If intruder breaks in, what’s your best move?
Date: Feb 13, 2007 12:50 PM
The research is not “…incomplete, contradictory or outdated.”
John Lott’s and Gary Kleck’s research is through, complete
and very current. Note only an antigun source gets quoted.

FYI (copy below):
http://www.timesdaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070212/NEWS/702120322/1011

News

If intruder breaks in, what’s your best move?

By Chao Xiong
Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune

Last Updated:February 11. 2007 11:31PM
Published: February 12. 2007 3:30AM Print ? Email ? Discuss

Joanie Beise has lived in a house with guns for the nearly
34 years she’s been married, but only recently has she
considered arming herself.

“There are a lot of crazy people out there,” Beise said,
completing her gun and self-defense training. “It would
just be nice to know that I have my little friend with me if
I need it.”

Minnesota law allows residents to use deadly force if
confronted with the threat of death or great bodily harm –
but when and how residents should use that force is not
always clear-cut. The decision can be a matter of life and
death.

Like Minnesota, Alabama allows homeowners to protect
themselves and others in the home during times of threat.

“If you feel your life or someone else’s life within the
home is in danger, you have the right to protect yourself
with deadly force if need be,” said Russellville Police
Chief Chris Hargett.

In November 2006, a would-be intruder was shot trying to
break into a home in the Petersville community of Lauderdale
County.

Reports indicate the man broke into a residence where two
people were inside.

Investigators said one of the residents confronted the
burglary and forced him back outside. When the burglar
tried to again enter the residence, the homeowner shot him
in the leg.

In the most recent Minnesota case, an intruder shot a man
and his son to death near Waseca. The intruder struggled
with the homeowner for control of the homeowner’s gun,
investigators said.

“Avoiding physical confrontation is always the best idea,”
said Wright County Sheriff Gary Miller. “Tragic accidents
happen all of the time.”

Sheffield police Capt. Greg Ray said as soon as a homeowner
knows there is an intruder they need to call police.

“Don’t wait until they break it,” Ray said. “We’ve had
calls where the homeowner heard something and ignored it.
It turned out to be a burglar.

“We don’t mind being called; that’s what we’re here for.”

Authorities advocate that everyone plan self-defense
measures, whether it be an escape route out of a home,
pepper spray or taking up arms.

Joe Penaz, who owns and operates Plane Cents Self Defense in
Waconia, where he teaches gun safety, said he instructs
students to flee or lock themselves in a bedroom if there is
an intruder. If the intruder approaches their hiding spot,
Penaz tells students they should announce that they have a
gun and will shoot if the intruder enters. Law-enforcement
officials said officers are taught to do the same thing –
announce their presence and willingness to shoot if
necessary.

Research regarding weapons and self-defense in the United
States appears to be incomplete, contradictory or outdated.
Some of it suggests that keeping a gun in the home could
actually be more dangerous for the residents, while other
data indicate that those who put up armed resistance are
more able to fend off harm or loss of property.

Citizens for a Safer Minnesota, a group that works toward
reducing gun-related deaths in the state, believes guns are
ineffective for self-defense because if they are properly
stored at home, they would be inaccessible at a moment’s
notice. The group does not call for making guns illegal.

Beise said that, as she nears her late 50s, she would feel
safer with a gun even though she worries about accidents.
Her husband is a recreational shooter and hunter who keeps
guns locked in the family’s Jordan home.

“I don’t ever want to have to shoot anybody dead, but if
it’s his life against mine, I’m going to shoot my gun,”
Beise said. “It will be the last resort.”

Hargett said that after a recent rash of home invasions and
burglaries in Russellville, he noticed more people buying
weapons.

“I heard a lot more talk from people about protecting
themselves, and they took steps to do that,” he said. “I
know some people who had never owned a weapon before in
their life purchased handguns and kept them in their house
just for protection.”

Muscle Shoals Police Chief Robert Evans said that because
the public is more aware of burglaries and home invasion,
the attitude toward owning a gun has changed.

“The attitude more and more is that people are willing to
stand up for their rights and protect themselves,” Evans
said.

Several weeks ago in Rockford, Minn., Eric Cegon fatally
shot his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend, Erik A. Richter, 35.
Richter broke into the couple’s apartment and tried to get
through the barricaded bedroom door. Richter had a loaded
gun, handcuffs and leg irons.

Cegon borrowed a shotgun from a friend after being
repeatedly threatened by Richter last fall. Richter also
threatened his ex-girlfriend, Samantha Simons, 22, with a
knife. Cegon, 30, decided he needed to protect himself and
had a friend teach him how to use a shotgun that he kept in
the apartment he shared with Simons and her 2-year-old son.

The shooting was ruled self-defense, and no charges were
filed.

Simons said she would only have a firearm again if they were
threatened.

“It was a complicated situation. I think, no guns in the
home, especially if there are kids,” she said. “If your
life is threatened, yes, but be very, very careful with
children around.”

TimesDaily Senior Writer Tom Smith contributed to this
report

The Second Amendment IS Homeland Security !