Keep It Close: 82-Year-Old Uses Gun That’s Been Sitting On His Nightstand For 30 Years To Stop Home Invader

UNIONTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA — A 46-year-old man dressed in a skeleton mask and halloween costume broke into an elderly man’s home and demanded money. When the elderly man told him he didn’t have any, a confrontation broke out. That’s when the homeowner retrieved a gun from his nightstand and shot the intruder.

Via WTAE Pittsburgh Action News 4

“He had a skeleton mask and gloves. He said he demanded money, he told him he didn’t have any money, an altercation started, he grabbed the firearm off his nightstand and fired one shot, and the actor ran out of the house,” said Lt Tom Kolensic of the Uniontown Police Department.

That homeowner’s use of a handgun is credited with potentially saving his life. The homeowner mentioned that the gun had sat in his nightstand for thirty years before being called into service.

That’s a life lesson for both gun owners and concealed carriers.

Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not for twenty plus years… But some day you may need that gun to protect yourself, your home, and your family. And when you do, you’ll be thankful for every single year that gun sat there and did nothing but look pretty.

Of course, we encourage gun owners to regularly take those guns out to the range and get them some exercise. It’s something that not only improves a person’s ability to use the gun, but helps keep that knowledge familiar.

In the meantime, we always suggest carrying a gun around the house. Not only does it cut down on the amount of time you need to retrieve it, it ensures the bad guy doesn’t have access to it before you.