I agree; a soon as they get the door open, deadly force is authorized. Center mass, center mass, center mass, with the most effective long gun you've got.
Looking back, I think he took the best course of action. Had he shot 1,2, or even 10 of the people barging into his house, his family would likely not have survived the next mob that showed up at his doorstep. He would have kicked off the next Philly Riots.
Very good point. Ultimately, the goal is the survive, not to mete out hot justice.
Absolutely, the goal is not vengeance or vigilante justice; and he may very well have started a race war. But, as you state, the goal is to survive; which, had the police been 30 seconds or a minute farther away, may not have happened. He had already been punched in the face, hit with a pipe, and a third bad guy was presenting a gun. If he had a gun in the house, he was wrong to not use it. Deal with "the next mob" once you've survived the first. Go on vacation, send the wife and kids upstate, check yourself into the nearest crowbar hotel, whatever, but survive
this encounter before you start worrying about the potential blowback from the community. Unless he had the gift of precognitive recognition, a la Minority Report, and knew the crowd would disperse at the first sound of sirens, he was trusting his fate to the angels. Which is all well and good, but not when you've got a wife and two babies upstairs.
Don't get me wrong, I'm fully aware that I'm making these comments from my comfy spot in the Quarterback Armchair, and I'm not saying I'd have done better. But with hindsight being 20/20, I think the right answer would have been to greet the mob with deadly force. If they scattered at the sound of a siren, they probably would have hauled ass at the sight of a 12 gauge or 5.56mm muzzle. If so, all's well. Race war averted, everyone's a winner. If not, he can defend himself and the occupants of his house.