Sour Kraut
Member
"Not answering" and putting one's self at risk are two different things.
You can answer without putting yourself at risk.....
"Not answering" and putting one's self at risk are two different things.
Yep.Perhaps there is some semantics involved here. ‘Answering” the door doesn’t mean you have to open it. I have a Ring doorbell and can see and speak to the person without opening my locked and reinforced door. I’d rather respond to a visitor than ignore them. That way they won’t assume the house is vacant and attempt a break in. By responding, I don’t consider the action to be putting myself at risk. YMMV
That is my preference also. Use the darkness to observe and take notes. Cops LOVE it when you give license plate numbers.I never open the front door. If I HAVE to go outside outside to deal with visitors, I go out the side door and approach them from behind- leaving them with no cover or concealement in the entryway, and me with plenty of both. It also gives me a chance to check out their vehicle (if any) and look for any other unsubs.
When I go to NOLA I wear a G19 and a frown. There’s some bad juju that goes down on the regular in that place.Wow, glad to hear that worked out. I spent the summer of '08 in Biloxi and always put on one of the N.O. morning news shows on as I was getting ready for work. There wasn't a day that went by there weren't multiple murders somewhere in N.O.
Since you have a peephole you could install a 100-watt equivalent bulb by your front door, then you would be able to see who's there.It's the way our house is set up. I do have a peep but there wasn't enough illumination to see anything, and the fact my wife was missing urged me to open the door for some reason. But the folks here are correct, under those circumstances I would approach it differently in the future.
Suspect, victim killed after chaotic burglary turned homicide in Denver
https://www.denverpost.com/2020/12/29/denver-police-shooting-burglary-homicide/
The perps killed the homeowner, shot the daughter in the head, she's critical. Then the cops arrived in the middle of the mayham. The perps ran through the streets trying to jump in cars. One found an unlocked car door and jumped in. Poor lady had to be scared when a cop sent the perp to his just rewards, doa.
Moral of the story, never answer the door to unexpected visitors and keep your car doors locked.
My dog has a very nasty growl and bark whenever the door gets knocked on. A quick look through the peephole can confirm that it is usually UPS, Fedex or the meter reader wanting to make sure the dog is inside so he can go to the backyard.
Small town that supplies the utilities; they use a beat up Kawasaki mule to go around the neighborhoods, but every meter get read by hand - gas, water and electric. The electric comes in from the back of the house, the others in the frontMeter readers still physically check your meters? Around here they ride in a truck and scan from the street, been that way around 20 years
The OP spoke of opening the door--not answering it.
I'll make my decision about both the former and the latter on an informed basis.
If there is someone at the door, I want to know who it is.
What he or she has to tell me may be very important at the time.
If I hear what may be someone in the basement or downstairs, I want to know more about it--without exposing myself to possible harm.
Having that capability is not a big deal these days. There are many alternatives.
In the old days, many persons often spoke of arming themselves and going to the door, or down the stairs, whatever....
Not for me. It is not really debatable that a person with gun in hand can be shot or stabbed just as readily as a person who is unarmed.
I most certainly will not leave the house to investigate anyone.
I do not want to expose myself to possible gunfire from an accomplice 0r driver who may be watching for me, and I do not want to forgo the legal advantages that being inside the house provide.
My wife has a very nasty growl, behind which is a .32 pistol that she is very comfortable with, so........My dog has a very nasty growl and bark whenever the door gets knocked on. A quick look through the peephole can confirm that it is usually UPS, Fedex or the meter reader wanting to make sure the dog is inside so he can go to the backyard.
A few years ago, I was awakened around one in the morning by someone pounding hard on my front door. I was living in New Orleans which, if you don't know, has no "safe" neighborhoods so I was somewhat prepared for this kind of thing, or had at least previously thought about it and had stationed a shotgun in my bedroom as a precaution. Anyway, I quickly realized that someone was kicking on the door, trying to force their way in. I grabbed my shotgun and instructed my wife to call 911 and stay on the floor behind the bed. I shouted to the person that if they came through the door I was going to shoot them. At that point I heard a voice that sounded like my neighbor. It turns out it was indeed my neighbor and he was talking to his house guest who was drunk...and at the wrong house. Gotta say I came close to shooting through the door, which would have changed several people's lives in a very bad way....
What would you intend to do with it? Are you under the imperssion that it might somehow keep you from getting shot?Now I have checked the door (and/or yard) with gun in hand more times than I can count, and I’m sure I’ll do it again.
Yes.Opening a door and/or venturing outside with a gun puts one at a disadvantage as a homeowner.
Yes, Castle Doctrine generally means a legally recognized assumption of dire threat when there is a forcible entry into a domicile. Venturing outside to search for the intruder vacates the ability to rely on that law. Thinking you can fall back on a stand your ground law is shaky, because you would have to articulate a specific threat of death or bodily injury perceived from the trespasser, beyond the simple fact of trespassing presence.And going outside with one might well destroy a legal defense of self defense.