Aftermath of a home invasion: what do you do differently?

[bonehead]

I've read numerous accounts of how someone's home was robbed and goods/guns have been stolen. Most often (fortunately), no one is home at the time.

With all the gang/drug-trafficking activity seemingly becoming more and more common these days along the AZ/Mexico border, I get a bit more worried about these scenarios.

Who here has been a victim of a home invasion and what do you now do differently to protect yourself, your family, and your belongings?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Sticks]

If guns were stolen, report them immediately.

After the initial shock wears off, analyze what happened and how it happened, then make the necessary adjustments so it does not happen again.

Remember, locks, lights, alarms, are all different levels of deterrents. The harder you make your home a target the safer it will be.

[dukalmighty]

I had a burglary ,not a home invasion but I reported the theft of my guns immediately,and up until that point never slept with a loaded gun ,but all that changed

[Patti]

My parents were a victim of a home invasion. Because my dad didn't believe in handguns, he had to physically fight the BG off.

The aftermath was awful. My folks were in shock.

They had an alarm system installed the next day, along with reliable deadbolt locks and motion detector lights.

Dad also ripped out the shrubs that were up next to the house.

And one more really important thing: Dad borrowed one of my handguns and kept it loaded on the night stand.

[C9H13NO3]

Parents got burglarized twice, both while not home. They just filed a report, and no one was ever caught. They are "considering" getting a gun or two now, but still haven't taken any real action. Worries me since they live in the mountains with no law enforcement to speak of really.

[Doc Holliday]

Never been a victim.

Got to have layered security.

Alarm, dog, good exterior lighting with motion detectors, solid door with a deadbolt are good places to start.

I keep the doors locked at all times and the alarm on most of the time at home. My Lab, while not a good guard dog, is a good watch dog and alarm barker. I also carry while at home. Hopefully the first one through the door will receive multiple hits to the vitals. If the others want to continue I do have an 870 and an AR handy that I hope to be able to transition to if the situation allows.

[alfack]

Well, I just bought a safe with some of my tax refund money. Quite a dilemma, new gun or safe? I decided on the safe, then to add new guns later. I hate leaving home and stashing the guns in different places all over the house, hoping nobody will break in.

[lacrosse50]

Never been victimized, nor has anyone close to me. I've been working to upgrade lighting and security, but with money being tight it's just kinda tough. I did get a good solid safe about a year ago, and I've been building up a reserve of ammo ever since.

[atctimmy]

There is a big difference between a home invasion and a burglary. The title says one and your post says another. Which are you wishing to discuss?

[Sticks]

Legally there might be a difference, but to the average jane/joe, it is the same.

[bonehead]

There is a big difference between a home invasion and a burglary. The title says one and your post says another. Which are you wishing to discuss?

Legally there might be a difference, but to the average jane/joe, it is the same.

What Sticks said. They may me technically and legally different, but how how I would change my preparedness the day after probably would be the same.

[ccw9mm]

Burglary or robbery, it's simply a matter of timing. One could easily be the other, if only chance played out a little differently.

Harden the entrances; monitor those entrances; make if costly if those entrances are breached; get a hardened/safe room; make it costly if that safe room's entrance is breached. Basically, those are the choices you've got. How you fill those holes will partly depend on the house layout you've got to contend with. Mostly, it'll depend on your willingness to harden the way to you, which takes money, changes in equipment (lighting, alarm, doors, windows, bushes), possible changes in the house/layout.

I have had people enter unannounced. I've also had friends and family burgled and invaded. Here are some of the things upgraded in those homes:

• Ensure the doors/windows are beefy enough to withstand a reasonable attack. Ensure that getting through them (when bolted, blocked, closed) is as noisy and difficult as can be. Why? You want to KNOW it's happening, when it's happening.
  
  
• If you're able, plant larger, thorny, hard-to-surpass bushes at the base of each window, such that getting through each window is extremely difficult to do so without making lots of noise (and suppressing screams of pain from the thorns).
  
  
• Exterior lighting and sensors, ones that activate when someone is outside the major entrance spots (sidewalk, garage door, rear patio area, front walkway, front doorway. Lighting is fine, but the sensors (with buzzers, bells) will be very useful, if you're home.
  
  
• Alarm system, one that monitors the entire perimeter and all entrances (windows, doors, basement windows, etc); one that has different zones, so that you can arm the perimeter independently of the interior.
  
  
• When not going to be going in and out of the doors, consider keeping the perimeter alarm on. If not willing to have the perimeter alarmed while you're at home, at the very least have it warn you when breached. Why? Because if you're at home you'll need the advance warning if you're to survive it cleanly.
  
  
• Lighting and timers, so that lights and certain devices can be timed to come on/off at random (or particular) times.
  
  
• Be armed, always. An invasion can be lightning fast, a surprise. If breached and unannounced (by alarms or dog), you'll all of a sudden have a (potentially armed) person right there. Will you have time to run down the hallway, into the "gun room," open your safe and acquire your firearm? You'll either be armed and able to deal with it, or you'll be unarmed and at the mercy of that person's willingness to kill you.
  
  
• Have a "safe" room, or at least a well-provisioned go-to room. That room should have a solid door that can be well barricaded against forced attack; have good cover that can defend against bullets fired against you; have extra guns/ammo, communications by land line, communications by cell phone, and perhaps a reasonably quick way out of the house (if needed).
  
  
• Get a decent "alarm" dog, one that isn't sidestepped and will perform well in situations.

[tns0038]

When we remodeled our house, the general contractor had became a Christian while in jail, serving time for his past life as a house burglar, who use to work for the “mob” stealing from drug dealers.

Something’s he taught me

First of all, if you’re going to own more guns, than you can carry with you, you need a gun safe.

Unless you live in a big private estate, your neighbors are better than any alarm system, make friends with them and help watch each other’s houses.

Make sure you keep your neighbors informed when you’re going to be out of town.

The best safe is one a thief cannot find.

Use long through deadbolt locks on all exterior doors, with long screws, for the plate that the bolt goes into, and long screws to secure the wood around the metal doors.

While a reinforced door will not stop a thief, it will at least take them two kicks to open the door, thus give you time to get to your gun. And it makes allot of noise that a thief does not want to make, when he has to keep hammering open a door.

Some of you like to talk about scenarios; this is what he use to do.


When he robbed a house, he would stop at a nearby hardware store and pay cash for a sledge hammer. And leave it at the house when he left.

If he knew the house had an alarm system, he would rob the house, when the people where home.

He would walk up to the front door of the house, at 9-11 pm, and hit the front door with the sledge hammer. Him and two other guys would then race into the house; two with shotguns. If alarm whet off, the homeowner, would tell the alarm company, it was a false alarm. He said “People will do anything you tell them to do when you have a shotgun to their kids heads.”

He would then tie up the wife and kids, and take them to a bedroom, and leave one of the guys with them.

Then he would have the guy open the safe, and give him a tour of the home. All they wanted was cash, drugs, jewelry, and firearms; Easy to transport.

When they left, he would leave them tied up, with duck tape.

Most drug dealers would never report the crime, and he never burglarized, a house in his home state.

The only reason he was caught was the DEA had one of the houses under surveillance, and got the tag off of the rental car, he was driving.

[ccw9mm]

He would walk up to the front door of the house, at 9-11 pm, and hit the front door with the sledge hammer. Him and two other guys would then race into the house; two with shotguns. If alarm whet off, the homeowner, would tell the alarm company, it was a false alarm. He said “People will do anything you tell them to do when you have a shotgun to their kids heads.”

Good point. And about the only way to slow down this situation from brewing is: make the entrance is noisy, difficult and time-consuming as possible. It's about the only way to get enough time to have the people in the house get into the "safe" area, which can hopefully be defended before guns are put to heads. Without that element (noisy, difficult and time-consuming entrance), all else is mostly moot with a violent and concerted invasion.

[bpa00]

There is a big difference between a home invasion and a burglary. The title says one and your post says another. Which are you wishing to discuss?

+1

I'm confused.

A home invasion is when you are home when an intruder forces his way in. A burglary on the other hand is when no one is home, and the intruder breaks in and steals your stuff.