UNIVERSITY PLACE, Washington- Jane Milhans said she still sometimes sleeps with the lights on, more than 15 years after two men broke into her house while she was home.
But she remembers being remarkably calm as the event unfolded.
“It was like the adrenaline was taking over, and I just took control of the situation,” Milhans said.
Jane Milhans devotes 100 hours a year to teaching other women how to handle pistols and rifles safely. She says having a gun helped her feel more in control when two men broke into her house. (Hannah Ray Lambert/Fox News Digital)
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She remembers yelling at the two burglars she found in her kitchen. One suspect ran out the sliding glass door, but the other froze and listened to all his commands until police showed up about 15 minutes later, Milhans said.
She feels lucky not to have had to draw the gun her parents bought her for her 21st birthday, but her presence has reassured her.
“It gave me the confidence to know that if they got close to me, I could protect myself,” she said.
Today, the Tacoma-area firearms instructor dedicates 100 hours a year to teaching other women firearms safety and shooting skills through free or discounted classes. . Business has boomed as more and more women buy guns.
“People kept asking me, can you please show me how to shoot so I can protect myself?” Milhans told Fox News during a recent practice session. “From this home invasion, good has come out of it.”
Jane Milhans teaches a range gun safety course at University Place, Washington. (Hannah Ray Lambert/Fox News Digital)
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The idea of owning firearms for self-defense has a lot of critics.
A Harvard University analysis found that people defended themselves with a gun in less than 1% of crimes from 2007 to 2011.
More recently, a Stanford University study of 17.6 million Californians found that people who lived with handgun owners but did not own one themselves died by homicide more than two times more often than their unarmed neighbours.
The difference was fueled primarily by home homicides, particularly those in which a victim was shot by a spouse or intimate partner, according to research published last year. Women accounted for 84% of these victims.
“That’s because most of the people who live with gun owners and don’t own guns themselves are women,” wrote David Studdert, one of the lead authors of the study, in an editorial in Time magazine.
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Milhans often found herself testifying on the opposite side of shooting survivors and family members of crime victims. Several years ago, survivors of the Las Vegas concert massacre gave emotional testimony in support of gun control measures in Washington.
“I stand before you as a survivor of a crime today,” Milhans said in response. “I don’t want to be a crime stat. I want to be able to protect myself.”
She’s not alone: 5% more women say they own a firearm today than when she gave this testimony, according to Gallup. Gun ownership by women is at its highest level – 22% overall – since Gallup started tracking the numbers in 2007.
Many women cite increased crime as a reason to arm themselves. One of Milhans’ students decided to take the class after coming face to face with two suspects lurking in her driveway.
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“What can I do [against] two men?” Lisa Olson said. “Being a woman and not as strong, we need something a little stronger to protect us.”
Milhans said she wanted to help as many women as possible become more comfortable and proficient with firearms.
“We are easy targets,” she said. “But at least one gun levels the fight between us and our attackers.”
