On April 16th, Bearing Arms posted an article about a recent incident in Butts County, Georgia.
The article reports:
A sheriff in Georgia is praising the actions of an armed homeowner who stopped a would-be intruder from gaining access to a child’s bedroom, while also issuing a warning to other criminals in the county.
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long says a man named Abdul Aquil is in custody in connection with the break-in, and is lucky to be alive after his encounter with the armed citizen. Aquil allegedly first tried to gain entry to the home through a bedroom window with a child on the other side, but the child’s father heard the commotion and interrupted the burglar as he was crawling inside.
Long said the father of the child “challenged the intruder and the suspect exited the window.”
According to Long, the father then went to his room and got a gun as Aquil busted the living room window, trying to get inside.
The father fired his gun, missing the suspect, but causing the suspect to run away.
Long said in a Facebook post, “The shot fired by the homeowner was UNFORTUNATELY about 8 inches too high, missing the intruder, which would have resulted in his death.”
…Long, meanwhile, has two messages for residents of Butts County. In that Facebook post he “strongly” encouraged citizens who can legally possess a firearm to get their hands on one and attend a gun safety class hosted by the sheriff’s office, adding that “if the homeowner last night was not a gun owner, I am afraid the outcome could have been much different.
The Sheriff issued the following message:
“To the criminals, listen up and pay close attention, if you decide to break into a home in Butts County, make sure you are ready to meet your maker. My staff and I will spend as much time as it takes to make sure the citizens of this County are well-trained, educated and capable of making great shots to protect their family and homes. So, unless you are prepared to die, I would highly recommend you to find a home in another County to burglarize, because this is not the one.”
Gun safety classes are a really good idea. There are also non-lethal ways of defending yourself and your home.