Lincoln/Pulaski County, KY (WVLT) She's a former Miss America, but now she may be more known for her gun than her tiara.

Venus Ramey won the pageant in 1944.

Now she owns a tree farm in Lincoln County, Kentucky.

WVLT Volunteer TV reporter Phil Pendleton has more on how the 82 year old queen dealt with some people who wanted to steal from her.

Venus Ramey knows it would be easy for someone to take advantage of her.

She's 82 and needs a walker to get around.

"I''m an old woman. They figure they can get away with a lot."

And last Friday, she says some people tried to get away with some of her scrap metal.

They were caught in the act, and police say Curtis Parish was the ringleader.

Ramey says, "he said if you get out of my way, we'll leave. And I said oh no you won't. And I shot 2 shots in one of their tires."

Only that wasn't enough for this former Miss America, who fired again.

"I shot one and it wouldn't go down. I thought it would go woosh and flatten but it didn't. They're not made that way, so I shot it again."

Police say stealing scrap metal is an epidemic and they arrested Curtis Parish and charged him with trespassing.

Police say he took the rap for the others involved.

Since winning the crown, Ramey spends her time selling trees and trying to protect her property from thieves.

"The first time I was robbed on the other side road about 6 or 7 years ago. I caught one man."

But now both police and Ramey say they don't think this man will try to steal from her again.

Authorities remind you to always try to call them, if there's time before you have to confront anyone.

But they say Mrs. Ramey had every right to fire the gun since they say she witnessed the men committing a crime on her property.