she'll let you. There is nothing better than having a partner that you can count on 24/7.
 
#8 ·
Throw A Smoke Bomb...

In the front door...and shoot whoever comes out the back door?...Not really!.....

Let the cops handle it...

I might have a short talk with the dog though...

Glad you're safe...

ret:comeandgetsome:
 
#9 ·
Each person will say what they think they would do but that might be different from what they'd actually do it\when it happened to them.

I’m a volunteer auxiliary police officer in the little city I live in.
If I had my cell and was able to call our PD it’d be maybe 4 or 5 min’s before someone showed up. I’d probably wait in that case.
If I didn’t have my cell and my wife were with me I’d probably send her to the neighbor’s to call and I might go in – or might not.
If I thought any of my family were inside I’d definitely go in and be in Combat Mode.
This situation is something I can’t really say unless it actually happened.
I hope I never have to post anything about this kind of situation.
 
#10 ·
Sounds like everything went well. I would not have enganged in any room clearing or perp finding, but after the 911 call I would have at least tried to articulate to the dispacter that the perp is fleeing the seen and they need to get their butts in gear!. then dont just stand in the middle of the lawn (not saying you did that) I would have gotten to a neighbors house or coverd area and waited for police.. the more noise the better, if the neighbors wake up, great! mabie they know of someone around the block they can call to help the police with finding the perp that may or may not be hiding in their back yard waiting for the police to leave.
 
#12 ·
I think you did fine. I would not have cleared rooms or engaged the fleeing burglar. You had no one inside to protect so retreat and call LE is a good plan. Especially since the two people you needed to protect that night were you and your GF who was with you.

As noted dogs have to be trained.
 
#13 ·
Would any of you have engaged the perp inside or outside? What dog should I replace mine with? Should I worry about a recurrence of this incident? Atlanta seems to be in the midst of a crime wave right now. Sorry for the long post.

First of all, glad you are okay.

To answer your questions:
1.)I would have said freeze. If he was running, I would have probably tried to covertly run after him a bit to get a good description, but not engage hand to hand, etc.

2.)Don't replace dog if he is your buddy. If he was supposed to protect you, he failed, but it sounds like your alarm did too.

3.)Yes I would worry about recurrence. BG now sees you have gun (possibly more and BGs like guns), flashlight, dog, girlfriend, and all that stuff inside b/c he was inside your house screwing around. BG may come back and be more prepared. Chances are that they/he/she won't, but they/he/she may.

It seems my crappy area (Columbus, OH) is also going through a crimewave. Although, it always seemed like this.
 
#14 ·
Good job noting the alarm sensor, leaving the house and calling the cops.

Time to add bars to more windows and get a small barking dog to rev up the bigger dog. :comeandgetsome:
 
#15 ·
eb27 said:
At this time I drew my weapon and a surefire flashlight from my pocket and went to investigate.
This is the only thing I would have done differently. If I come in and see that a sensor has been tripped I'm heading back out immediately. Let the police do the investigating--that's what they get paid for! I might have whistled for the dog as I was backing out.

As others have said, I would not get a new dog, I would get some training for the current dog. I also would invest in a good safe for the guns.

Glad things worked out okay in the end.
 
#17 ·
I would have left the house got in my car and drove to another location to call 911. If he would have attacked me or if he would have charged me in my home I would have fired. Leaving the house was the best thing to do. Avoiding a dangerous situation is always the best choice. Many men and women get killed trying to capture or confront a burgular. Always focus on escape and use your gun only if the bad guy tries to engage you.
 
#18 ·
Did good. The bad thing about alarm siren is that any bugler worth their weight knows they have a good solid ten minutes to rob you when the alarm goes off. They know your not home. The alarm company will call house before police. After the ringing stops they still have five minutes before the cops are notified and begin a response. Even then they sometimes don't show for twenty minutes. My father's house was broken into a few weeks ago and the kid just ignored the alarm and rummaged around like nothing happened.
 
#19 ·
If you and GF and dog are all OK it is a good ending. I wouldn't worry to much about the BG coming back, if he has any brains he is good and scared and won't do this again. Maybe it was a punk kid looking for dope money. I would look into why the alarm failed and I would get a good gun safe for all your valables. Glad y'all are okay.
 
#20 ·
I think you did a good job.

I wouldn't worry about the performance of your dog. Honestly, dogs are not much of a deterrent to the bad guys. They know that they can almost always get the dog to leave them along by just giving them treats.
On the Discovery show "It takes a Thief" the guy who breaks into the houses, himself a reformed thief, carries doggie treats in his pocket when he does the job. He has not had any problems with the dogs he has encountered. In fact, in one episode, he actually stole the homeowners Pit Bull with his truck and valuables.

Keep the dog and just improve the security of the house. Maybe bars over the windows too?
 
#21 ·
20 year old scumbag pries open a window and crawls in. Dog got hold of him said:
What kind of country do we live in where this kind of bull $%%# can happen! Thanks to all you bad lawyers for giving more rights to criminals then to victims. Are we becoming England?
 
#23 ·
If I were you I would have taken my pistol out, yelled "BANZAI!!!!!" and charged in.

Even if you would have been hurt by the perp, your girlfriend would have been impressed and she would have gotten to see the true side of you. And that's all that matters.
 
#25 ·
I would never clear a house, there is just too much of a disadvantage. I have done some training scenerios somewhat in the same realm as clearing and it was a sobering experience. This is why even cops try to do this in teams not alone! I cant say you did anything wrong...I dont know if I would have let the GF hold the gun just in case you would have needed it, but if she knows how to use it then she may be more of an asset than a liability (in case you needed the BUG).

I would be a bit disapointed in the dog too, but I too think training classes are the right thing to do, and if you find its too difficult to train the dog get another young one and have him trained from a young age, the older dog will pick up the queues and follow his lead. A BG may think he can get around one dog...but two dogs??? Hell I would think mose would prefer to face a shotgun.
 
#26 ·
I can't agree with the courts on that one. The dog should have got a metal. If I were a lawyer my morals would allow me to represent the BG. We have some slimey lawers who wii sell thier soul for money.
Didn't the jury or judge have the facts as to what the bad guy was doing when he encountered the dog.Some of these laws need to be revued and changed .
 
#28 ·
Your dog's probably not a loser - many dogs don't care all that much about your stuff, but if someone were to be seen by the dog as a threat to your person, then it is a whole different ball game. If you are really counting on your dog to guard the house, get a second dog - each dog is them protecting another member of his pack, same as if you or other people who are members of his 'pack' were there. Wouldn't you act differently if you can avoid a confontation than you would if a member of your family was in danger?
 
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