General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Three burglars entered an Oklahoma home. The owners son opened fire with an AR-15, deputies say. [View all]Heddi
(18,312 posts)at 2am, while my husband and I were sleeping, a complete stranger broke into our home.
Unless you have woke up to the sound of breaking glass, running footsteps and a stranger standing in your doorway at 2am, you have *NO* fucking idea what you would do or feel or say.
I thought I knew -- until it happened to me.
Who is that? why is he here? are there other people? Omg I'm just wearing a t-shirt? Is my husband hurt> Is someone else in the house? Is he going to kill me? is he going to kill my husband? Is he going to rape me? Is he going to make me wish I was dead after it's all done? Who else is in the house?
And all of that in the first 2 seconds of opening my eyes.
Do not even presume to think you know what you would do, say, think, or feel when you have that...it is beyond abject terror. It is a completely unique way of thought that I had never experienced before, and hope to never experience again.
I fully support castle doctrine laws, and am glad I live in a state where our self-defense against the asshole who broke into my house and attempted to kill my husband and I were seen as the justifiable self-defense that it was, and not a single bit of armchair quarterbacking by the police of "why didn't you talk to him" or "you should have sat him down for tea and scones."
In fact, the police told us together and individually that we were lucky we weren't killed by waiting as long as we did to protect ourselves -- that we should have shot the intruder the minute he came in the room.