The Armed Citizen® May 1, 2014

Joseph Eisel, 51, was asleep with his wife around 3 a.m. when he woke to a 27-year-old man he did not know standing over his bed. Startled and fearful for his life, Eisel reached for the 9 mm pistol he keeps bedside. The intruder fled the room and entered the Eisels' garage. Eisel followed him into the garage where the intruder fell to the floor. Eisel ordered the intruder to stay on the floor while his wife dialed 9-1-1. Eisel held the intruder at gunpoint until police arrived a short time later. The intruder allegedly entered the home through a broken basement window. Reportedly no one was hurt during the home invasion. "Everybody complains about guns," Eisel said of the incident, "but I'm glad I have one." (Butler Eagle, Cranberry Township, Penn., 10/1/13)

Rudy Ontiveros Jr. was at home with his fiancee and four small children in the early hours of the morning when a highly intoxicated man tried to gain entry to their home. He pounded on the door and attempted to pry it open. The 28-year-old suspect made his way inside the house around 2:30 a.m. Ontiveros, fearing for his life and the lives of his family members, fired four times at the intruder striking him in the hand, chest and head. The suspect's wounds proved fatal. Police who investigated the incident agreed that Ontiveros was justified in the self-defense shooting. (Tri-City Herald, Pasco, Wash., 3/20/14)

From The Armed Citizen® Archives

June 1966: Bronx, N.Y., apartment tenant Joseph MacHatton, hearing noises from his fire escape, grabbed a rifle and went to investigate. Finding a masked man in his kitchen, MacHatton opened fire. The would-be burglar fell mortally wounded. (New York Daily News)