I just saw the news about a homeowner being killed in or near Stone Mountain, GA. I didn't notice when but I think in the last couple of days. Three masked intruders ambushed him - if I have the story right - as he opened the garage door around 6AM to take his wife to work. This story really hit home with me since I take my wife to the commuter lot every workday at Oh-Dark-Thirty.

I hate to admit that this morning I had my little Beretta .25 stuffed into a pocket. So ... now I am really thinking about what I leave the house with. I think I'm going to try to find a chest holster - something I can just hang over my neck before going out the door. I picked up a Springfield XD-E last month and that'll be a little bit of an upgrade over the Beretta!!

This topic of taking a car out early in the morning has been talked about quite a bit here on SWF. Just out of an abundance of caution, I get into my car, lock the door, then open the garage door. I suppose someone could still be waiting by the door - but at least I would have some glass and steel between me and the bad guys. That said, there were three thugs in this instance and I guess most of us would succumb to them if they were all armed ...

Disabled Marine veteran shot and killed during in ambush while trying to protect his wife – Crime Online

Not trying to sound overly philosophical, but all you can do is do the best you can do. Most of the time, for most people, that works out. Sometimes it doesn't.

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Vegan by proxy.

You could always put the car in reverse and floor it out of there.......

I think I'd be running over a few of those perps if possible but surely not going to succumb or give up my gun and get shot with it.

Three guy with guns waiting for 'this person' to open his door in the early morning?Why him?What did they know about him in advance that made him their target?It sounds planned and not random opporunity.

When you drop the 1st guy and the others see him go down very likely they'll be looking to save their butts and exit the scene rapidly.

EDIT:I back my cars into the 2 car garage

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

Regardless of what you have at hand, it's going to be pretty hard to survive an ambush like that.

A good idea for sure, but think about this: Even in 2017, everyone doesn't have automatic/remote control garage door openers. Especially in more rural areas. Shoot, lots of people (like me) don't even have a garage.

Mrs. Smith was in the beauty shop last Saturday showing off the new $12,000 diamond ring Mr. Smith gave her for their 25th anniversary and that shes never going to take it off.

Young Jimmy Smith was telling everyone at his High School lunch table about how rich his dad must be to give his mom such a ring.

Loose Lips Sink Ships

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

What are the good options.

If you can't escape to a safer position quickly it's either fight or put up your hands....your choice.

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

Did the poor fellow even have a chance to fight? I am not familiar with the incident but it doesn't sound like it.

In any case, with or without a decent pistol, it's tough to survive a well planned ambush like this one appears to have been. And you're right, loose lips are never a good thing.

How safe can you feel with a Beretta .25 acp? Self defense might not be convenient but I would rather have a fight worthy gun.

Having the .25 is better than having nothing - the odds of experiencing an incident like this are probably, fortunately, up in the millions. Also, I understand that we are fortunate to live in a pretty safe community with an excellent garage situation.

Edited to add: in interest of not excessively bumping this post: Thanks Mister X! I have never seen or heard of the neck chain holsters at the link. Understand the neck chain could be subject to breaking - but I would only need it from the house to garage, and back. I would put clear plastic tubing over the chain ... just like many of us did on active duty. I only have one Kahr - a CM9 - and it might be a little heavy for this. You are now responsible for me having countless hours of Googling trying to get a rig, like mentioned in the article, set up ...

While it's true some places are statistically safer than others, things like this can happen anywhere. From the pictures I've seen of this incident, it appears to have occurred in a fairly upscale neighborhood. I live in what most would consider a nice/safe neighborhood, but that didn't stop a gang member from trying to pry open a window on my house in broad daylight.

Micro guns in small calibers are generally considered compromises, but it's better to be consistently armed than not.

Talisman or tool? : The Tactical Wire

I came across this article from Michael Janich awhile back and found it interesting since I am fond of and have carried neck knives on many occasions. I've not explored the carry of a small gun in this manner all too much, but it's something you might look into.

Neck Chain Holster: Stellar Rigs' Travel-Friendly Carry Design

Sometimes that's all someone can carry, for a variety of reasons. Before concealed carry was passed in Texas that was all I felt comfortable carrying on my person, a tiny-go-everywhere-nobody-sees-it Beretta 950 BS .25 ACP. After concealed carry I worried a lot less about someone seeing my gun by accident so I switched to J frames and as my comfort level grew I switched to snubby K frames and compact .45s or 9mms.

But I still keep mouseguns around for those times when I will be somewhere and what I will be wearing dictates invisibility over caliber.

Surviving an armed ambush, the main topic, is usually a matter of pure luck. No matter how much training you have, gun fighting skills and hand to hand fighting skills, if you can't see it coming you are in deep kimchee from the get go.

Many years ago I worked an attempted carjacking case. Skell pulled a pistol on a lady who had just started her car in a parking lot. She had not locked the door. Skell opened it tried to pull her out, car was in reverse. Lady floored it, open door knocked skell down. She hit parked car behind her. She threw it in drive, hit gas. Ran him over and hit another parked car. Suspect was DOA. Lady was not charged, I don't know if her insurance rates went up, but I would take that chance.

Any car is one heck of a weapon.

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Certified Curmudgeon

This works for me, can be carried under the shirt unnoticed and accessed quickly!

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NRA Life Member
CPO

A pair of Mossberg Shockwaves, one for driver, and one for the wife, might give the goons pause.

And, by the way, never underestimate the ability of your car at "ramming speed" (as they said in Animal House) to best a couple of punks on foot.

One SWAT cop, who is not named, said he had 16 kills, 15 with firearms and one with the SWAT van. I guess the moron in the street thought that, like he had seen on TV, the cop would jump out and shoot it out with him. Instead, the SWAT cop put the accelerator pedal on the floor and bore down on the punk. Took him right out with only "one hit to the chest." LOL

Back to the initial issue here, these punks KNEW something about this man, and or his family and they wanted it very badly. It really sucks that he had to lose his life to loser @#* punks! I hope they are caught and fired for everything they have done! Kyle

Tragic news. Agree, it was definitely a job. We would open and close the shop with our pistols tucked underarm. Helps I think to be a little paranoid and guarded.

Good luck trying to maneuver anything much larger than a pistol--and to be frank, a pistol, too--inside a car. I think you'd be far more apt to shoot each other. And that's over and above rolling around with two shotguns in your car, and having the wherewithal to use them.

I'm highly skeptical of the rest. Not that a cop's run a guy over--it's documented and well-known, on several very-justified occasions--just that they would talk about it that way.

Simple fact: If someone really wants to get you, you're gonna get got. Nobody walks around in a state of heightened awareness all the time. At some point, routine creeps in, so unless you're gonna pay a guy to spring surprise attacks on you twice a month, you'll be vulnerable at times.

There is such a thing as a non-survivable scenario. Don't even count on "the other two running when the first guy gets shot" thing working. That relies on them noticing (they may not even be aware you're shooting), and then picking "flight" over "fight".

Targeting working class and upperclass neighborhoods is a growing trend also going out in the rural areas and targeting older folks .Live in a state of prepared readiness it's not being paranoid anymore .

A veteran and a first class citizen, murdered by low life scumbags and thugs, what a shame....
Any bets if and when they are caught that they don't have prior records?

No, but I would bet we hear "they were really good kids that were just trying to get their lives turned around." Seems to be the most common excuse.

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Vegan by proxy.

If I were as concerned about the possibility, I'd install security cameras outdoors and check them before opening the garage door. If you see prowlers, dial 911.

Motion-sensing lights at each door and each corner of the house will discourage loitering during hours of darkness. For best protection, peek out the window (or through the door viewer) before exiting to ensure the lights are not on.

Sounds like a targeted hit to me, also.
If they wanted 'Mrs. Smith's diamond' they would point a gun at her and take that diamond.
This sounds like a planned hit!

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

Example only Sir,it could have been Mr Smith gold teeth.

In a posted video a few months ago showing an Asian woman coming out of her bedroom blasting away with a semi-auto at 3 armed men inside her home showing they were not masked.

In this incident the assailants were masked?Were they known to the victims?

A hit for insurance money or other motive is always a possibility.

The story states the deceased was shot more than once during a struggle.Were all shots fired by one attacker.Prints off empty shell casings if auto(s) used.

Arrest(s) will come shortly,probably through modern technology.

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

The deadliest weapon in the world is a motor vehicle.

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Stupid games = Stupid prizes.

Having been involved in far too many homicide/attempted murder/aggravated assault cases....there is ALWAYS more to the story. Very rarely (thank God) is the crime just a random act of violence. I'd hazard an experienced guess that this case will have a lot more details as the investigation unfolds.

With that said, just do the best you can and protect yourself. Keep your head on a swivel. Unless you have some folks who are seriously hating you, most citizens have very little to worry about. I call it the TV syndrome; people tend to think that the 'revenge' incidents that we see on TV will happen just because they were a witness etc. Thankfully that does not generally happen as most part 1 criminal incidents aren't involving organized criminal groups who really have an interest in shutting you up. It's a thug out committing thuggery.

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Stupid games = Stupid prizes.

I think the key really is to adapt your security measures to your circumstances. Obviously, being armed would have helped. A lot. From the available pictures it does look like Mr. Davis' neighborhood and size/impressiveness of his residence would have indeed made practical security measures like cameras and lights a wise investment, as it looks like there's loot to be had.

On the other hand, with all due respect, for the average Joe to treat every time he opens his garage as a high-risk potential ambush because of this tragedy seems a bit of overkill. Getting ambushed at your garage door is as likely or rather as unlikely as at any other time you enter or leave your car or your house, by whatever route. So just practice alertness and preparedness. If your lifestyle increases your likelihood of being targeted, adapt.

Yes,I like to sit in public places with my back to a wall,carry while taking the garbage to the curb,pocket carry a Ruger SR22 around the house and sleep with a 15rd auto on the nightstand but I also stive hard to live as normally as possible.

I've fired my weapon in 11 incidents,each and every time firing more than 2 rounds,getting hit twice and living to this ripe old age.

I practice twice a week but hope I never need to drop the hammer on someone again but I'm in no shape to wrestle with someone so it may be mine or their unlucky day.

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

But not as good as a sharp stick.

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I've still got it made.

I am glad to see you are blessed with a "survivor's attitude," which is invaluable to winning a fight.

Much better than the defeatist, who says we can't do it because it is too much trouble, too dangerous, too unlikely, etc.

Let the dogs out every morning to "potty".

It says in the Home Invaders Handbook that a wise HI will watch a victim's movements before planning an attack.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

There's got to be a better way to make a living.

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I've still got it made.

Wonder why they picked him out ?? perps are a lazy bunch usually and getting up long before 6 am to be at this guys house and be laying in wait .. what were they looking for ?? what did they expect to come away with ??

Does he have guns in the home ??

Disabled .. what drugs was he legally taking that some one saw him refill ?? did he just get a settlement of some kind ??

I retired over 15 years ago because of a severe back injury and many times I would take my wife to work .. She was the head casher at a bank and would be the first one there to open the doors in the morning .. Has since retired also ..

But I am always armed and would wait till she was inside the building before puling away only after she would call me and tell me the building was clear .. but days she would drive I would be worried till she would call me .. If she ever didn't call I would have called the police and explained the reason I was calling ..that was the back up plan we had for her safety .. Thankfully it was never needed to be used !!

Like Clouseau and Kato?

This is a scary scenario.
I've thought about this kind of ambush being a real possibility.

I have a button that opens my garage door mounted on the wall next to the door leading from the house into the garage and I open the garage door from the threshold of the doorway - before I've even stepped out of the house and into the garage.

If someone came charging into the garage, I'd just take a step back into the house and slam the door. Drawing my CCW would be the next immediate step. Pressing the panic button on my alarm system would be the next step.

I may switch my routine to wait until I'm in the car and set to go before using the remote to open the garage door. I already back in, I think I need to encourage my wife to do the same.

Gonna have to spend a little time thinking on this one.

Victim was handicapped and was in a daily routine
Also a U.S. Marine which tells me He went down fighting

The comments here about the .25 got me to thunkin' - which is very difficult ... I found this 442 on the local trading site - picked it up for $300. Like most everything else I own - it's used - I'm the third owner. Seller didn't fire it - and said the first owner fired a box thru it and couldn't handle the recoil. I was apprehensive going to check it out - since these little jewels can have an issue or two. But - it's near perfect. Carry-up and lock up are perfect, B/C gap and alignment are spot on - and my biggest "worry" about J-frames: yoke to frame retention is rock solid. Original owner put some nice Altamont's on it but I like the S&W bananas better. Oh, this will bother the purists here but I cold-blued the turn ring to make it purtier. I elevated it to carry status without even firing it ... well ... sorta. I popped a primed case in the basement and it dents a primer. I'm keeping the Beretta .25 - they're like hen's teeth around here in good condition...


Forgot to mention - carried it this morning on my AM commuter lot run. It's noticeably bigger than the Beretta in my fishing vest pocket - but still conceals very well. That said, I want to reiterate that I only open the garage door and start the Edsel after I am semi-safely locked into the car. The 442 is 2014 production and came with the blue clam shell box instead of the cheapie cardboard. First owner replaced the mainspring - and there was a new Wolff reduced power rebound spring in a baggie in the box.

In looking at the photos, it appears that the victim lived in a suburban type community with neighbors close by. We need to ask why this individual was singled out? What did he possibly have that others wanted? Was the victim involved in criminal activity and the murder was really a hit rather than a robbery? Was the victim a randomly selected target? How did the three gunman stake out the victim's house without arousing attention? I've done surveillances in these types of neighborhoods and someone would drop a dime on us usually within 15 minutes.

I also wondered how 3 of them didn't draw attention to themselves in a neighborhood like that ..

I was under surveillance by a private dick hired by an insurance company and both of my neighbors called me with in minutes of them pulling up and looking through a scope at my house .. police were there within 10 minutes questioning them .. neighbors had called them ..

So wonder if they were hidden in the garage already or were there some kind of object they were able to hide behind blocking their view from others ?? People are out walking their dogs before work or jogging, getting the paper that time of morning .. does sound a lot like a hit ..