Miami: A Florida woman is facing burglary charges after turning guns owned by her husband, who had tried to run her off the road with his car, over to the police.
A state legislator, Anna Eskamani, called on Monday for the charges to be dropped against Courtney Irby, 32, who was arrested on June 15 and spent several days in jail.
According to the Lakeland Ledger, Irby went to her husband's apartment to collect his guns after he had been jailed for hitting her vehicle with his car and trying to drive her off the road.
She was arrested instead and charged with armed burglary and grand theft, the newspaper said.
The Lakeland Ledger said Irby had sought a temporary injunction against her husband and they were in the process of getting a divorce.
Eskamani, a Democrat in the Florida House of Delegates, was among those calling on the Polk County state attorney to drop the charges.
"Ms. Irby was seeking help from the Lakeland Police Department and taking action to protect herself and her children," Eskamani said in a letter to the state attorney.
"We should be outraged by her arrest, and I am requesting that your office not prosecute her."
"Prosecuting Ms. Irby sets a scary precedent that if someone seeks help to escape abuse, they will be punished for it," the state legislator wrote.
Eskamani said she had spoken with an assistant state attorney who told her the office had not yet decided whether to pursue the case.
