from the American Rifleman (NRA) –

Seeking help following an assault at the hands of her boyfriend, a woman phoned her parents. They quickly picked her up and brought her to their home, calmed their terrified daughter and she went to sleep. Then a banging at the door arose—the boyfriend had found her hiding place. The parents would not answer, so the suspect kicked in the door and began assaulting them. The mother was able to struggle free and ran to the bedroom to get her pistol. Meanwhile, the suspect turned his attention to the father. The mother returned to find the suspect badly beating her husband. She opened fire, killing 
the suspect. (The Orange Leader, Orange, TX, 05/16/11)

A 40-year-old man was asleep in his mobile home when he heard loud music and screeching tires outside. Within moments, two men forced their way into the mobile home, and shoved the homeowner to the ground. The homeowner ran to his bedroom, shut the door and grabbed a semi-automatic pistol. When the intruders forced their way into the bedroom, the homeowner fired at the men, injuring one and killing the other. (The Santa Fe New Mexican, Santa Fe, NM, 04/12/10)

A woman in her early 50s was getting out of the shower when the bathroom lights suddenly went out. An intruder collided into her in the dark, causing her to fall backward into the shower and injure her back. She fought the man, but he put a knife to her throat. “She was telling him that she has money and please don’t hurt her,” said Police 
Cpl. Edwin Ritter, adding that the attack was an attempted sexual assault. The intruder forced the woman into her bedroom, but that’s exactly where she kept her .22-cal. pistol. She broke free, retrieved the gun and shot her would-be rapist several times. He ran outside, collapsed and died. “Thank God she’s okay and she had a weapon to protect herself with,” said a neighbor. “She’s a nice lady, just a sweet lady.” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta, GA, 05/12/11)

A man and a woman were standing outside their home when a man began yelling at them and walking toward them at an accelerated pace. As the homeowners moved into their vehicles to avoid the man, the suspect charged at the woman, grabbed her by the neck and dragged her onto the porch. The male homeowner retrieved a gun from the vehicle and confronted the suspect. When the attacker refused to retreat, the male homeowner shot him in the leg, and he fell to the ground where he remained until police arrived. (The Kansas City Star, Kansas City, MO, 06/24/10)

Robert Parsley was watching television one evening when he heard a noise outside. He quickly grabbed his Smith & Wesson Model 360 revolver chambered in .357 Mag. to investigate. The doorbell rang several times. Parsley looked out the window and saw a man tugging on the locked screen door. Holding the gun behind his back, he turned on the porch light and asked the young man what he was doing. He claimed his wife was in labor, and heavily perspiring, he said that he needed help. But Parsley found the man’s story suspicious. His instincts were correct: Earlier that evening the man stole an excavator and used it to severely damage a church. Parsley lowered the gun, bringing it into view. “Sorry for waking you!” the young man said as he ran off. Two police cruisers pulled up with their spotlights on searching for a suspect. Parsley told them in what direction the suspect had run and they found him breaking into a nearby home. (WTVD-ABC, Raleigh, NC, 05/20/11)

When a female grocery store clerk saw three teenage boys take some potato chips from the store without paying, she demanded that they immediately return the food. Two of the teens gave the chips back, but the other refused. Then he pulled a gun, aimed it at the clerk and threatened to shoot. The clerk then pulled her own gun and shot the teen in the buttocks. Police said they would seek robbery charges upon the boy’s release from the hospital. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis, MO, 11/24/10)

From The Armed Citizen Archives – August 1976: After asking to see a rifle on display in Harold Von Wahlde’s Anderson, Ind., gun store, a man pulled out a revolver and demanded money. Von Wahlde, 71, attempted to grab the gun and a struggle ensued. When the robber’s gun misfired, Von Wahlde grabbed a cal. .38 handgun from a shelf behind him and fired one shot that mortally wounded the thug. (The Anderson Daily Bulletin, Anderson, Ind.)

From The Armed Citizen Archives – August 1976: A lone gunman entered a Bellville Ill., pharmacy and at gunpoint demanded drugs from store manager Leonard Lautz. Instead of handing over the drugs, Lautz drew a pistol and fired one shot over the would-be robber’s head. The surprised crook quickly surrendered. (The Steeleville Ledger, Steeleville, Ill.)

***

If you have an account of a verifiable first hand experience involving an armed citizen, please send it to us at lennyll@charter.net.  Your experience may encourage other citizens to arm and protect themselves and their families.