Quote Originally Posted by Vern Humphrey View Post
Let me be an iconoclast. Handguns are bad choices for home defense! They are hard to shoot under good conditions. In semi-darkness, with your knees knocking and your teeth chattering, an intruder may think, "I can take that gun away from him.)

But in semi-darkness, with your knees knocking and your teeth chattering, and a shotgun in your hands an intruder will think, "I better stand real still. That thing might go off."
Agreed. In actuality, I do think that a short barreled 12ga pump shotgun loaded with #4 buck is a much better choice given the situation the OP describes. Might also want to consider the 1 3/4" mini-shells offered by Aguila and others manufacturers.