Do you order him to disarm himself by dropping the gun ? Or Perhaps interlace his fingers behind his head and simple back up towards you so you can remove the gun ? What position would you first order him in if you disarm him ?
Having seen a draw that rivals mine from the surrender position to a front waistband draw-and-fire, I'd say he should be disarmed before you ever approach him.
Having him remove his firearm with HIS WEAK HAND and TWO FINGERS, with any noncompliance at that point earning him a double-tap, is the way I would go with that situation. There may be other options, but that's the one I'm the most comfortable with.
The position you should have him in is ON HIS KNEES, FACING AWAY FROM YOU, HANDS ON HEAD, palms up, feet crossed (deliberately slightly uncomfortably - once he complies, tell him to cross his feet "the other way" so it's not as comfortable for him...this will keep him slightly off balance and you need every edge)
If you get him into the hallway and disarmed do you restrain him in some manner so you can continue the search of your home or do you halt it at this point and wait for the Police to arrive .
If you have no means of securing your prisoner, then your searching stops there. You have an unrestrained prisoner. You hold him how you like until the law arrives. Be sure you're comfortable and he isn't. Don't get complacent and definitely have a solid "reactionary gap" between you and him, and WATCH HIS HANDS. Make sure you have enough light...because at that point, he has nothing to lose and everything to gain by killing you. He is now MORE dangerous than when you first confronted him. Never forget this.
Would you simply stop the search at the point of finding him and wait there for the Police while he still has the gun in his waistband with you holding him at gunpoint ?
Yes on stopping the search, yes on waiting for the police, no on letting him stay armed. Strong hand straight up in the air, weak hand reaches for pistol (note which way the pistol is turned and tell him to reach with the hand the butt is facing AWAY from) and grasps the butt with TWO FINGERS. Warn him before he reaches that noncompliance in ANY WAY will get him a hail of bullets. If he thinks he can push the issue with you, using three fingers, manipulating the gun in any way, he will. Remember, he has NOTHING TO LOSE AND EVERYTHING TO GAIN, and his BEST opportunity to kill you will be while his hand is on the gun. Have him drop the firearm at his feet and kick it towards you. THEN make him turn around with his hands in view at all times, kneel down facing AWAY from you so he can't see you, cross his feet, and you can let him place his hands ON his head.
Failure to comply can take three forms:
1) Obviously threatening move: This means not only is he not complying, he's trying to kill you. In my situation, that's when he gets the double-tap. Justifiable homicide.
2) Not obviously threatening but noncompliant move: This is the most difficult. Because you don't KNOW what he's doing, whether he's going for a backup weapon, or trying to escape and not actually being threatening. Here is where you MUST use your own judgement and live with the consequences of that judgement. If it's obvious he's escaping...and this is going to suck...LET HIM GO. You're not a cop, and as much as you want to do SOMETHING at that point, it is best you do not. You'll feel like crap for sitting there, watching him run away while you look down your sights at him, but it's better than having to go through a shoot, especially a questionable one, with lots of unpleasant police attention to you and large legal bills.
3) Not moving at all: At least he's not reaching. He may be defiant, or he may be scared. Or, he may realize that you disarming him and putting him in the suspect position lessens his later chance of escape or turning the tables on you. Really, if he doesn't comply, there isn't much you can do except close and go physical, shoot him, or continue to do nothing. Two of these options: Close and go physical, and continue to do nothing, actually will act in his favor. Closing and going physical means that he has manipulated you into closing the reactionary gap, where obviously he thinks he has the advantage, AND he's still armed. Continuing to do nothing means that your attention, focused right now, will eventually fatigue and waver, and when that does, he is STILL armed, and is patiently waiting for you to make a mistake so he can kill you or escape. Since you don't know which one he's going to choose, and for that matter, possibly neither does he, this is a risky situation to be in. I'd advise taking cover while continuing to cover him with your weapon (back up, get partially around a corner, etc.) and making your decision as to what to do next.
While you right now might consider shooting a noncompliant armed suspect as cold blooded murder, you might think differently as you read the totality of the situation, including body language, what the suspect is saying (if anything) or how the suspect's eyes and facial expression telegraph his intentions. This is the dynamic part of a shoot/don't shoot situation that does not translate well to print and thus, many scenario solutions that "look good on paper" don't do well in the real world. There's just too much data variance to make a solid recommendation, which is why most courses don't have hard-and-fast rules of thumb when it comes to this, but instead have legal criteria that are applied to training scenarios so that you can understand the dynamics of the process and have a better chance of making the right choice under stress, because every real-life scenario is different; By which I mean, there could be five incidents that all fit your description to a T, with five different suspects, and five different defenders, and have five different outcomes, even with the same set of starting criteria. Mindset, evaluation skills (of both suspect AND defender), and motivations, all of which are not knowable in totality by anyone, play crucial roles in the behaviors presented.
What if they have no visible weapon do you order them to do a 360 and raise their shirt so you can look for one ?
Not a bad idea but be careful how you go about it. Having him raise his shirt and expose a gun just made HIS draw that much faster against you. Recognize this danger BEFORE you choose this course of action.
Would you assume he is alone even if you had only searched half of your home and there are bedrooms with family members in them to go and halt the search ?
Two things: Assumptions in a lethal force situation will get you killed. Rats run in packs. Nowadays, burglaries are done with speed, home invasions are done with shock and awe, both almost always require multiple suspects.
The reason why you are halting the search is because you already HAVE a suspect, and you don't have the manpower to complete the search. Continuing to search while you have an unsecured suspect is STUPID. Don't do it. You've halted the search because you have a higher priority to make sure that suspect doesn't hurt you or your family, NOT because you assume he's alone. In fact, assume he's NOT alone, and EXPECT there to be a diversion that may be a distraction, either intentional or unintentional...another reason not to have too light a trigger pull on a gun you may have to use to defend yourself against humans. Because all it takes is a finger on the trigger and a startle response, and you've gone from justifiable to potentially negligent homicide. And the diversion may not come from another BG; It may come from one of your own family members.."JOHN! WHat are you DOING out there in the HALLWAY with THAT THING!!" or "Daddy! What'cha doin?" -- especially if the suspect is not visible to the inquiring family member.
These are all factors you MUST take into account when making a tactical assessment, especially in your own home. Remember that untrained family members can and will be a liability. Mr. Murphy assures me that he'll make sure to motivate them to do the absolute stupidest thing at the absolute worst time.
Be prepared for that.
Do you just tell him to drop his gun and get out of there hoping he will run completely away and leave you free to finish your search ?
Note what I said above about having him disarm himself. If after the gun you can see is safely away from him, it is your decision as to whether or not you want to let him go, for whatever reason. Just understand the long-term consequences of this behavior (such as the fact that now he knows you have a gun and are a soft touch, he might just come back, either to take your stuff, take advantage of you, or revenge...you DON'T KNOW.). Honestly, though, if he runs of his own accord after being disarmed...fine. In most states you can't shoot him in the back anyway. But continue to search your home? Your call. But after I found ONE in my home, I'd gather my family members in one room where I could protect them all, and be all over the phone to 911. Once my perimeter has been breached, it's not safe for me to search solo with a family to protect. If I were alone, with only my safety to think of, then I may choose to search knowing the risks to myself and knowing that I risked no one's life but my own. But with family? Stay put and protect them; That's your primary responsibility.
Please keep in mind when responding , that to shoot him when trying to surrender would be cold blooded murder something I am not comfortable with .
And I realize that. But after reading the above, you must be certain in your mind that he IS trying to actually surrender, and not just playing along in order to get the upper hand and kill you. Becuase you may only get one chance to make the right choice, and if you guess wrong, you are dead.
That's what "life or death" means.
Your call.
S
Seriously, trying to disarm and or restrain an intruder is probably the most dangerous thing that you could do. To physically disarm or restrain an intruder you must be in close proximity with the person which would give them the opportunity to grapple with you for control of your weapon. I would keep my distance and order the individual to the ground, hands on head and legs crossed all the while he is covered by my gun, then wait for the police to arrive.
