Three-on-one odds tend to be pretty good if you’re one of the three. Especially when you get the jump on the one guy and can beat him at your own pace without worrying about your target being able to do a thing. It’s part of the reason so many criminals don’t operate alone.

However, your beatdown party can come to an abrupt end when the three-to-one odds shift a bit…and especially when the new entry has a gun.

That’s exactly what happened in West Virginia recently when three criminals attacked one man, only to find out his younger brother was there and armed.

Logan Police tell WSAZ three people tried to break into a home and two of them were shot by the homeowner.

The two injured suffered non life-threatening injuries and were released from the hospital to the Southwestern Regional Jail, according to investigators.

The alleged break-in and shooting happened in the early hours of Saturday morning on Pine Street, according to police.

Hakeem Norman, Cody Tomblin and Kareem Wyche have all been arrested and charged in the crime. Norman and Tomblin were shot during the alleged break-in.

They are all charged with nighttime burglary, unlawful assault and conspiracy.

Norman has also reportedly been charged with malicious wounding.

Having a gun in the house isn’t an immunization against evil acts, but it sure can help. It’s unlikely that the younger brother, Adam Jones, would have been much help against three men without the gun. It sounds like Jones understands that perfectly well.

“I couldn’t yell, I couldn’t get my hands on anything,” the victim told WSAZ-TV. “Yeah, I pretty much thought I was dead.”

But the attackers were about get some serious pushback — from the victim’s younger brother.

Adam Jones came downstairs armed with a gun of his own and “just opened fire,” he told the station.

Jones said he fired a warning shot over the head of one of the crooks, wounded two of them — and all three hightailed it out of the house.

“There’s a chance they could have killed both of us,” Adam Jones recalled to WSAZ.

Yes, they could have.

Thankfully, Jones was able to respond while armed, ending the confrontation and preserving life and limb, not just of himself but also his older brother. That’s an older brother who is probably regretting every noogie and wedgie he’s ever delivered to his sibling. Few would blame him for that, to be honest.

Luckily, Jones was able to respond with a firearm and end the threat. Two bad guys wounded, one more probably suffering from the load in his pants, and one older brother safe. That’s a pleasant end to an awful situation, and there are a couple of alleged bad guys who are now getting the opportunity to rethink their life choices after finding themselves on the receiving end of a gunshot.

If this happens enough, we may actually see the end of crime as a significant factor in people’s lives. After all, if it’s safer to just get a job and everyone knows it, who will risk being shot over a few dollars worth of stuff?