A Missouri woman was prepared when three men attempted to burst into her home in the Kansas City area. She fired three shots, hitting one of the men in the chest. The men fired two shots back, but the woman was not injured.

After having been robbed a few years ago, Shirley and her husband Oscar Roberts were prepared this time. “The way times are now, people kick in on you anytime,” Oscar said. “You’ve got to protect yourself. If your life is threatened, you’ve got to retaliate.”

Kansas City police told KCTV5 that shortly after the woman called 911 that officers were dispatched three miles north to a home at 87th Street and Blue Ridge Boulevard. The caller said her brother had been shot, possibly in the chest.

After the man was rushed to the hospital, police connected the man’s gunshots to the attempted home invasion. All three men were arrested at the hospital.

During the investigation, police used a stun gun on someone who had created a disturbance at the scene.

Oscar Roberts said the suspects jiggled both the front and back doors. He said his wife saw one of the men put on blue rubber gloves, and she refused to open the door.

As one of crooks raised his foot to kick in the door, Shirley Roberts fired a single shot from her .38-caliber handgun.

One of the suspect’s bullets pierced the home, but did not strike Shirley Roberts.

Authorities said the woman did the right thing. “If you are in fear for your life, most definitely we want you to protect yourself so obviously she thought she was in fear for her life so she responded,” Kansas City police Sgt. Marisa Barnes said. “I would consider her very lucky.”