CHICKASHA, Okla., Jan. 6 (UPI) -- A young mother who shot a man trying to break into her house says she fears for her safety now that his alleged partner has been freed on bail.
Sarah McKinley, 18, of Blanchard, Okla., told KWTV, Oklahoma City, she hoped Dustin Stewart would remain in jail. She said she is "ready, waiting and watching" and plans to carry a gun with her everywhere.
Stewart, 29, has been charged because he allegedly participated in a felony that caused another person's death. He posted $50,000 bail at a hearing Thursday and was ordered to stay away from McKinley, to wear a GPS monitor and to remain at his parents' farm in Blanchard.
Justin Martin, who police said had a knife, and Stewart were allegedly looking for prescription drugs Saturday at McKinley's trailer. Some reports have said they believed she would have painkillers because her husband had died a few days earlier of cancer.
McKinley, on the phone with a 911 dispatcher, asked if she could shoot an intruder.
"You have to make a choice, you or him. I chose my son over him," McKinley told KWTV..
Prosecutors say McKinley will not face criminal charges because she acted in self-defense. She said she knows she did what she had to do but still replays the shooting in her mind.
"It's a help when people say I did the right thing," McKinley said. "Of course, you question it, and you wonder if you could have done something different."
