Since it’s a recent theme in the training community, let me reinforce the principle that going outside your home to confront thieves and other criminals is a bad idea. Stay inside and let them come to you. Conduct a Defense not a Movement to Contact. A military axiom is that the defense has at least a 3 to 1 advantage over the Offense.

http://modernserviceweapons.com/?p=18502

Not only does it make justification iffy but you could become a casualty in the process.

Suspect Held at Gunpoint (temporarily)

Another bad idea is chasing criminals you encounter while driving around when you suspect them of having stolen your property.

Man Arrested After Firing Shots, Chasing Stolen Truck in South Seattle

Shooting at them makes it even worse.

“At about 4:45 p.m., a man spotted his stolen Chevrolet truck in the Mt. Baker neighborhood while he was out driving in his Toyota Camry. He followed his stolen truck until it stopped, and then confronted the driver. When the driver sped away, the man fired two shots, striking two nearby residences.

…

Officers booked the 27-year-old man into King County Jail for drive-by shooting and submitted his firearm as evidence.”

Drive by shooting in Washington State is a Class B felony. https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=9A.36.045 It is punishable by up to 10 years in jail and a $20,000 fine. Odds are that since no one was injured, he won’t do hard time but, as a felon, his Second Amendment rights will be gone.

Thanks to one of my correspondents for bringing the incident to my attention.

Terms

MOVEMENT TO CONTACT

2-8. Movement to contact is an offensive task designed to develop the situation and establish or regain contact. (Refer to ADRP 3-90 for more information.) It creates favorable conditions for subsequent tactical actions. The leader conducts a movement to contact when the enemy situation is vague or not specific enough to conduct an attack. Forces executing this task seek to make contact with the smallest friendly force possible. A movement to contact may result in a meeting engagement, which is a combat action occurring when a moving force engages an enemy at an unexpected time and place.

THE DEFENSE

4-1. A defensive task is a task conducted to defeat an enemy attack, gain time, economize forces, and develop conditions favorable for offensive or stability tasks. (Refer to ADRP 3-90 https://www.benning.army.mil/Infantry/DoctrineSupplement/ATP3-21.8/PDFs/adrp3_90.pdf for more information.) Normally, the defense alone cannot achieve a decision. However, it can set conditions for a counteroffensive or counterattack that enables Army forces to regain the initiative.

In other news, don’t defraud school systems of $1.5 million dollars’ worth of chicken wings. Even in Ill-Annoy, it will get you in trouble.

https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-investigates/suburban-school-worker-charged-with-stealing-1-5m-worth-of-chicken-wings/

“District funds were used to pay for the food, according to prosecutors, who did not reveal what became of the chicken wings.”