A female resident was at home around midnight on Wednesday when she and her mother heard a disturbance at the back door of her Lexington, Ky., apartment. The resident quickly called 911, while her mother—fearing for the safety of the two children sleeping in the next room—grabbed a handgun and went to investigate. When she discovered a man trying to force his way through the sliding-glass door, she fired two shots, striking him in the leg. The suspect has been treated for non-life-threatening injuries and will likely be charged with burglary.
Police say the man had a relationship with the female resident and had been breaking in to “cause some trouble.” The considerable determination he displayed —he had to climb up the patio railing of a lower-level apartment to reach the backdoor, which opened onto the resident’s balcony—suggests that the mother’s quick thinking may have saved lives.
