If you come home to find someone in your home, they may have the gun that you left hidden in the house. Hesitation in employing force when handling a firearm can lead to the aggressor gaining control of your weapon. Inadequate training in the handling and use of firearms can make for tradgedy. Hitting an unintended target can change the future of many people in less than a heart-beat. Leaving a firearm out where a child can get access to it is also a recipe for disaster.
Children have a miraculous way of finding just about anything.
If you own a firearm, please keep it secured in a locker or with a locking device so that any children that live in or visit your house can not unintentionally gain access to it. N.C. now has strong criminal laws that apply to negligence on the part of gun owners when a child is hurt or killed in such instances. Several manufacturers distribute a wide variety of chemical aerosol sprays that are highly effective for the purpose of self defense. These items can usually be carried legally in most locations and are not likely to cause death or serious injury to the victim if it were to fall in the wrong hands. Exterior lighting- darkness is the criminal's friend.