Woman and 13-year-old boy arrested in Porterville burglary

PORTERVILLE, Calif. (KFSN) -- Porterville police are commending the victim of a home invasion for protecting himself.

"My bedroom's right here, and I heard glass breaking," said home invasion victim Randy Boone. These were frightening sounds for Boone, who lives alone. "I jumped up, and there's a kid in my hallway and a woman," said Boone.

Investigators said 40-year-old Xochitl Gonzalez and her accomplice, who is only 13, broke into Boone's home. The dark and narrow hallway in the house was barely big enough for the three of them. That's when Boone says he grabbed a weapon.

"They were trying to get up onto all fours and backing toward the door, so I had to tell them a couple times, 'I will shoot you. Get down,'" said Boone. "I didn't want to hurt anybody, but at the same time I didn't want to be hurt."

Once police arrived and arrested the two suspects, they found the burglars had popped all the tires on Boone's car and shattered windows getting into his garages.

"He was smart enough to retrieve this firearm to defend himself if need be and also smart enough not to use it," said Sgt. Rick Carrillo of the Porterville Police Department.

Police arrested both suspects for burglary. The 13-year-old boy is being held without bail, and now the older suspect -- Gonzalez -- is also accused of child endangerment.