Gainesville woman charged with pointing gun at man

Staff report

Updated on September 14 with criminal history and on September 18 with bail information.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Courtney Rae McGowan, 31, was arrested yesterday for allegedly battering her husband in August and then pointing a gun at him during the following week.

A Gainesville Police Department officer reported that on August 29, McGowan got into an argument with her husband, and when he stepped outside, she locked him out because he hadn’t said “please” for something. He said McGowan eventually came outside and stood over him, and he was uncomfortable because he thought she was going to hit him; he said she had been physically abusive to him for about six months.

The victim said he stood up and moved to the other side of a table, and McGowan said, “The table isn’t going to stop me” and “I’ll jump over the table.”

The victim said McGowan moved toward him and started hitting, kicking, and biting him; the officer noted that the victim had visible cuts and bite marks.

The victim told the officer that sometime in the next week, during another argument, McGowan picked up a gun and pointed it at herself. When the victim pleaded with her to not shoot herself, he said, she pointed the gun at him and said, “Say the right [expletive],” implying that she would shoot him if he didn’t give her a reason not to. He said she eventually put the gun down.

The victim reportedly flagged down an officer in the middle of the street last night, and McGowan reportedly pulled into a nearby parking lot at the same time.

Post Miranda, McGowan reportedly said she owns a firearm and admitted that she and the victim argue and yell at each other, but weapons are never involved; she said she had a gun in the car with her.

When McGowan was asked why the victim was scared and was trying to leave, she reportedly said “everyone” can go to the house, and he knows he can go there. She said the argument started because she wanted him to come home on time that day to get things done around the house, and when he came home late, they argued; she said they have said “horrible things” to each other in the past.

The officer reported that McGowan was “evasive” about what had happened between them, and when she was asked about biting the victim or displaying a gun, she reportedly said she wanted a lawyer.

McGowan has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and domestic battery. She has one felony conviction (non-violent) and two misdemeanor convictions (non-violent); Judge Mitchell Bishop ordered her held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold her without bail until trial; however, the motion was later withdrawn, and Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $125,000 and ordered a mental health evaluation.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.