Authorities say a woman used pepper spray to defend herself against a man who allegedly attacked her outside her Salisbury home.

At around 12:23 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, Salisbury police officers responded to the 700 block of Roger Street where they met with a woman who stated she had been attacked from behind in her driveway by a male suspect wearing a black hooded jacket and blue jeans. According to police, the victim stated that she sprayed her attacker with pepper spray that she keeps for personal defense.

Investigators said the information the victim provided was relayed to responding units and officers and K-9 “Miso” searched the neighborhood. According to police, a suspect was located on the 300 block of Prince Street, a short distance from where the assault is allegedly occurred.

Police said the suspect, later identified as 19-year-old Brian Stewart Harcum Jr. of Salisbury, was wearing clothing matching the description of the woman’s attacker. Police also noted that Harcum had tears in his eyes and mucus coming from his nose, which is indicative of the effects of pepper spray.

Harcum was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree assault, second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. He is being held in the Wicomico County Detention Center in lieu of $25,000 bond.

The victim was not injured in the assault, police said.

Good for this woman taking the responsibility to defend herself and not depending on others, including police.

A French Valley (California) father charged with tying up and using a stun gun on a man who sent an explicit photo to his 17-year-old daughter struck a plea deal Wednesday, according to the Riverside County district attorney’s office.

William Frederick Atwood, 46, pleaded guilty to one count of false imprisonment and another of assault with a firearm, office spokesman John Hall said. Atwood had been charged with multiple counts, including felony assault and making criminal threats.

Atwood faces three years probation and 128 days of weekends in the custody of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, Hall said. Those in the weekend custody program typically spend time in jail, on work detail or are placed under home monitoring.

William Atwood, left, pleaded guilty to binding and using a stun gun on a man who sent an explicit photo to his teenage daughter.

In exchange for the guilty pleas, most of the charges were dropped. If Atwood completes his probation with no problems, he could seek to have his felony convictions reduced to misdemeanors, Hall said.

Authorities said Atwood lured Justin Moore, of Temecula, to his home on Jan. 10 last year after Moore sent Atwood’s daughter a picture of his genitals.

In court, Moore testified that when he went to Atwood’s home, he expected to discuss the photo and maybe have dinner. Instead, authorities said Atwood fired a shotgun blast over Moore’s car and ordered Moore to strip to his boxers.

Atwood then bound Moore with zip ties and shocked him on the neck with a stun gun, police said. Atwood also threatened to bury Moore on the Pechanga Indian Reservation, authorities said.

After about an hour, authorities said, Atwood turned Moore over to police, saying Moore was trespassing.

Atwood’s lawyer said his client believed Moore peered into another daughter’s window in the early morning hours within a few days of when the photo was sent. Atwood also filed a police report accusing Moore of sending pornography to a minor.

The only difference between me and Mr. Moore is that I don’t think I would be shocking him on the neck!

There’s  a serial rapist on the loose in Yoakum, TX and  Cassandra McGinty has a new sequence when she arrives home: search room to room, with a stun gun in her hand.

The rapist has been attacking older women in central Texas during the past year, terrifying residents and frustrating the police who don’t have a good description to go on.

Pepper spray has been selling like hotcakes in the towns where the attacks have occurred, and McGinty said her landlord in Marquez handed out stun guns as Christmas gifts.

Beginning with the rape of a 65-year-old woman in Yoakum in January 2009, authorities have linked eight sexual assaults or attempted sexual assaults to the suspect.

Stun guns generally have two contact points that are used to deliver the voltage to the attacker. In most stun guns, the contacts must be held in contact with the skin for at least a few seconds in order to produce a response in the attacker. Most stun guns on the market will also go through clothing and don’t have to be held against the attacker’s bare skin.

When a stun gun is used for personal defense, the owner pushes a button to start the electric current when the attacker comes too close. Stun guns can be used to shock the attacker, causing a startled reaction that can give the stun gun owner a chance to get away from the attacker before any other aggressive actions are taken. In other cases, stun guns are used to cause a more dramatic reaction to the attacker.

The severity of the reaction that a person has when shocked with a stun gun varies depending on the voltage of the device and the length of time that it’s held in contact with a person’s skin or clothing. It can also vary according to the amount of clothing that is between the stun gun and the attacker. Thicker clothing can mean a less severe reaction or one that takes much longer to be felt.

When a stun gun is activated, the current passes from the stun gun and enters the body of the attacker, affecting the person’s nervous system. The voltage then enters the muscles, causing much of the reaction that is felt. A person who receives a shock from a stun gun will have an immediate muscle reaction. This reaction causes the body’s muscles to move rapidly, resulting in a gyrating, seizure-like reaction in the attacker. The more intense the shock, the more the muscles react and the harsher the reaction of the rest of the body.

Being in contact with the stun gun’s voltage for several seconds will cause the attacker’s muscles to react violently enough to cause the body to use up its store of blood sugar. This is what causes the attacker to lose the ability to move. This involuntary lack of movement is where the name of the weapon gets its name. If the shock is more intense or lasts for a longer period of time, it can cause the assailant to lose consciousness.

A shock, a stun or a loss of consciousness will not result in any permanent bodily damage for the attacker. The effects of coming into contact with the voltage generally only last for a few minutes or less. This brief reaction time gives the stun gun owner a chance to get away from a dangerous situation and get to safety.