Excaliber wrote:It's best to only use the panic button if there's no time to do anything else. It doesn't provide any info other than someone is calling for help, and introduces the extra delay of the alarm company dispatcher calling 911 with no detailed info.mr1337 wrote:For me, I'd grab my Glock 19 that is staged on a holster attached to the bed while my wife pushes the panic button for the monitored alarm system. Then, we close the bedroom door (if able) and hunker down in the walk-in closet. The door frame of the closet provides cover that I can peek out from. The floor plan is situated that in order to get to the bedroom door, they will be putting themselves at considerable risk because there's a hallway. There's nowhere for them to hide if they decide to open the door.
It's just me and the wife, so no reason to go out looking for any invaders.
It's far better to call 911, take the phone with you into the closet, and stay on the line with the dispatcher to give real time updates like your position in the home, what you're hearing or seeing, details on the offenders, etc.. You'll get a much faster and more targeted response and you'll have much less chance of being mistaken for the bad guy.
I am not for sure what my company does if you push the "panic button" which is actually 4 buttons. I have accidently and it takes them several minutes to even respond to ask if everything is alright. I have had them call my cell to see if I knew my alarm went off after I had been home 15 minutes. As soon as this contract is up (2 1/2 months) I will be looking for new monitoring service.
As far as the home invasion (if no children or grandchildren spending the night) we will call 911 and stay in the bedroom and pray hard for them that they do kick in that door.