An intruder allegedly forced his way into a Florida home over the weekend, threatened a mother and her children, and refused to leave — but the victim also had her gun at the ready.
Investigators said Michael McDonald, 33, entered the Palm Coast home around 1:50 p.m. Sunday after opening the garage and banging on windows, WOFL-TV reported.
‘I wasn’t trying to kill anyone. I was trying to get him out to where my kids and I were safe in my house.’
Courtney Price told Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies that McDonald demanded money, threatened her family, and continued advancing after she warned him that she was armed, the station said.
Authorities told WOFL that Price repeatedly ordered him to leave and warned she would shoot. When McDonald continued advancing toward her, Price fired one shot, striking him in the arm, authorities told the station.
“I did what I had to do to protect my children and myself,” Price told WOFL, which added that she knew McDonald through his sister.
“I panicked and got my gun,” Price added to the station, “and that was my first time using it.”
Price told WOFL she warned McDonald that she would shoot if he didn’t leave — and she said he continued moving toward her.
“He said, ‘I don’t care … shoot me,'” Price recalled to the station.
With that, she fired a single shot, WOFL said.
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“I wasn’t trying to kill anyone,” Price told the station. “I was trying to get him out to where my kids and I were safe in my house.”
McDonald fled the scene in a silver Kia SUV, and deputies later located the vehicle at AdventHealth Hospital, where they conducted a felony traffic stop and detained him, WOFL reported. McDonald was treated for non-life-threatening injuries, the station added.
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Image source: Flagler County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Office
Price and her children were not injured, WOFL said.
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Joseph Barile told the station that this incident illustrates why Florida’s self-defense laws exist.
“She’s in her own home, and someone comes in uninvited, refuses to leave, advances toward her, is aggressive toward [her] and her kids,” Barile noted to WOFL, adding that “she even goes a step further, saying she’s going to shoot … and he still doesn’t leave — she had a right to defend herself, and she did.”
Authorities told the station that Price acted lawfully under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law and was protecting herself and her two children.
McDonald was charged with burglary with assault and was being held in custody, WOFL reported, adding that officials said the suspect has an extensive criminal history that includes grand theft and robbery offenses.
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Arrest, Crime thwarted, Florida, Home invasion, Homeowner shoots intruder, Intruder, Police, Wounded, Guns, Gun rights, Self-defense, Crime, Second amendment
