Advertisement Man describes accidental shooting of ex-girlfriend inside Mount Dora home T.J. Schaus not facing charges; Victim recovering Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A woman was shot Thursday afternoon in Mount Dora, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.Deputies said the shooting happened in the 30000 block of Cheval Street around 12:30 p.m. The Sheriff's Office said the woman, who had recently moved out, forced entrance into the home to collect her belongings. When she entered the master bedroom her ex-boyfriend, T.J. Schaus, shot her, investigators said.WESH 2's Matt Grant spoke with Schaus just a few hours after the shooting. Schaus said he is in shock."I'm upset it happened. I never in 10 million years thought I'd have to shoot somebody else," Schaus said. "If I knew it was her I would have never grabbed the pistol."Schaus, who served in Afghanistan, said he just broke up with his live-in girlfriend of 2 1/2 years. Deputies said she came back to his home to retrieve her belongings.Schaus said she texted and said she was coming, but he was asleep.Detectives said when she didn't hear back from Schaus she forced her way inside, breaking into his bedroom. Schaus said he thought she was an intruder and fired one shot."I rolled out of bed, grabbed my pistol that was on my night stand, said, 'Who the f-- is in my house?' Didn't get a reply so I shot her," Schaus said.It was 12:30 p.m. but Schaus said it was dark inside the room and he just saw her shadow. It was only after he heard her scream that he realized who it was."She was like, 'I'm going to die, I'm going to die.' I'm like, 'You're not going to die, lay down, be still and breathe,'" Schaus said.Schaus, who sobbed outside his home with family, said he was only acting in self-defense.Most watched: Woman gets catcalled over 100 times in disturbing video"She didn't want to reply to me when I asked who the hell is in my closet so I shot. I was protecting myself," Schaus said.Authorities said the victim was flown to Orlando Regional Medical Center for surgery following the surgery. Investigators identified the victim as Felicia Huffman Friday afternoon. Deputies said Huffman has not been able to speak with detectives due to her medical condition.She was said to be alert and Schaus said she is in stable condition.14277264