Never Bring Pepper Spray to a Gunfight

Lesson learned:

A homeowner fended off an intruder who broke into his home and blasted the resident with pepper spray by retrieving his handgun and firing several shots at the intruder, police said Wednesday.

The intruder was not struck.

The incident happened at around 2:41 a.m. Monday in a home in the 2400 block of Elden Street, Costa Mesa police Lt. Tim Schennum said in a news release.

The homeowner was awakened by a noise and found the intruder in his bedroom, the release said.

The person was last seen running eastbound down the driveway of the home.

The intruder apparently fled the home without taking any valuables, police said.

Too bad the perp got away. These stories are always a lot more entertaining when there's a line about notifying the perp's next of kin.