An 87-year-old woman in Brunswick, Maine bravely defended herself against a teenager who had broken into her home last Wednesday night. Marjorie Perkins woke up to find a young man standing by her bed. He’d taken off his pants and shoes, leaving them near a window. The victim reports that he threatened her, saying that he was going to cut her. When she leapt out of bed, the boy began to attack.
“I thought to myself, ‘If he’s going to cut, I’m going to kick,'” she recalled, according to The Times Record.
Marjorie used a chair to block the teenager’s blows, but he still managed to punch her in the forehead. At some point, the young man abandoned the scuffle in favor of heading to the kitchen. That’s when he told her that he was starving.
“He said he was awfully hungry and hadn’t had anything to eat for quite a while,” said Marjorie. “And I said, ‘Well, here’s a box of peanut butter and honey crackers. You can have that whole box.’ I gave him two containers of Ensure and I gave him two tangerines.”
As the teenager began to eat his snack, Marjorie dialed 911. Although he got away before police could arrive at the home, he was later apprehended in the same neighborhood and transported to Long Creek Youth Development Center.
Authorities declined to reveal the young man’s identity, but Marjorie says she recognized him as someone who mowed her lawn about 10 years prior.
“I hope he gets help,” she added.
Marjorie has since had her air conditioning unit fortified, making it harder for anyone else to break into her home. However, she told NEWS CENTER Maine that there’s no use in being scared; instead, she believes it’s better to be prepared.
“Be ready to kick and pick up a chair and hit somebody with it,” she said.
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