LODI, CALIFORNIA — A burglar in California found himself easy access to someone’s home. What he didn’t expend to find inside, however, was a resident with a gun. That is when the burglar went from trying to steal, to begging for his life.
Surveillance video shows the suspect jumping over Brown’s back fence and crawling up the stairs right by her barking dogs. “Walked right by them, no fear. Didn’t even stop at the dogs,” Brown said.
Via WTKR
Brown said she believes he stayed low so people walking by in the alley wouldn’t see him — but the suspect never expected someone to be inside.
Ed Pawlowski was having a cup of coffee in the kitchen when the man entered the home.
“I heard the door opening, expecting it to be her,” Pawlowski said. “Looked back down at my phone and by the time I looked up this guy had came inside the door and shut it very quietly behind himself. And I asked him what he was doing here.”
Pawlowski described the man as looking shocked and said since he has a concealed carry license, he drew his gun. But he didn’t shoot.
“He put his hands together and prayed not to shoot him. And I said, ‘I’m not going to shoot you, what are you doing in here?’” Pawlowski recalled.
The Breakdown:
When reading the entire article, it sounds as though the burglar had been scoping this place out. He had learned no one was usually home at that time. That would explain why he so brazenly walked in the house.
Video camera shows that Brown (the burglar) hopped the fence in the back yard, despite dogs being present. He walked right past the dogs and up the back stairs. Brown opened the door and quietly crept inside, closing the door gently behind him.
Everything was going according to plan for Brown; then he unexpectedly ran into Pawlowski. Pawlowski is a conceal carrier, and had his gun on him as he sat at the kitchen table drinking coffee. He immediately drew his weapon and questioned Brown.
Brown claimed he was being chased and needed help. Pawlowski wasn’t buying the story. Brown pleaded for Pawlowski not to shoot him. Pawlowski obliged and instead walked him out of the house at gunpoint and basically told him to scram.
The Bad:
For starters, the dogs should be ashamed of themselves! They let a burglar walk right past them. Yes, they did bark and that was good, but to let a stranger into the house? Bad pooches!
Pawlowski did a great job not to hesitate. However, letting the man go without calling the police seems to have been a mistake. This man committed a crime, and violated someone’s personal property. I imagine this wasn’t his first burglary attempt, and probably not his last.
Pawlowski should have done his best to hold Brown at gunpoint until police could arrive to make an arrest.
The Good:
The good thing here in this story is that Pawlowski was carrying while inside the house. This is a habit more members of the gun community should do their best to adhere to. Even in your home, you never quite know what could happen.
The fact that Pawlowski was sitting at the table drinking coffee with his firearm on him, may have saved his life. It certainly saved the house from being robbed. Had Brown entered the house and Pawlowski did not have a weapon on him, who knows how Brown may have reacted.
Also, good on Pawlowski for not hesitating. He saw a stranger in the house and immediately drew his firearm in self defense. He maintained great discipline during the entire encounter as well. Pawlowski is the kind of good guy with a gun the news needs to cover more.