A man whose burglary of a St. Paul home was foiled by two women and a pink-handled handgun was sentenced Friday, Jan. 4, to nearly 11 years in prison.

Described by his own attorney as a “career criminal,” Marty Mark Childs has at least nine prior felony convictions, including residential burglary, theft and attempted escape.

He had been out of prison on a previous burglary sentence less than four months when he walked through an unlocked back door of a house in the 1300 block of Fremont Street on Sept. 16. It was mid-afternoon, and Rebecca Larson, 56, was in the driveway washing her car.

Her 34-year-old daughter, Melissa Hickman, was asleep inside.

Larson went in the house to get something and saw Childs in the kitchen standing next to her open purse. “What the hell are you doing in my home?” she said, according to the criminal complaint against Childs.

He held a wad of crumpled cash toward her, saying, “Here’s your money back. The cops sent me.” He tried to leave, pushing Larson’s chest to get away, but she pushed him back and locked the door.

She then yelled to her daughter, “Get your gun.”

Hickman picked up her Taurus 9 mm handgun, which had pink grips, and came into the kitchen. She saw her mother struggling with Childs. Larson forced him to the floor “where he remained at gunpoint until police arrived and arrested him,” the complaint said.

Childs told police that one of the women put her foot behind his neck and kneeled on his back when he was on the floor — pinning him down.

Childs pleaded guilty Oct. 2 to first-degree burglary. A second charge of first-degree burglary was dropped at sentencing as part of the plea deal.

The victims, who sat in court wearing pink tops, said through a statement read by a prosecutor that the incident robbed them of their sense of safety in their home.

Ramsey County District Judge Salvador Rosas gave Childs credit for 111 days served in jail and ordered him to have no contact with the victims.

Emily Gurnon can be reached at 651-228-5522. Follow her at twitter.com/emilygurnon.