The Armed Citizen® March 29, 2012

by
posted on March 29, 2012
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
ac2009_fs.jpg

Early one morning, a resident awoke to the sound of someone shuffling around inside his home. He grabbed his gun and proceeded to search the premises and discovered a man hiding in his basement. The resident fired two rounds from his firearm striking the suspect both times. The injured suspect reached his vehicle and fled the scene. The suspect was later hospitalized; in his wounded state he had struck several parked cars and then crashed the vehicle about a block away. (Associated Press, FL, 12/21/11)

The Armed Citizen Extra

(The following account did not appear in the print version of American Rifleman.)

A supermarket employee was stunned one evening when a man walked into the store, held a sharp object to her back and demanded money. The suspect forced the employee into the store's office, but he wasn't prepared for what would happen next. Another employee was waiting there with a gun and fired a shot at the suspect, striking him. The would-be robber later died in the hospital. (The Courrier-Journal, Indianapolis, IN, 12/28/11)

From The Armed Citizen Archives

March 1975: Aroused at 5 a.m., Mrs. Estelle Beavan, 61, a Seattle widow, found a young man "tearing up the whole front of the house." She telephoned police. But when the man, after ripping off a storm door, bashed through a thick double-locked door, Mrs. Beavan fired one shot at about 10 ft. with a small .22 handgun that she had bought on the advice of a "relative in law enforcement." A bullet in the chest halted the intruder. Police said he was crazed by drugs. (The Seattle Times, Seattle, Wash.)

Latest

Ruger Beretta Agreement F Updated
Ruger Beretta Agreement F Updated

Beretta Holding and Ruger Agree to Partnership

Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. and Beretta Holding S.A. have announced that both companies are entering into a strategic cooperation agreement.

Return of the Encore: T/C Arms Brings Back Its Iconic Single-Shot

In 2024, former owner Gregg Ritz purchased Thompson/Center Arms. Now the company has introduced a modern take on its classic Contender/Encore concept: the ENCORE PROHunter.

7 New ARs for 2026

While it's certainly a saturated marketplace these days, the AR-15 has never been more popular with American firearm enthusiasts, and many manufacturers are continuing to feed the need with new options loaded with new features.

The Armed Citizen® May 4, 2026

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

The Drawbacks of Being a Numbers-Oriented Gun Guy

Like any hobby or pastime that is in any way even vaguely related to machines or technology, firearms attract a (possibly) disproportionate number of “right-brained,” STEM-oriented personalities who like numbers.

First Look: MDT Hand Cannon Slingshot

Slingshots are fun, but they can also be a legitimate backup defensive tool—in 2023, a 13-year-old Michigan boy saved his 8-year-old sister from being kidnapped by using a $3 slingshot to fire a marble and a rock at the assailant, striking him in the chest and head.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.