Anti-gun activists and politicians often ask questions like, "who needs these 'weapons of war'?" As if demonstrable "need" is somehow a prerequisite to exercising a constitutional right, and as if the latter term actually means something concrete. The concept of a "good guy with a gun" is also mocked and diminished after mass shootings in which armed citizens did not intervene, anecdotal evidence that ignores the many instances in which law-abiding gun owners do, in fact, defend themselves and others. Here's the latest example of a Georgia homeowner evidently 'needing' a so-called "assault weapon" to stave off a violent armed robbery by three masked assailants:
A Georgia homeowner shot and killed three teens as they approached his residence with their faces covered, authorities said. The masked teens — a 15-year-old and two 16-year-olds — approached three residents around 4 a.m. Monday at the front yard of a home just outside Conyers and tried to rob them, the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office said. One of the would-be robbers took out a gun and fired shots at them before one of the residents returned fire, authorities said. “The victims of the attempted robbery were all uninjured, but the three attempted robbery suspects were all shot during the exchange of gunfire and succumbed to their injuries, one on scene and two at a local hospital after being transported,” the sheriff’s department said in a news release.
Ed Morrissey notes that "the exact type of weapon used in self-defense has not been identified. However, a neighbor described the sound as an 'assault weapon,' and WSB-TV in Atlanta confirmed it to be a long-barrel semi-automatic." This sounds like exactly the sort of weapon Beto O'Rourke and other 2020 Democrats would like to confiscate through compulsory "buy-backs." More details:
"It was five shots and then it sounded like a handgun. Then I heard somebody have an assault rifle. And it was a slew of shots that came out," neighbor Carlos Watson said. Deputies say they still don't know who owned the two guns they found. Investigators say three people were at the home, including a woman, when the shooting happened. The homeowner who shot the masked intruder is a man. Neighbors say he's a truck driver who owns a semi-automatic rifle and is highly protective of his mother. No charges have been filed against anyone at this time.
Authorities are still gathering facts, but it sounds like this homeowner was outmanned by the intruders, but not outgunned. Estimated instances of annual defensive gun uses in the United States range from tens of thousands to several million. I'll leave you with a recent example of a young woman of color defending herself with a handgun, as well as Beto and Pete Buttigieg going after each other over the question of proposed confiscatory gun control policies:
Five men tried to rob a young woman this morning. They didn’t expect her to grab her handgun and fire. Today, she is unharmed, and at least one suspect is shot. Exclusive #ABC13 interview at 4:30 & 6. https://t.co/OW8oZoQTkQ #Hounews pic.twitter.com/IS8htwfx7t
— Miya Shay (@ABC13Miya) September 3, 2019