A Florida mother did what any parent hopes they never have to do. She armed herself inside her own home and fired one shot at a man deputies say entered uninvited, threatened her and her children, and refused repeated orders to leave.

According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the incident happened around 1:50 p.m. Sunday at a home on Big Bear Lane in Palm Coast. The homeowner, identified by Fox 35 Orlando as Courtney Price, called 911 and reported that she had shot a man who had entered her residence.

When deputies arrived, they found blood evidence at the scene, but the man and his vehicle were already gone. Investigators later identified the suspect as Michael McDonald, 33, of Palm Coast.

Deputies say McDonald was known to the homeowner, but arrived uninvited and unexpected. According to the sheriff’s office, McDonald lifted open the garage door, left the garage, banged on a back window, and then entered the home through the front door. Once inside, deputies say he aggressively confronted the mother and her two children in the foyer and made threats.

Deputies say she repeatedly ordered McDonald to leave and warned him that she would shoot. When he continued advancing toward her, she fired one round, striking him in the arm.

McDonald then fled in a silver Kia SUV. Deputies later found the vehicle at a hospital, where they conducted a felony stop and detained him. He was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The homeowner and her two children were not injured.

Fox 35 reported that Price said the incident unfolded quickly after McDonald entered the home and began demanding money. “I did what I had to do to protect my children and myself,” she told the station. She also said she was not trying to kill anyone, but was trying to get him out so that she and her children were safe in her own house. Price also told Fox 35 that it was her first time using the firearm.

That is the reality of armed self-defense. It is not a talking point. It is a mother with children behind her, an aggressive, threatening man allegedly advancing toward her, and only seconds to decide whether she and her family will be victims. The necessity for armed self-defense also comes when you might least expect it, even inside your own home. Price was able to arm and defend herself. Hopefully, in the future, she will go to the range and train with her firearm.

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly did not mince words. “Florida is a stand your ground state and when someone invades your home and threatens you and your family, they will likely be shot,” Staly said in the sheriff’s release. “I strongly support the 2nd Amendment, and this is proof why we have the stand your ground law.”

The woman was inside her own home, the man was uninvited, refused to leave, acted aggressively, and advanced toward her and her children even after she warned him she would shoot. She had a right to defend herself.

McDonald was arrested for burglary with assault and transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where deputies said he was being held without bond pending arraignment. The sheriff’s office said McDonald has a criminal history that includes arrests for grand theft, possession of controlled substances, resisting, obstruction, possession with intent to sell, DUI, and robbery with a firearm.

The investigation remains active and ongoing, and McDonald is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Police can respond quickly, and in this case deputies did. But when a violent encounter is unfolding inside a home, seconds matter. A mother in Palm Coast had those seconds, had a firearm, and had the will to protect her children.

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About Duncan Johnson:

Duncan Johnson is a lifelong firearms enthusiast and unwavering defender of the Second Amendment—where “shall not be infringed” means exactly what it says. A graduate of George Mason University, he enjoys competing in local USPSA and multi-gun competitions whenever he’s not covering the latest in gun rights and firearm policy. Duncan is a regular contributor to AmmoLand News and serves as part of the editorial team responsible for AmmoLand’s daily gun-rights reporting and industry coverage.