Tulsa Mom, Children Survive Brush With Burglars

By Lori Fullbright, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- A Tulsa woman and her two children survived a brush with shotgun-wielding burglars over the weekend.

Tulsa Police arrested two of the three teenage suspects and are looking for the third.

The young mother, Christina, says she was saved by faith.  She feels God protected her and her children.  She has already forgiven the suspects.

In fact, the only time she cried during an interview with The News On 6, was when talking about the future those suspects now face in prison.

Christina's husband was at work and she was asleep in her bedroom with her two children, 10-month-old Levi and 4-year-old Job, when she heard a noise in her driveway.  She peeked outside and saw a man with a bandana over his face and one with a shotgun.

She grabbed the baby and got in her closet.  The men broke in and screamed for anyone there to come out, but she stayed put.  

"I grabbed the phone and called 911 and tried to be as quiet as I could. If I could hear them, they could hear me and I was so scared they'd hear me or see me moving or my shadow," said Christina.

Because her cordless phone kept cutting out, dispatchers gave police an address several houses away, but Christina is thankful they didn't show up and confront the suspects, because she's afraid a police officer might've been shot.

The suspects dumped Christina's TV and PlayStation behind a house and as they were running away, accidentally discharged their shotgun, which led officers right to them.

Andre King and Marcus Brice, both 16-years-old, were arrested on complaints of first degree burglary.  They are being treated as adults.    

8/16/2009  Related Story: Tulsa Family Hides In Closet As Thieves Break Into Home

Christina says she used to think nothing like this would happen to her family.

"We're God fearing people and God says he'll protect you, so I immediately assumed nothing was going to happen to me. But, a scripture my neighbor pointed out says no weapon used against you will prosper. So, it doesn't say no weapon will be used against you, it will, but it won't prosper," said Christina.

Job, an outgoing, smart 4-year-old, slept through the whole ordeal. He talks about protecting his house from bad guys with his water gun, but otherwise seems unfazed. His parents want him to know the burglars weren't bad people, they just did something bad.

"They're 16 and could be tried as adults and that's a big deal, it's a big chunk of their life gone. Once they come out of there, you don't leave prison the same. They think that does good because we don't know what to do with them, but it just gets them around bad people, you know. It's just sad, because a lot of their life is going to be wasted," said Christina,

Christina and her husband told The News On 6 they want to write the suspects letters of forgiveness and even put money on their jail accounts, because they want them to have hope and know God can turn even this into something good.