Threat Assessment and Armoring my House

I am continuing to "harden" my house.

This is an approximate overview of my house.

Most likely path for intrusion is that the bad guy would drive down the driveway from the public road.  He/they would park the vehicle on the apron in front of the garage.  The bad guy(s) then enter through Door #1, then Door #2 and then Door #3.  The bedroom with door #3 is the designated "safe room".

Door #2 is the most critical entry point and where I am focusing my hardening efforts.  One issue with Door #2 is that it has a large window.  I have decent dead bolts but they are of little value when a bad guy can simply break the glass, reach in and turn the dead bolt.

One of my main strategies is to add security film to make my windows more shatter resistant.

Picture from Amazon.com

Removing the frame around the window

Yup!  It is held in with a boat load of screws.

Many features molded into the frame that might interfere with the film

Close-up.  The directions said to use two pieces of scotch tape on opposite sides of ONE corner to pull the protective film and expose the adhesive.

I screwed up.  I THOUGHT the window was clean enough.  I had many fish-eyes that I now have to deal with. 

And there-in lies the dilemma.  I frequently get knocked off the tracks due to events in my life.  I find it necessary to do the most important things first (like armoring the highest risk door) even though I have the least experience.  Getting it done in a timely fashion outweighs any loss of cosmetic niceties.

I have one more door and two more windows on my critical list.  They will be much prettier.

Lethal force

New readers may form hasty opinions about my world view based on my plan to "harden" my house.  Please be patient while I explain myself.

Like 80% of the people in this township, I have the means to administer lethal force to somebody who enters my house and means to do me harm.

I believe I have a moral burden to be very, very sure that the person coming into my house is highly motivated to cause me harm.  There are many tragic stories of home owners who shot

• Drunks who mistook a look-alike house for their own
• Older people who have dementia and are out wandering
• Pizza delivery people who are lost
• Children sneaking back into the house after an evening of carousing

I get two benefits by massively hardening my house.  There will be no casual walk-ins.  The person who manages to beat in Door #2 and commences to hammer on Door #3 is demonstrating strong intent.

The second benefit is that Door #2 buys me time.  I can get everybody into the safe room (the bedroom with Door #3.  If I determine that lethal force is required I will not need to worry about who might be down range.

Armoring my house is an obligation thrust upon me by the fact that I harbor the means to use lethal force.

Suicide-by-Cop

One person asked me, "What if, in spite all of your best efforts, you end up shooting your own child.  It could happen."

It could happen if my child forgot their key.  And if my child forgot where the spare key is stashed.  And if my child forgot to call on the cell phone that is bonded to their body.  And if they forget how to hollar out when hailed.  And if they forgot that they have at least 10 friend's houses that they could stay in the event that they could not get into our house.

Yes, it could happen.

But it would be a version of suicide-by-cop. 

Continue to Part II, Door #2 ======>