Police in Camden, South Carolina say an armed citizen and concealed carry holder shot a man who broke into his ex-girlfriend’s home, ignoring an order of protection that prohibited him from contact with his former romantic interest.

The incident spanned several hours early Friday morning when the woman contacted police to let her know that her ex-boyfriend, Qurbitt Lewis Jones, was at her home and trying to break in. By the time police arrived a few minutes later, Jones had already left, and while deputies searched the nearby area for him, he was nowhere to be found.

Unfortunately, not long after the police left, Jones showed up at the woman’s house again, and this time successfully gained entry. Thankfully, the woman’s current boyfriend was in the home, was armed, and acted to defend his girlfriend, her children, and herself.

The man fired shots inside the home, striking Jones, who then fled the home and was apprehended by police a short time later. Jones was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries and now faces additional legal problems in addition to the injuries he received.

Jones faces charges of burglary, first degree and violation of an order of protection.

At this time, the current boyfriend, who has a valid concealed weapon permit, will not be charged with anything relating to this incident, police confirmed.

Officials believe the state’s Stand Your Ground law will protect the woman’s current boyfriend.

In court Monday, a judge denied Jones’ bond, keeping him in custody.

The fact that the boyfriend is a concealed carry holder is irrelevant to the story, given the fact that this defensive gun use took place inside a private residence. And the state’s Stand Your Ground law doesn’t really apply either since that primarily involves acting in self-defense in public without having a duty to retreat. Instead, the castle doctrine is much more applicable in this case, though both Stand Your Ground and castle doctrine laws are closely related.

The truly important thing here is that none of the intended victims were harmed by Jones, and not because of any restraining order. Unfortunately, for those intent on doing harm, a protective order is just a piece of paper, not a suit of armor worn by the victim. If someone wants to violate that protective order, they may face some sort of criminal penalty after the fact, but only if they get caught.

By all means, if you’re faced with a situation where you need to take out an order of protection, do so. But please realize that it is a legal document, not a self-defense tool. I’m glad there was a good guy with a gun who was able to defend his girlfriend, because the piece of paper telling Qurbitt Jones to stay away clearly didn’t have the same impact than an armed citizen did.