I have a 38-year-old son who has a Glock 19. I don't suppose that he has a MA CCW permit, but he probably carries it anyway. Here in VT, I carry a G17.

I sleep with a loaded 1911 right beside my pillow. My AR15 sits propped in a corner of the room and a .380 on the nightstand. My dog sleeps in the same room. I sleep very soundly.

If someone believes that they are a danger to themselves and others when there is a loaded gun in close proximity I see no reason to doubt them.

I'd be much more worried about having a weapon easily-accessible to my attacker.

That's why I have a strong dead-bolt lock on my door. The felon will make lots of noise breaking thru my front door, by which time I will be awake and armed with my Mossberg M500 12 ga Shotgun.

The point is that the danger one should be considering isn't dumb things they do when they're half-asleep. The real consideration is that if you need your weapon within arm's reach, and it's wide out in the open, then your attacker has easy access to it.

That said--and this is not necessarily you, just the subject's been broached and I feel compelled to talk about it--I would also suggest that many people think in terms of having strong doors and locks, but forget about alternative entryways. A steel front door and deadbolt does very little good if you leave your garage door open all day and all night (don't laugh, many of my neighbors do exactly that). Or you sleep behind an unlocked bedroom door. Or you leave your garage entryway door unlocked.

It's all about the number of obstacles in between you and the outside. And also not being the darkest house on the block.

CI, I do the same. However, I bet my 'killer' Yorkie is louder than your Jack.

Brother, we bees packin' alls da time-includin' night time.

And

And


New York Reload, Boston Dog.

Here is my current nightstand gun. Glock 35 with a Streamlight TLR-4. I added grip tape to help ensure slippage is not a problem. This Glock has been 100% reliable since I got it years ago so I feel comfortable with it a as my bedside gun.

As backup I have a Long Hair Chihuahua (Chopper) that is a very light sleeper. He sleeps in the bedroom with us. Also have a German Shorthair Pointer (Scout) that sleeps in the family room in a crate. (He loves it, that is his dog cave). Nobody will get by the dogs without them barking.

I sleep safe at night.

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Here is my Glock Model 22C (Compensated) .40 caliber,
with a Hogue grip sleeve and a Streamlight Scorpion light.

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In Omnia Paratus

My pajama pants pistol is a Model 37 in a IWB holster so my pants don't fall down.

Nightstand is a M-66 with laser grips, a powerful non-weapon-mounted light and a Malinois.

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On the whistle draw and fire 6

Very unsafe!

Gun should be out of sight, but within easy reach when you are sleeping so a bad guy doesn't come in the room, see your gun, take it and shoot you with your own gun.

Your son is BEGGING FOR TROUBLE in that Marxist Utopia. Why does he even live or go there?

My Bodyguard and my Shield sit on the dresser next to the bed. I only need to sit up to reach them. Each is loaded with a round in the chamber.

have an alarm system installed and activate it every night and when leaving the house. have a pup who is alert, and a FNX 9 with TLR-4 at bedside. it is out of sight. also have ear phones in case i'd have enough time to put them on. am fortunate to live just outside a laid back Western town.

Anyone consider locking your bedroom door or putting a wedge under the door. This will at least give you some time. Alarm system are also great you really don't some high tech system just some lasers in the right areas that will set off an alarm.

I keep several loaded weapons hidden around the house, JUST for that reason. Not unsafe at all, as we taught our children from an early age to respect, handle, shoot, and maintain handguns and long rifles.

I have both... One in a 9mm, and the other in a .380. I love my S&W's, but I love my Ruger P95 as well... ALL ready, just in case!

After years of teaching classes we finally had an elderly gentleman in our class last week who told us the story of how years ago he woke his wife and himself by pulling the trigger on his nightstand gun WHILE HE WAS STILL ASLEEP!

He described a weird dream he was having that led up to this event.

I always thought this must happen sometimes. Now I know of at least one time when it did.

Seems to me you need to have any self defense gun far enough away from you so that you've got to be awake before you can make it go bang.

Of course for sleepwalkers...

Wow. This is an old thread. That said, I would say the answer to the OP's question is that there are no rights or wrongs. It all depends upon the person and their situation. I myself keep a loaded revolver inside a fanny pack alongside my bed, leaning up against the wall, but within a stretched arms reach. I can quickly retrieve it and, since it is inside a velcro sealed fanny pack, there is zero probability I could reach over and pull the trigger while asleep.

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Smith. And Wesson. And Me!

Zombie thread for sure..

My nighttime gun is under my pillow, sometimes I fall asleep with my hand touching it.

I put a bullseye on the wall and have placed several in the 10 ring. I'm almost a better shot in my sleep.

To the OP, someone breaking into my house will suffer a dog bite before the gunshot wound.

I have a loaded shotgun next to my bed

A growing dog will alert me first. I keep a 12 ga. pump hung on a pair of brackets on the back of the dresser next to the bed. Nothing in the chamber, but if anyone knows what "that sound" of a pump being racked to load the chamber is, they will be leaving very quickly, or not at all...their choice....

I went to the police academy in 1968 and this topic came up. We were told to keep the gun just close enough to get out of bed and walk a couple of steps so we’d be awake when & if something happened. That’s how I do things to this day w/my Model 10 snub, but no kids in the house now.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

I keep a Glock 17 with rail mounted white light in a kydex rig that I can pull off in an instant but which otherwise would not allow the trigger to be accessed accidentally.

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642-1, M&P15 TS

Plans are nice, but unless you and your spouse train to the plan, it probably is nearly useless.

There are so many good pistol safes out there with easy & quick access, that to me, there is no reason to have a loaded handgun out in the open.

Honestly, for less than the price of a cheap S&W you can get simply safe and/or/both arlo security cameras...check into it. Obvious other issues, we do have experts on security to comment, but as an example: good lighting, dead bolts, storm doors or security doors, lighting, lighting, lighting.

Be safe everyone. Technology has come a long way, but even so, as mentioned above, a pet is a good option too.

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Rather be outdoors

Dogs are the answer to many of life’s problems.

By the time Randy needs my help I’ll have had time to get up, brush my teeth, and don a proper smoking jacket before retrieving my nightstand 1911.

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“What you got, ain’t new.”

And then he's got the Rottie for backup...!



(And I agree, dogs are the answer to many of life's problems.)

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642-1, M&P15 TS

Speaking from experience: You will want to keep the weapon hidden so it can not be seen in the dark. If you can rollover and pick up or touch the weapon you will not want one in the pipe. I found that it only needs to be on my dresser (about three feet from my bed, I don't have a nightstand) for me to reach it and be out of what ever nightmare I might be in. I use to keep it on the floor where I could reach it easily then a few years back I woke up from a nightmare with an unloaded M&P 9 and several new holes in the wall. I spent the reminder of the night talking to the police trying to explain what happened. I was lucky, the angle of the bullets insured that the tree outside caught a lot of the rounds.
These days, I keep mine in a zippered case, partial unzipped (so I can easily reach in and withdraw it, if I am awake with one hand) with a flashlight on top of the case.

Those JRTs are a hoot ... great dogs!

Or doubt me if i dont have that fear? 12 g pump shotgun between the bed and the night stand on both sides of the bed.

My Boston Terrier barks at nothing and I mean nothing. Great companion...terrible watch dog.

I think getting loaded on your nightstand is a really bad idea. You could fall off and injure yourself.

Emily Latella

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Certified Curmudgeon

This has been happening in the Bryan/College Station (TX) area. Most (if not all) that this has happened to, did NOT have their doors locked. Is this where you live?

As with vehicle break-ins, many perpetrators look for the path of least resistance... Unlocked vehicles... Unlocked Homes.

The 1st line of defense is to Lock your doors at night.
Keeping a handgun on the nightstand??? If the guy is there before you wake up, chances are, you've just given him your handgun, to possibly use against you. So far, none of the break-ins in the B/CS area have been violent... So Far.

There are holster systems that mount to the bed frame, which could be mounted within arm's reach while recumbent, but covered by blankets/sheets/bedspread.

Of course... If there are kids in the house, that's another story.

I just let the wife sleep closest to the door.

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Dave Ramsey Cultist

My bedroom is the one place I care to have a high cap semi auto at hand for home protection. My choice for the handgun is an S&W M&P full sized 9mm with 17 + 1 rounds immediately at hand. The gun has a Crimson Trace laser grip sight installed. Our home has motion activated night lights in place so there is ambient light available if something activates them. We have no pets or children (normally) at home with us. I also keep a flashlight near the gun. Our bed has a bookcase style headboard. I use a gun mount sold by Tiger Holster Systems. They make several different types of mounts for lots of different guns. My choice is identified as a handgun plate universal holder and is a solid piece of right angled aluminum strap about two inches wide with a round piece of round aluminum rod welded into the short side of the angled strap. The mount can be ordered with three sizes of rod, a .22 caliber, a .38 caliber, and a .45 caliber. It has a rubber washer at the bottom of the rod. I buy the .38/9MM size which works just fine for a larger caliber as well. The other side has two holes for mounting screws. This mount can be installed in a variety of different ways and positions based on need. The aluminum rod will not damage rifling inside your barrel!

I have one on each side of the bookcase head board so that the grip is presented toward the opening of the bookcase behind the sliding "door" cover. The large cap 9MM is on my side of the bed and there is another on my wife's side of the bed to hold her choice of protection, also with a Crimson Trace laser grip. Both guns are quickly at hand by sliding the door open and reaching in to get a good grip and quickly withdrawing either one, yet they are not exposed to view. Fortunately we had not had to employ either gun for actual firing use. However, if something goes bump in the night, I always leave my bed with gun and flashlight in hand to investigate (very carefully!). Between the ambient light available in the home and the laser sight, I feel confident that we can do good work with either gun if that is called for. That's our solution. Take a look at these gun mounts and others on the web site. I think you may find something there that will work for your particular situation for your bedroom.

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So long ... Ken

First off, try to make your home as univiting as possible to unwanted guests.

Make sure you have deadbolts on all outside doors. Make sure that you have the proper locks on outside doors that can't be slim jimmed open with a card. Storm doors in addition to the main entry doors are also a great deterrent. Screens on the windows. Motion sensor lights especially near doors and any parts of the backyard or side of the house in dark areas help. Keep shrubs trimmed around the windows & door ways. There's even small inexpensive door jam alarms popular with college students in dorms and renters in apartments.

Once you have ensured that you've done all you could do to make it less easy for a intruder to get in your home then we can talk about firearms in your home for protection.

I have a M&P 9mm. I have at times kept it nearby at night however in the name of safety, I choose to just insert a loaded mag, but not chamber it. If I wake up to the sound of a door being broken or window breaking it takes a second to chamber a round.

For the most part keep my S&W model 10 38 special as my "nightstand gun". In all honestly you can't go wrong with a decent quality double action revolver for carry or home defense. No need to worry about losing mags or chambering a round. No need to worry about limp wristing or stove pipes. Even if you get a dud and you have that knee jerk reaction of pulling the trigger again, the cylinder rotates to the next round. Revolvers are IMHO the most safest guns out there.

I keep a short SxS shotgun by my bed with the chambers loaded and a 1911 within reach. If I am carrying an auto I keep one in the chamber, if not, I do not.

I go with a layered approach... quality locks on doors and windows, re-enforced doors, alarm system, 70+ pound Black Mouth Curr, 45+ pound mutt and a pair of S&W revolvers on my night stand and one in the wife's night stand.
I would like to add this for thought.... if the dirtbag enters your home without your consent.... he is not your friend and is a real and present danger.
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S&W 29-3, 4” Barrel loaded with Hornady 300 Grain V-max. Why? Some of you may ask? Because break into my home and F** You is why!!

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Different people sleep differently. There is surely no one right answer. One might think that by the time one reaches thirty or forty years of age, one would know a right answer for himself, but in my mid-forties, I used to sleep with a Model 40 under my pillow. No way I would even consider that now, even though it would probably (what the **** is that worth?) be safe.

I sleep differently now than I did three years ago. That dictates a change. Occasionally I dress differently for sleeping than I usually do. That dictates a change. A sane person should be able to look at his own situation and figure out what is safe.

Generally, a warning system like a dog allows far safer choices. Sometimes the choice is safe enough already.

If you've read this far, you've probably already figured out that I am not going to tell you what to do.

My security steps?

Low crime area? Check
Exterior lights? Check
Locked doors? Check
Alarm system? Check
Loud (but not vicious) dog? Check
Loaded handgun and flashlight within reach? Check

Hopefully items 1, 2, & 3 will be all that's needed.

For VERY few dollars you can get small alarms from Home Depot for your doors. They aren't part of any system, but will sound the moment the door is moved. We have a full home alarm system, but rely on these and identical ones on any window that can be entered from the ground or our porch. They use those button batteries. Very cheap.

For decades I have kept a loaded and ready handgun by the bed. I am a light sleeper and have considerable self-control. I DID wake up one night to find an unauthorized person in our bedroom, touching my leg. I did not shoot or even reach for my gun (da/sa Sig 228). I recognized the profile as a guest in the house. Turned out he was a sleep-walker. He was extremely embarrassed. Since I did not hear the door or windows sound, I knew the likelihood of this being a threat was extremely small.

If you are a jumpy person, I suggest seeking ways to get yourself under control.

I woke up one night to a half crazed woman screaming and beating on my front door...... I finally had to get out of bed and let her out

If your home security is so lax that an intruder can get all the way to your bedroom without you being alerted, you have bigger problems than the danger of a loaded pistol on your nightstand!

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Stay protected my friends.

I'm sure the OP has solved his issue, or not, in the past six years. Zombie thread . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Old people like old threads?