Christmas Surprise

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mrshish

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I'm back from my holiday traveling and thought I would share a Christmas story.

Christmas day my wife and I headed up to my parents. As usual I carried my .45 and a flashlight. We had a delightful day and after a long dinner drove home. It was about 11:00 when we pulled onto our street and noticed a strange car parked in the driveway. I drove by without stopping and looked around. All the lights in the house where off and the doors/windows where shut.

We came back around and and assumed it was a neighbors friend since they where having a party. My wife asked both neighbors if they had someone who might have parked there but no luck.

My wife sat in the drive seat while I went to search the house. In the end there was no one in the house and it ended up being another neighbor who's friend couldn't park on the street.

As it was the first time I had to draw my weapon a couple things seemed to ring true.

When you don't expect something is when it will happen. My wife who has a CCW didn't have a gun because it was Christmas and we where just going to my parents. She also has extensive firearm training and it would have been nice to have her clear it with me.

Bigger is better. I had an officer size 1911 in .45 but wanted a long gun. I can't imagine trying to sweep the house with a .25 mouse gun.

Have an extra gun. I've wanted to keep a gun in the truck but never got around to locking one up. It would have really helped.

There is no substitute for training. I've spent several years training and done several house clearings with force on force. I knew how to clear the house correctly.

Bring a dog. I had my dog with me and he definitely knew something was up. He had no problem leading the way and acting as a first line alarm.

A lot of people here know everything I've already said but it's just a reminder; don't let your guard down, always be prepared, and never give up.
 
You;re going to get a lot or replies that are going to suggest that you should have called the police and had them clear the house for you. I personally don't want the police in my house at all, so I can understand why you might not want to have called them.

Either way, glad it turned out all right.

Wheeler
 
I've spent several years training and done several house clearings with force on force. I knew how to clear the house correctly.
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That's why you did it by yourself? :rolleyes::uhoh:

I don't know where you trained or who trained you, but I'd be asking for my money back if I were you and go looking for some professional training.
 
I've spent several years training and done several house clearings with force on force. I knew how to clear the house correctly.
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This got me too. huh?

mrshish, welcome to THR! We're not trying to insult you, but lots of people here are current and former LEOs, veterans and active duty, and lots others with professional firearms training.

This comment doesn't hold water. The first thing any respectable firearms trainer will instill into people is that you are not supposed to clear a house by yourself. When SWAT does it, they use entire teams, never an individual without any sort of backup.

I've also had years of training and several force-on-force sessions using simmunitions. (One of my former SWAT trainers has had ~5,000 high-risk entries to his career.) Never have any of my trainers (on both coasts and in between) advocated what you claim.
 
My training has consisted primarily of Gunsite and several other smaller instructors/locations, if you have a better recommendation please let me know. I would be interested in additional places.

The reality is there are no hard fast rules about dealing with situations since each one is different. Like Wheeler said I don't want the police tromping through my house if I don't have to. I evaluated the threat and used what I deemed an appropriate response. If I saw lights on or movement I would have altered my plans to accommodate.

Using you're brain is one thing everywhere I've trained stresses. Maybe someone would deem a full SWAT team to clear a house because a car is parked in the driveway. Others wouldn't bother and walk right in.

I think everyone would agree there is fine line between investigating something yourself and calling for backup. Do to the circumstance I felt I made the appropriate call.

I apologize if I made a call you disagree with, I'm only trying to reinforce what worked and didn't work in this situation.
 
My training has consisted primarily of Gunsite and several other smaller instructors/locations,
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Which Gunsite class taught you to clear a house by yourself? Who was the primary instructor and when did you take it?

The reality is there are no hard fast rules about dealing with situations since each one is different.
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Yes my friend, there are some hard and fast rules and rule number one is never enter a structure where you have a reasonable suspicion some who may mean to do you harm is inside alone. The only exception to this rule is the exigent circumstance of needing to rescue someone and help is not a reasonable distance away.

I evaluated the threat and used what I deemed an appropriate response. If I saw lights on or movement I would have altered my plans to accommodate.
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So you were reasonably certain the house was unoccupied. Doors locked, no sign of forced entry. Did you walk around the outside of the house and check all the doors and windows to determine if there had been a forced entry?

What 5 point contingency plan did you give your wife? At what point was she to summon help? To actually "clear" an average house, looking in all the possible hiding places with a slow and methodical search can take 30 minutes to an hour for a team. What is your wife doing during that time? Where did you park when you came back around the second time? If you blocked the strange vehicle in your driveway, you may have set your unarmed wife up to be a carjack victim if you flushed someone from the house and they couldn't move their vehicle.

My wife asked both neighbors if they had someone who might have parked there but no luck.
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A call to the police with the license number would have gotten you the ownership information right then and there and may have solved the mystery. What happened to the vehicle, is it still in your driveway? Did you clear it to make sure no one was hiding in it before you entered the house? If the owners came and retrieved it, did you ask who they were and why they parked in your driveway?

Bring a dog. I had my dog with me and he definitely knew something was up. He had no problem leading the way and acting as a first line alarm.
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Is your dog trained to bark and hold or bite and hold? Who trained the dog? Did you let the dog sweep the house first before you entered or did you follow the dog in the door? Do you know how the dog would react in a confrontation? Has the dog had any training in that. If there had been an intruder and your got in a hand to hand fight with him, how would the dog have reacted? Would you have had to fight the dog off too as he tried to protect you? How is he going to know who to bite and if he does know, how will he tell the difference? When our tactical team trained with the K9s we never had an officer near the 'suspect' when the dog was turned loose. There is always a danger of the wrong person getting bit when a dog tries to intervene in a HTH confrontation in the dark.

Just some things to think about......
 
All of those good points aside... And I have a feeling I am going to get bashed for saying this... But sir, I commend your willingness and ability to take the initiative. Not everybody likes the idea of calling the police and letting them do what is really essentially your job -- protecting your family. I'll let all of you people with years of training that I quite frankly haven't got, but I for one admire your commitment to your family.
 
Willingness is no substitute for good sense and training.

Solo house clearing is not recommended by any credible school or trainer.

Unless there are precious lives at stake that you're willing to sacrifice yourself to try to save you do not clear a house solo.
 
All of those good points aside... And I have a feeling I am going to get bashed for saying this... But sir, I commend your willingness and ability to take the initiative. Not everybody likes the idea of calling the police and letting them do what is really essentially your job -- protecting your family. I'll let all of you people with years of training that I quite frankly haven't got, but I for one admire your commitment to your family.
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+1. Nice backbone.
 
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