Keeping guns in a home with children is inherently dangerous. You’re just asking for trouble; accidents, murder, suicide, termites, billowing clouds of radon, the heartbreak of psoriasis. We know this because our friends at the Brady Campaign tell us so. Ad nauseum. What they don’t seem to mention is that if you bother to teach your children to respect and use firearms properly, instead of an accident waiting to happen, a gun is a tool that will allow a family member to protect him or herself along with other family members. That’s a lesson a 14 year-old in Phoenix seemed to absorb pretty effectively . . .
He was home Friday afternoon looking after his three younger siblings when, according to foxnews.com, he heard a knock at the door. But he didn’t open the door because he didn’t recognize the woman on the other side – exactly what you’d want your kid to do when home alone.
Soon after, the teen heard a bang on the door, rushed his siblings upstairs and got a handgun from his parent’s bedroom. When he got to the top of the stairs, he saw a man breaking through the front door and point a gun at him.
The boy shot the 37-year-old man, who is in critical condition but expected to survive and be booked into jail.
Besides doing a helluva job training the kid in how to stay safe while home alone, the boy’s parents can count themselves lucky that they didn’t choose to live in, say, California where allowing a child under 18 access to a gun is a felony.
(Police Officer James) Holmes hailed the teen’s actions and his parents for teaching the kids to never open the door to strangers.
“The police and indeed our community does not ever want to see a situation where a teenager of that age has to take a weapon to protect his family … but this young man did exactly what he should have done,” he said. “I’m not sure he gave full thought about what he had to do. He just acted.
[H/T Allen V]
I wonder if Obama will state that he would be proud to claim this 14 year old boy as his son?
Well, he could, but then would claim “executive privilege” and know one would know.
+11!
very mature actions for a 14 year old young man……BRAVO
Amen!!! That is a very smart and level headed young man!!! I hope that his folks and others will be there to support him because of the possible aftermath!!! Shooting someone is not something any normal human can do and then suffer no problems at all afterwards!!!!
Curiously absent from the story is why we’re these people attacking this family?
They had probably been watching the house and knew when the adults would be gone and figured it would be easy pickings!!!!! Guess they had a sudden failure in their thought process!!!!
It’s still a very strange thing to do. Thieves don’t usually start by shooting people. They had a reason to attack this family and I doubt it was for their tv set.
+ 1 I’m a bit suspicious of what further investigation may turn up. The parents are not commenting — perhaps they are too stressed, or they may have something to hide.
+ 1 I wonder what a further investigation will turn up.
Meth makes you think you can fly to the point of bedsheet capes and tall buildings. Among a million other possibilities that all land squarely on the invaders. It’s funny how even here people are so quick to be suspicious of the VICTIMS, the people whose house was being broken into, BECAUSE their house is being broken into. If you don’t have anything to hide, you’re fine!
They could also be keeping quiet to avoid possibly incriminating themselves for something they didn’t do and to avoid drawing attention to themselves should the criminals want to exact retribution.
I applaud the young man for keeping his head, protecting his siblings, and taking down a bad guy. I do think there is more to this story to come. The police seem to find it baffling as to why this house, at 4:30 PM, on a relatively well-traveled street. The whole MO smells.
There have been numerous burglaries in that area ( Laveen, AZ ). It’s a rural/farming community. A co-worker who lives in the same area came home from vacation and found she had been cleaned out. She had neighbors but apparently they saw nothing. It’s not uncommon for people to suspect or know who the criminal element are in their neighborhood. I suspect he recognized the woman at the door as being part of the criminal element in the area. That’s why he took his siblings to safety and armed himself.
<i?"Curiously absent from the story is why we’re these people attacking this family?”
Are you confessing to aiding and abetting the crime?
I just wonder what the “Brady Bunch” will have to say about this incident!!! Probably claim the youngster will grow up to be a criminal now!!!!
If I was a betting man, which I am, I would put my money on the brady bunch saying something along the lines of “blood on his hands” or “now he’s learned that violence is the solution to problems”. I’d also put a small wager on “scarred for life due to the trauma of the incident. Had he just run away he would have been fine” or something to that effect.
They’re WAY too predictable at this point.
More likely is they say nothing at all. It’s like many a Southern matriarch. When something is distasteful to discuss, it’s best to make a point of ignoring it.
He is not a boy. He is a responsible and brave young man and deserves being recognized as one. The tactic of using a woman to get the door opened was interesting to read about. BTW, the Fox story reported that she got away.
Agreed. If protecting your family from a lethal threat isn’t the hallmark of a man or passage into manhood then I don’t know what is.
I’m curious what training the boy had in the use of the gun, as in, how much range time, etc. His performance under stress is amazing. Maybe it helped that he was so young.
You mentioned California, but in TEXAS!, the parents would likely be facing fines and/or jail time for having a gun and ammo available to a minor.
Texas is not quite the same as California. Making the firearm accessible is a crime – however, it is a defense if the “child” is using it in defense of life or property.
From the statute: 46.13 Making A Firearm Accessible To A Child (a) In this section:
(1) “Child” means a person younger than 17 years of age.
(2) “Readily dischargeable firearm” means a firearm that is loaded with
ammunition, whether or not a round is in the chamber.
(3) “Secure” means to take steps that a reasonable person would take to prevent
the access to a readily dischargeable firearm by a child, including but not
limited to placing a firearm in a locked container or temporarily rendering the
firearm inoperable by a trigger lock or other means.
(b) A person commits an offense if a child gains access to a readily dischargeable
firearm and the person with criminal negligence:
(1) failed to secure the firearm; or
(2) left the firearm in a place to which the person knew or should have known the
child would gain access.
(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the child’s access
to the firearm:
(1) was supervised by a person older than 18 years of age and was for hunting,
sporting, or other lawful purposes;
(2) consisted of lawful defense by the child of people or property;
Even though he did the right thing he’s lucky he doesn’t live in MA, because he’d be locked up with his parents. He should have been a good lil sheep and let the BG slaughter his siblings, and then the cops would solve the case and the world would be a better place.
In MA, the kid would probably be okay, but the parents might catch a ration of sh!t for improper storage and endangering a minor.
If you’re from mass we should be friends. (bromance off)
I’m sure Dad is proud of his son. “That’s my boy” is the proper response!
I was wondering what happened to the previous posts? There were here one moment and gone the next. All my emails show mosts of the posts but when I clicked on the short cut I find no posts. Did Big Brother get to this site as well?
We’ve switched out commenting system. All comments will be regenerated shortly. Expect a post on the topic tonight.
I feel for the kid, no 14 year old should ever have to make that decision.. Having said that..
I also commend him and his parents. He did everything he was supposed to do. His parents taught him properly. He protected his siblings, and did what he was supposed to do.
Similar thing happened in my parents home town. Teenage age kid acted and saved his family members.
Very impressive. At 14, that kid has brass balls. I hope that my eventual offspring will have that kind of testicular fortitude.
Indeed. This young man deserves nothing less than the unwavering gratitude of his family and the community for doing what many others would/could not in such a situation.
What a sick and depraved child! Quickly, chop of his criminal hands before he can use them to hurt any more innocent home invaders!
Liberal reactions aside, the kid did a good job.
It’s sad that I have to lock my gun away from my child that( years down the road) I’ve taught safe gun handling/ self defense skills for fear of legal action should he be in a situation like this. I’m very glad these people are not facing any lawsuits and praise the kid for his bravery.
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