The Armed Citizen® March 7, 2025

Armed Citizen® Today

A burglary spree in Falls Church, Va., was ended by an armed homeowner who fired upon an early-morning intruder in January 2025.

Fairfax County police say the suspect had attempted to break into another home in the Lake Barcroft neighborhood before attempting to enter the second home. The alleged break-in occurred at about 2:30 a.m. while the homeowner was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. After confronting the burglar at the front door of the house, the homeowner opened fire, striking the intruder with multiple shots.

The suspect was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries, and police say he will face charges once his condition improves. Local neighbors commented on the rising crime in the area. "We've been living here 25 years, and it's like, little stuff—cars getting fussed with—that's become more frequent in the last three or four years," an anonymous neighbor told reporters. (FOX 5 DC; Falls Church, Va.; 1/16/25)

From the Armed Citizen® Archives – February 1981

St. Louis restaurateur Gus Kircher started carrying a gun in his restaurant after he was robbed of $600. A week later, a robber accosted Kircher and two female companions in an alley as they entered the restaurant. 

The robber put a gun to the one woman's head, demanded money, and pulled the trigger four times. The gun didn't fire. Kircher pushed the gun aside and shot the robber twice, fatally wounding him. Police found two unfired rounds in the deceased's revolver. (The Post-Dispatch, St. Louis, Mo.)