A Portland Mom Came Home and Found An Intruder Inside. That Was His Last Mistake.

When 33-year-old Tara-Alexis Ford arrived at her Portland, Oregon, home with her two children in the early morning hours last Sunday, she didn’t expect to find an intruder in her daughter’s bedroom. What the intruder didn’t expect was for Ford to be armed with a handgun.

At around 1:45 a.m., Ford and her children, a son, 5, and a daughter, 10, walked in their house to find that a man named David Daniel McCrary, 59, had broken in through a back window and was in the daughter’s bedroom.

According to detectives, the children were in different room when their mom pulled out a handgun and shot and killed McCrary on the spot.

The Oregon State Medical Examiner determined that McCrary died of a single gunshot wound.

According to KGW Portland, the mother of two was not arrested and “remains cooperative with investigators.” The prosecutors have described the investigation as “routine,” while local defense attorney Edward Kroll said he would be surprised if Ford were charged, citing a homeowner’s right to defend his or her own home.

Police are still determining why McCrary, who isn’t from the area, was inside the home.

A neighbor of the family, Amber Murray, told KOIN 6 News that the home had been vacant for a period of time before the mom and kids moved in.

“I know when the previous renters were there, there was a lot of mischief,” Murray said. “After they moved out I think there were a few squatters in and out of there.”

Ford, police said, has requested privacy “and does not want any media contact” as the investigation continues.

An interview with the family’s neighbor below: