What to do when robbed?

[-KarumA-]

Originally Posted by Liddo-kun

Just to add a bit of advice, practice the habit of placing your cellphone on your bedside when you sleep on your room at night or if that's too hard - make sure that there is a cellphone that never leaves your bedroom. I never forget to do it.
That way when you wake in the middle of the night and feel your house is being intruded you can call for help immediately in the security of your locked bedroom.

In the case of being face to face with a burglar, I agree with what most of the people here already said and that is to ESCAPE. In case I can't escape, I would use the hard wooden stick that I keep hidden near my pillow.

agree with these tips, always have a wooden stick or bat lying next to your bed or within hand reach in your room, I got mine lying under the bed so I can just grab it quickly.

also, because this is a common hoem robery tactic used in my country nowadays, make sure you have protection on your front door, let me explain to you why:
here as of the recent coupe of years, during the day even, people ring the doorbell and sometimes fake to be from the gass, electricity or water company and that they want to do something in your house (like the company people always do) except when you open it they force their way into your home, beat you up and rob the place quickly. make certain that you know who is in front of your door, check for ID and passes from the company itself also here they enlisted a new rule that when people fromt he company come to your door they will send you a letter about it or call you for it instead of showing up just like that. other people merely ring it and barge in as soon as you open that is why a good chain or eyeloop is very handy so that something like that might not happen.

also keep recon with your countries laws, here it isn't allowed to beat someone up even if that person is robbing your house, they can sue you for it >.<
it is a rule that sucks very badly and even if I were to get robbed I would beat the crap out of this person if I were to see them doing it

[Furuno]

I don't think this will be working on other country, but if I ever get robbed (I've robbed once, my cellphone is pickpocketed on a bus), these are the thing I will do :

If you are robbed / threatened on public place (not at your house) :

• If a location is suitable for screaming or asking help, e.g. residential area, do it. I'm sure a lot of people want to help you.
• If you're life are threatened badly, just surrender and give them whatever you have. Life is much more important.
• Always avoid confrontation unless you're really sure you're strength is superior. E.g. you're an army member or professional martial artists.
• Keep you mobile phone in place easy to reach but still hidden, so you can silently press 911 and let the police hear the conversation between you and the robber.
• If you decided to run, make sure your opponent don't have ranged weapon (e.g. guns) and try run as fast as you can to the place where there's is many people. Never attempt a long run unless you are a professional long run athletes.
• Avoid travelling into "dangerous" places. Use any other possible "safe" way even tough it is much farther.
• Avoid travelling alone as much as possible. This should quite reduce the chance you're being assaulted. If the aggresor is a single guy, two guy already outnumber him.
• If you're pickpocketed (you don't know you're robbed but when you realized, something is missing). Try to trackback the accident and immediately report to nearby police. Don't rush for chasing. Only attempt to chase when you're sure you can "disable" him after you found him.

[Vexx]

As we can see... options and choices vary dramatically from country to country --- with absurdities on either end of the spectrum.

[Mr. DJ]

as a precautionary measure, some of the bigger more expensive stuff...tv, computer, etc, just in case they try to pawn the items, I would have a picture of the ID/Serial code from and of the items

[Amray]

Why not purchase some of those locks chain things for your PC and Television set. You know, the things that they tie onto computers then attach it to the desks in schools and colleges. That way the only way they will be stealing your most expensive things is if they feel like carrying a whole computer desk out with them. And let us face it..no one wants to do that.

The solutions to this kind of thing really varies from country to country and neighbourhood to neighbourhood. Alas, if you live in a neighbourhood where everyone is a skanky thief the chances are that they will not stop the robbers that they spot robbing your house, but instead help them steal your things. Unfortunetly that is the world that we live in.

[rimaa]

Yeah, as mentioned before if there's an intruder in your house you can kill/hurt them if you live in some states. Here in Texas we have the "castle doctrine" which protects you for legal action if you kill an intruder in your house. Recently, this legislation was extended to your garage as well.

[Ermes Marana]

In Texas you can use deadly force to protect your property, or sometimes your neighbor's property.

You can look up the case of Joe Horn, in which he went outside and shot two robbers in the back who had just robbed his neighbor.

That was legal under Texas law.

On the other hand, in California I believe you are required to try to escape instead of fighting back.

The law is extremely different depending on what state you are in. Personally, I don't think you should be required to escape. But I also don't think you should be able to go outside to kill someone who is leaving. I would limit it to your house. Once they invade your house, all bets are off.

[Echoes]

When I was around 11-12 years old, some guy with a knife tried to rob me not too far from my house. He was around 5-6 feet away from me when he made the demand, and I reacted with my most primal instinct, I ran. I honestly have no idea what went through my mind at the time, most likely nothing, and I don't really recommend it to anyone. In the blink of an eye it took me to turn I saw him make a motion as if he was going to pursue me too, but apparently he changed his mind. He was probably scared of running into people, since we were standing in a short tunnel-like area which lead into a backyard. If it happened to me today, I'd just fork over the cash.

It didn't really dawn on me what had happened until I got home, and it still feels surreal to this day.

[Seditary]

My sharehouse got broken into once, however it was during university break and everyone had gone home for the holiday, I suspect they waited till then specifically. Just kicked all our doors in and took all the small items. It was probably a good thing they did it when noone was home, we had 8 men (most of them big men, over 6 feet, plus a Nigerian who knew how to use a gun well) living there and had previously chased down and smacked up a few idiots who tried to pilfer our cars out the front while we were in the lounge watching television. (though one of em was really fast, we were half pissed and he got away)

I've also been mugged once (well attempted). Really drunk guy out one night grabs me, pulls out a pocketknife and screams at me to hand over my cash. He was so drunk he couldn't even really focus on me, so I just yanked the knife out of his hands, kicked him in the nuts, threw the knife in some bushes and walked home to have a really long shower.

I wouldn't really recommend people do that with able bodied assailants though.

[Gemstar]

I have never been robbed directly, but someone once stole my camera while I wasn't home. Some dude fixing the house while we were out. I suggest you just be aware of your surroundings and look out for dangerous people. Stay away from them before they can even get close. The situation only happens if they are within 2 feet of you.

[bbduece]

Arm yourself with a fire arm then blast the fool.

If you dont have a gun then don't do anything. It is not worth it.

[gabbytay]

Ak-47 worth the money
If he steal something like jewelry and money try to run quietly or if you have some sort of weapon rip his neck or kick his balls. If he does have a gun Just hide or run away if possible Money and Jewelry is not worth you're life.

If you have a Gun Make your 1st shot count since you wont have a second chance if the burglar has a gun and Aim for the head .

[Irenicus]

People are pretty trigger happy aren't they?

Seriously, a gun isn't a toy. You need at least some training to be able to somewhat handle it, and even then most people just crack under stress and forget their lessons the moment the "crisis mode" take over.

When faced with life-threatening situations, just about every expert advice is the same: unless you're trained and prepared, don't fight back. Secure yourself first. Heroism is cool, living to tell about it with little to no injuries is cooler.

Originally Posted by gabbytay

Ak-47 worth the money

I know you're joking, but yeesh; a layman handling a Kalashnikov in civilian areas is crime against humanity, nothing less.

Heck, a civilian owning a AK-47 ought to be criminal, and already is in most sensible places in the world. It won't kill just for self-defense, it'll take out everyone in range and the property damage will be ten times what the criminal would have stolen.

[sorrow13]

bash anyone with a bat that looks suspicous

[Amray]

Originally Posted by sorrow13

bash anyone with a bat that looks suspicous

Yeah! And then you can steal their things instead...although that would kind of defeat the point of this whole topic. We should be greatful that not everyone thinks things such as that, otherwise all nation citizens would all be carrying around lethal weapons.

[yezhanquan]

Well, my advice will be on how to prevent robbers from targetting you in the first place.

1) No showy stuff. Common sense, but sometimes pride gets in the way.
2) Light and crowds are your best friends. I think being a pick-pocket's victim is a lot better than having a weapon pointed at you.

[Kyuusai]

Originally Posted by Irenicus

People are pretty trigger happy aren't they?

Sadly. But it's really to be expected. If more people valued human life, the world wouldn't be such a violent place.

Originally Posted by Irenicus

Seriously, a gun isn't a toy. You need at least some training to be able to somewhat handle it, and even then most people just crack under stress and forget their lessons the moment the "crisis mode" take over.

Where are you getting your statistics?

Originally Posted by Irenicus

When faced with life-threatening situations, just about every expert advice is the same: unless you're trained and prepared, don't fight back. Secure yourself first. Heroism is cool, living to tell about it with little to no injuries is cooler.

Training and preparing don't really have anything to do with it. You don't put yourself in life-threatening situations, period. If one is in a life-threatening situation, though, it would sure be nice if at least the minimal effort had been put forth to prepare for such a situation.

It really doesn't take much to be passingly competent.

Originally Posted by Irenicus

I know you're joking, but yeesh; a layman handling a Kalashnikov in civilian areas is crime against humanity, nothing less.

Heck, a civilian owning a AK-47 ought to be criminal, and already is in most sensible places in the world. It won't kill just for self-defense, it'll take out everyone in range and the property damage will be ten times what the criminal would have stolen.

An AK-47 is not an atom bomb. It is a rifle. Period.

The only reason that the AK-47 is celebrated is because it is simple, inexpensive to manufacture, and durable. It is not more deadly or destructive than other common rifles.

[Ronin Aquila]

Disarm the weapon from the thief's hand, take it, and kill the bastard for injuring your pride.

Self defence is not murder.

[Kakashi]

Originally Posted by Kyuusai

- Three 'L's: Locks, Lights, and Law Enforcement.

- Don't advertise your possessions.

- If some one REALY wants in, they can get in. However, most criminals are simply opportunists. Be less of an opportunity.

Life is too short to be constantly worrying about getting robbed. This is what the majority of people around the world have engraved into their heads, with the exception of Canadians apparently. Follow these three rules which Kyuusai has kindly pointed out and you should be fine. Of course special circumstances may call for more extreme measures.

edit: In general escaping the situation won't be necessary. Thiefs tend to be fast, efficient and discreet. Meaning you won't know you've been robbed until it's too late. Most people have a tendancy to freeze up if they hear an unknown presence shuffling about in another room, me included. To my relief it turned out to be an unlikely visitor and friend. Why he happened to be throwing my stuff on the floor and making a huge mess is another matter.

[SoldierOfDarkness]

In canada usually a robber/thief could press charges against you if you try to defend yourself and your home.

Generally speaking, this is idiotic though there hasn't been a judge or a jury that has actually convicted a person for such actions. A while back a man killed an intruder and the judge ruled it out that it was self defense and that a man's home is his castle.