Scrap of Paper: Worthless Protection Order Fails, But Armed Family Member Doesn’t

BLACK LICK, PA — A man was shot and killed by one of his own family when he broke into the home of his estranged wife early this month, the Associated Press reports.

The man was “prevented” from entering the house he was shot inside by a protection order — the order didn’t do jack when it came to defending family members’ lives.

A gun did, though — and for this family, that worked out just fine.

As the Associated Press reports via U.S. News & World Report:

State police say a Pennsylvania man who broke into a house from which he had been barred by a protection order was shot and killed by a resident. Police in Indiana County said 48-year-old Stacy Livingston had been evicted from and excluded from a home in Burrell Township but returned early Saturday and broke in through a basement window.

Police said the intruder’s wife and five other family members were inside, and an adult family member shot him in the chest. No charges have been filed and the investigation continues.

We see it time and time again: a protective order is nothing more than a very, very fancy scrap of paper at the end of the day.

If someone has one out and has to take action to defend themselves, it certainly creates a favorable paper trail, however, the speed of the power of a protection order is in direct correspondence with whatever officer is asked to respond to any call to the police — if a call to police can even be made before it’s too late.

Paper — all paper containing instructions — is worthless unless good men and women are able to enforce the instructions in some form or other.

When it comes to mitigating physical threats, it’s got to be backed up with deadly force, if need be.

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