With the present economy, metropolitan areas are seeing an increase in crime and longer response times from law enforcement. More and more U.S. families are choosing to purchase firearms for protection.
But the basic training of a concealed weapons class and regular range practice do not prepare you for thoughtfully dealing with scenarios that would seem ripe for engaging a firearm. Below are 11 questions to discuss with your spouse and age-appropriate family members.
Consider it scenario-based training. It’s a way to help you establish home tactical standard operating procedures. Discussions such as this may reveal better ways to handle the situation, without engaging the firearm. It may also prevent an accidental firearm injury to a family member unexpectedly returning home late at night.
- You arrive home after dark. You are in the car. The electric garage door is in the process of opening when you notice shadowy movement from a dark area of the exterior of the house, near the garage door opening. What will you do? (If you don’t have an electric garage door, substitute details for your normal arrival home.)
- At the end of the day, your spouse normally returns home at a later time than you. When you arrive you find the door to your house is ajar. This is unexpected and unusual. What will you do?
- When returning home at the end of the day you sense something is not right. The flatscreen TV is missing, with wires hanging from the wall. The lamp on the table is laying on the floor. What do you do?
- Your spouse fell asleep on the couch while watching TV. You are in bed. It’s now 3AM, when you hear the sound of breaking glass in another part of the house. What do you do? What does spouse do?
- Your spouse, having been traveling, is expected home tomorrow. It’s 3AM and you hear a key and jiggling of the door knob. What do you do?
- It’s 3AM, your spouse hollers from the other room, “Are you awake? Did you hear that?” What do you do? And spouse?
- It’s 3AM. Someone is at your front door, banging aggressively. What do you do? And Spouse?
- It’s 3AM. You hear people arguing loudly, immediately outside your bedroom window, what will you do? And spouse?
- Two neighbors have had their houses broken into. One such occurrence happened while family members were at home.
- How might this affect your routine of leaving home at the beginning of each day?
- How might this affect your routine of coming home at the end of the day?
- How might this affect your routine before retiring to bed each night?
- How will this affect where you store personal protection equipment?
- From each room in the house, do you have
- an alternative way out
- an escape
- a hiding area that provides concealment?
- An area that provides safe cover?
- Where will you and other family members meet up after evacuation?