illinoisdeerhunter
Member
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2007
- Messages
- 33
I'm new to this site but, I've read many of the threads in the last few days and felt compelled to post my 'break-in' story.
Two years ago , this coming fall, I had a break-in. I teach government and coach football and it was a friday night. I live in a fairly rural part of central Illinois, my nearest neighbor is aobut 1/2 mile away. By midnight, I'd gotten home from coaching a football game. My 17 year old daughter wast still out and I was tired and hit the sack. My bedroom is in the basement. I was startled awake by loud voices and, in a moment of sleepiness, I first thought it was still midnight and is was my daughter and her boyfriend in the livingroom watching TV. I later found out it was actually 3AM. It was just a few moments later that my (then) wife woke me up to tell me that the voices were a strange man in our house.
He was yelling, "Hey, are you in here! Come out were I can see you!" repetedly.
I grabbed my M1 carbine with 2, 15 round clips in the stock bandolier, rammed a clip home and readied the rifle as I approached the stairs.
At I came up the stairs, carbine poised, I entered the livingroom to witness this strange man go from, "Hey, ...come out where I can see you." to "Mister, please don't shoot me!"
It all seemed like a blur yet it all seemed to last a hundred years...at the same time.
I didn't know it at the time, but my 5 year old son was right on my tail advancing nearly step-for-step with me and my (then) wife was already on the phone dialing 911 to get the county sheriff's dept.
I've always told the kids in my classroom, one never REALLY knows how they will react in one of these situations until one is thrust into it. Many of my former students have returned from military, especially a bunch who returned from the first Desert Storm, to support this idea.
It's kind of funny looking back. The main thing running through my mind as I held this intruder at gun point was, "I really don't want to get blood on my new floor." I was fairly certain that my children were safe. Later, I found out that my 15 year old daughter slept through the whole incident...with her door wide open. My 17 year old had come home earlier and was curled up under her bed shaking nearly uncontrollably, as she told me later.
Response time isn't so great living in a rural area. After about ten minutes I did something that the deputy said he'd never heard of before. I demanded the man's ID and forced him to sit in a chair on the front porch. I stayed in the house with my gun trained on him through the screen door. I did this, as I recall, because it began to disgust me to think this man was in my house. The possibilities of his darkness intentions drew over me and raced through my thoughts. Had he followed my daughter home? (by then I'd realized she was indeed home.) Did he have an accomplice? Was he attempting to rob me. Was he planning to rape one of my teenage daughters? Was he just drunk and not aware of what he was doing?
He sat out there for nearly 40 minutes, shaking from the cool fall evening, while the one deputy on duty for the whole county raced from the far side of the county where most of the problems occur. My hometown, 8 miles away, sent back up and Officer "Ernie" showed up first. I know Ernie and, after he cuffed the man and waited for the deputy to show, we chatted.
It was only then that the nervousnous of the occasion started to surface. I began to realize, I had the life of another human, the choice to end that life, literally at the tip of my finger. When the deputy arrived, he surmized, (later we found out he was correct), that the perp was very drunk and had been left behind at a road side party about 2 miles from my house. My house was the first one he came across and he thought he recognized it and entered thinking he was in a friends house. (The guy was not only from out-of-town..he was from out-of-state visiting .)
I understand that he plead to criminal tresspass to avoid a charge of home invasion.
Looking back, it was a traumatic experience for my family. My then wife is no longer part of our family. This incidnet wasn't THE reason she left but, it was a small factor. My son still talks about "the intruder" as he calls him.
I used to question those who made bold comments like. "If someone breaks into my house, I'm shooting first and asking question later!"
I still question these types but, now it is with a respect that allows for a bit of understanding yet reminds me..."I've been there and I DIDN'T do that (pull the trigger)." My children and I sleep well at night now, many times with the doors unlocked and open to let in the cool summer night breeze. The "intruder" is ancient history for us. Ancient history that it, until there is a strange 'bump' in the night.
Would I have shot him? I don't really know. I know that I had my finger on the trigger and was calm as I'd be standing in front of my class. Is property worth possibly ending a life? Again...I don't know. I am confident that if any harm had come to my family I would have had no problem pulling the trigger...I think.
The one thing I do know is this, I have a life experience story to share with my students. I'm sharing it with you as well.
Two years ago , this coming fall, I had a break-in. I teach government and coach football and it was a friday night. I live in a fairly rural part of central Illinois, my nearest neighbor is aobut 1/2 mile away. By midnight, I'd gotten home from coaching a football game. My 17 year old daughter wast still out and I was tired and hit the sack. My bedroom is in the basement. I was startled awake by loud voices and, in a moment of sleepiness, I first thought it was still midnight and is was my daughter and her boyfriend in the livingroom watching TV. I later found out it was actually 3AM. It was just a few moments later that my (then) wife woke me up to tell me that the voices were a strange man in our house.
He was yelling, "Hey, are you in here! Come out were I can see you!" repetedly.
I grabbed my M1 carbine with 2, 15 round clips in the stock bandolier, rammed a clip home and readied the rifle as I approached the stairs.
At I came up the stairs, carbine poised, I entered the livingroom to witness this strange man go from, "Hey, ...come out where I can see you." to "Mister, please don't shoot me!"
It all seemed like a blur yet it all seemed to last a hundred years...at the same time.
I didn't know it at the time, but my 5 year old son was right on my tail advancing nearly step-for-step with me and my (then) wife was already on the phone dialing 911 to get the county sheriff's dept.
I've always told the kids in my classroom, one never REALLY knows how they will react in one of these situations until one is thrust into it. Many of my former students have returned from military, especially a bunch who returned from the first Desert Storm, to support this idea.
It's kind of funny looking back. The main thing running through my mind as I held this intruder at gun point was, "I really don't want to get blood on my new floor." I was fairly certain that my children were safe. Later, I found out that my 15 year old daughter slept through the whole incident...with her door wide open. My 17 year old had come home earlier and was curled up under her bed shaking nearly uncontrollably, as she told me later.
Response time isn't so great living in a rural area. After about ten minutes I did something that the deputy said he'd never heard of before. I demanded the man's ID and forced him to sit in a chair on the front porch. I stayed in the house with my gun trained on him through the screen door. I did this, as I recall, because it began to disgust me to think this man was in my house. The possibilities of his darkness intentions drew over me and raced through my thoughts. Had he followed my daughter home? (by then I'd realized she was indeed home.) Did he have an accomplice? Was he attempting to rob me. Was he planning to rape one of my teenage daughters? Was he just drunk and not aware of what he was doing?
He sat out there for nearly 40 minutes, shaking from the cool fall evening, while the one deputy on duty for the whole county raced from the far side of the county where most of the problems occur. My hometown, 8 miles away, sent back up and Officer "Ernie" showed up first. I know Ernie and, after he cuffed the man and waited for the deputy to show, we chatted.
It was only then that the nervousnous of the occasion started to surface. I began to realize, I had the life of another human, the choice to end that life, literally at the tip of my finger. When the deputy arrived, he surmized, (later we found out he was correct), that the perp was very drunk and had been left behind at a road side party about 2 miles from my house. My house was the first one he came across and he thought he recognized it and entered thinking he was in a friends house. (The guy was not only from out-of-town..he was from out-of-state visiting .)
I understand that he plead to criminal tresspass to avoid a charge of home invasion.
Looking back, it was a traumatic experience for my family. My then wife is no longer part of our family. This incidnet wasn't THE reason she left but, it was a small factor. My son still talks about "the intruder" as he calls him.
I used to question those who made bold comments like. "If someone breaks into my house, I'm shooting first and asking question later!"
I still question these types but, now it is with a respect that allows for a bit of understanding yet reminds me..."I've been there and I DIDN'T do that (pull the trigger)." My children and I sleep well at night now, many times with the doors unlocked and open to let in the cool summer night breeze. The "intruder" is ancient history for us. Ancient history that it, until there is a strange 'bump' in the night.
Would I have shot him? I don't really know. I know that I had my finger on the trigger and was calm as I'd be standing in front of my class. Is property worth possibly ending a life? Again...I don't know. I am confident that if any harm had come to my family I would have had no problem pulling the trigger...I think.
The one thing I do know is this, I have a life experience story to share with my students. I'm sharing it with you as well.