# Attacked by homeowner...



## TripleG (Apr 17, 2015)

Was wondering what you old timers suggest I should do after being attacked and struck by a pissed off old man (home owner) wielding 2 axes on an Initial. If I wasn't a fast runner I would more than likely be in the hospital right now. I have a 6" gash on my lower back that does not require stitches. I called 911 right away, and contacted my Client in regards to this matter.

I'm all square with Client and the Police, but now I'm sitting here wondering if there is anything else I should be doing besides taking anxiety pills and wishing I was still a drinker.


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## oteroproperties (Aug 10, 2012)

How did this happen?

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk


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## G 3 (May 3, 2015)

Carry a bigger stick than his.


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## PropPresPro (Apr 12, 2012)

TripleG said:


> . . .I'm all square with Client . . .


Out of curiosity - What exactly did you have to get square with your client?


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## admin (Mar 12, 2012)

hey there,

first off. oh my god. 

i hope you are alright, thats the wildest thing ive read today. but this is for forum support, not for general help. either or, get well soon. just letting you know.

~Shane


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## G 3 (May 3, 2015)

I think a gentle push to the appropriate section would be awesome, in order to help TG. I think a little forum love is warranted for him in this case. :vs_smile:

And, where are my manners... :vs_worry:How are you feeling now?


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## TripleG (Apr 17, 2015)

Today I'm fine. Yesterday I could hardly walk. Seems running for your life at 50 years old is bad for your back. I was asking for General help in that I have no idea if I should be contacting a lawyer for medical bills, or my Insurance agent or what-have-you. 

I refused to press charges against the guy because in the end, after talking with the police, he was just some guy protecting his home from an intruder and close to as scared as I was upon seeing him in the house. Now if I had deep lacerations and was hospitalized things would be very different.


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## BamaPPC (May 7, 2012)

First, glad you're ok. Then, I'll tell you there are always two sides to a story. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and say you did nothing to provoke the attack.

That said, I'll give my 2 cents. I have been threatened with physical harm, threatened to be shot and even poked in the chest with a finger by homeowners. Never been actually harmed. But, if I were in your shoes, I'd hire a lawyer and press charges. You were there legally, at the request of the mortgage lender. The old man could have asked you to leave, forbidden you to ever come back, but he has no right to cause physical harm. He can't injure the power company man coming to check the meter, or shut the power off. Same thing, you were there for a valid purpose.

Unless the old man felt you were about to cause him harm, he shouldn't get away with what he did to you. I'd lawyer up and press charges. Hope you have witnesses.


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## Doc (Sep 3, 2015)

I'm pretty sure I mentioned this before. If your gonna' show up to an occupied property to conduct some kind of pre-foreclosure shenanigans, it would be best to have a sheriffs deputy accompany you (credible witness).

If the sheriff declines to offer their support after you show them the proper paperwork it's not a good omen.

Out of curiosity, how much were you getting paid to get wacked-up with an ax?


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## GTX63 (Apr 12, 2012)

Depending on your state and local laws you can carry. That said, I don't recommend that for defense against homeowners, rather the goblins and squatters that hover nearby.

It isn't a bad idea when entering a home to "clear it". Upon entering, you/your guys announce their presence and continue to do so until you have canvassed the entire house. It's a little more comforting to be in the basement working and hear a loud "hello? Anyone home?" than creaking on the floor boards above you.


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## northeast1 (Aug 7, 2016)

*call a lawyer*

call a lawyer case is a slamdunk


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## Treehakker (Jul 31, 2016)

When you arrive knock ,yell through the house as you open and if anything is not feeling right back out also have a pipe about 4 ft in hand I call it a door opener. Call office. Cops, and always make sure somebody is with you. Business hours is the time all of this should happen. Glad you are ok . It could of been one or 5 people with guns
Think safety first always.


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## TripleG (Apr 17, 2015)

I knocked a bunch of times, loudly. The back door was off it's hinges and tossed to the side so I also yelled, repeatedly into the house that I was here for the bank and that I had a work order to repair the door. I then went next door to make sure it was vacant. I did everything correctly in regards to making sure it was vacant. I even flipped on the light switches as I was in the house and no electric was on. The faucets had no water, etc. According to our guidelines the house was vacant.

It was just a bizarre freak happenstance that I truly wished had happened to someone else. Can't wait for my next Initial out in Low-country... no-idea how this experience might change my confidence in doing these...


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## Doc (Sep 3, 2015)

TripleG said:


> Was wondering what you old timers suggest I should do after being attacked and struck by a pissed off old man (home owner) wielding 2 axes on an Initial. If I wasn't a fast runner I would more than likely be in the hospital right now. I have a 6" gash on my lower back that does not require stitches. I called 911 right away, and contacted my Client in regards to this matter.
> 
> I'm all square with Client and the Police, but now I'm sitting here wondering if there is anything else I should be doing besides taking anxiety pills and wishing I was still a drinker.


You mentioned that this was an initial (inspection?). Typically an init is performed on an "allegedly" unoccupied property after the property has been foreclosed, vacated, cleaned up and secured with a lock box attached.

The property is REO at that point. The homeowner is the bank.

Was it a squatter that axed you? Did the previous owner bust the door down and attempt to re-occupy the property?

Just curious. In any case, you can press charges and/or file a suit but good luck getting blood out of a turnip.


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## TripleG (Apr 17, 2015)

No. It's was a***RUSH*** order to secure the property. Secure the broken door, mow grass. According to the police it was the homeowner. They are doing a full investigation into the entire thing.

As for blood out of a turnip, that was entirely my thinking. If the poor guy didn't have enough $$$ to make his payments how is he supposed to pull cash out of his ass to pay me.

We all know the drill. By the time someone like me is sent to the property there must have been multiple notices sent to his house. Plus a few inspections done by Inspectors. He told the cops that he knew he had a "certified" letter at the post office for a few weeks now but hadn't had the means to go get it yet. I'm guessing it was the letter telling him I was coming...

God Willing.... This was a once in a lifetime event and since it already happened I'm good.


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## Bigtrucker (Mar 18, 2014)

TripleG said:


> No. It's was a***RUSH*** order to secure the property. Secure the broken door, mow grass. According to the police it was the homeowner. They are doing a full investigation into the entire thing.
> 
> As for blood out of a turnip, that was entirely my thinking. If the poor guy didn't have enough $$$ to make his payments how is he supposed to pull cash out of his ass to pay me.
> 
> ...


So this was a re-secure. So the home was already secured and the bank/ investor has pics of all the other contractors who have been to the home.
So they most likely knew someone was living there food, clothes, ect...... You would think he called the bank and complained about them changing his locks.
Id get a lawyer in Pa the home owner can kill you if he felt threatened in his home and not face charges.
Your case is against the bank. They most likely sent you to a home they knew was occupied for you to do work with no warning. So in a nut shell they didn't care about your safety and you were almost killed. Not A lead pipe , not a candle stick or the rope and your lucky it wasn't the revolver.
Mr. Bank in the kitchen with the axe = $$$$$$$$$$ for you.
They had no regard for your safety


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## Ohnojim (Mar 25, 2013)

Bigtrucker said:


> So this was a re-secure. So the home was already secured and the bank/ investor has pics of all the other contractors who have been to the home.
> So they most likely knew someone was living there food, clothes, ect...... You would think he called the bank and complained about them changing his locks.
> Id get a lawyer in Pa the home owner can kill you if he felt threatened in his home and not face charges.
> Your case is against the bank. They most likely sent you to a home they knew was occupied for you to do work with no warning. So in a nut shell they didn't care about your safety and you were almost killed. Not A lead pipe , not a candle stick or the rope and your lucky it wasn't the revolver.
> ...


PA is actually a "no safe avenue of escape" state, and you can be charged for assaulting and or killing someone, even if they are inside your home with a weapon. 

Like the county sheriff told me, if you shoot them and they are not dead, shoot them again until they are. That way there is only one side to the story.


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## TripleG (Apr 17, 2015)

No. I took it to mean an Inspector went to the house and while taking his pictures realized the door was off its hinges and reported it. It was never secured. The work order didn't state "init secure" but the wording on it was an init secure.


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## tlcinspection (Jun 27, 2015)

*Attacked by homeowner..*

I always assume the property is Occupied and do my Check list after a similar encounter 5 years ago. 
(Visual) cars, people ect.. (Inquire) any Neighbors home to ask..(walk Around) Make Noise..Tap Windows..Utilities Off? .. Then as others have stated once inside YELL...as far as your assault goes..a home owner is a home owner until evicted and most state laws give them rights to protect there property and this could have been Far Worse for You.. If I do find someone home I verify they are in Fact the Homeowner and Not a Squatter..


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## Bigtrucker (Mar 18, 2014)

Ohnojim said:


> PA is actually a "no safe avenue of escape" state, and you can be charged for assaulting and or killing someone, even if they are inside your home with a weapon.
> 
> Like the county sheriff told me, if you shoot them and they are not dead, shoot them again until they are. That way there is only one side to the story.


Philadelphia homeowner shoots, kills intruder during home invasion





Police respond to a home invasion in Philly where authorities say the homeowner shot and killed one of the would-be robbers. (myfoxphilly.com)


A Philadelphia man shot and killed an intruder who broke into his home while he and his two young children were sleeping early Sunday, police say.

MyFoxPhilly.com reports 63-year-old Lee Heng told officers he felt he had no choice but to fire at two men who he says broke into his home through a second story bathroom window. 

One suspect died but the second escaped. Surveillance footage shows the second suspect, who police say is a man in his 30s with a medium build, fleeing the scene.

Heng is not expected to face charges in the case due to Pennsylvania's Castle Doctrine, which permits people to defend their property.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/04/0...oots-kills-intruder-during-home-invasion.html


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## Bigtrucker (Mar 18, 2014)

Ohnojim said:


> PA is actually a "no safe avenue of escape" state, and you can be charged for assaulting and or killing someone, even if they are inside your home with a weapon.
> 
> Like the county sheriff told me, if you shoot them and they are not dead, shoot them again until they are. That way there is only one side to the story.


http://fairlielaw.net/use-of-deadly...xpanded-beyond-the-confines-of-your-“castle”/

In pa you can stand your ground in your home 

Mr. Green with lead pipes and revolver in the castle.


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## Ohnojim (Mar 25, 2013)

*You're right I forgot they had passed*



Bigtrucker said:


> http://fairlielaw.net/use-of-deadly...xpanded-beyond-the-confines-of-your-“castle”/
> 
> In pa you can stand your ground in your home
> 
> Mr. Green with lead pipes and revolver in the castle.



that a few years back.


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