I can't open the link at work but PLEASE tell me she wasn't charged. I'll cry if she was.

I am a huge advocate of open and concealed carry, however this woman was out of line. Pulling a gun on someone who exposes themselves (but no direct threat to you or anyone else) is about the same as pulling a gun on the guy who looks at you funny in the bar.
My father, a World War II vet who saw some of the worst of the fighting in World War II, and actually had to kill another human being or two directly, taught me how to shoot.
His first rule was; never pull a gun unless you intend to use it, and never point it at anyone unless you are going to immediately pull the trigger.
Unless you are so hard core, that you actually think indecent exposure justifies the use of deadly force, this woman has a serious screw loose.

Never threaten anyone with a firearm. It is extremely counterproductive, stupid, and hysterical. Guns are not toys, and they should never be used in a casual manner to attempt to scare someone.

Expanding on what Isab said, I am a concealed carry holder and it is actually a crime to pull your gun on someone lacking imminent physical harm, especially if you don't use it. This was stressed repeatedly in the classes required to obtain the permit. Never pull your weapon unless you intend to use it, and you don't need to use it unless you are needing to defend yourself in an attack.

Brandishing is a crime in some states, and cities, not all.
My state has legal concealed carry without a permit, but my CCP is good in a number of other states.
I usually carry when I am on car trips alone. It is best to know what the laws are where ever you are planning on carrying.

@Isab: Your comment gives the impression that you think there is nothing particularly alarming about a man who confronts a woman in a park while jacking off.

It isn't the woman in this scenario who "has a serious screw loose". It's the man who confronted her with his dick in his hand who "has a serious screw loose". That's alarming behavior. He is obviously mentally ill, unpredictable and may be dangerous. He's certainly a greater threat than "a guy who looks at you funny in a bar".

A woman may not want to kill someone for pointing his dick at her, but if she is carrying a gun that would be a good time to take it out and get ready to shoot it, in case the loose screw suddenly decides to attack.

Fortunately for criminals, the vast majority of intended victims who pull a gun on them do so with the intent to use it before they actually have to use it, like the woman in this story did, and the criminal gets the opportunity to run away. Otherwise there would be a hell of a lot more dead criminals.

Ken, you are absolutely correct. I do not see a masturbating flasher as a situation that requires anyone, to pull a gun or initiate deadly force.

I am quite capable of getting ready to shoot my gun if necessary without anyone knowing that I have my hand on it. No need to take it out of my purse and wave it around like a hysterical idiot.
One of the reasons that concealed carry laws are so effective is because when you live in a state that has it, you can almost bet that one out of five to ten people you see, has a gun on them. Criminals know this and look for easier targets.

The woman could easily argued she was in imminent danger of being raped, thus justifiably pulling her gun with the intent to shoot. However, some states have decided it's illegal to point a weapon at someone or to tell them you have a gun in attempt to get them to back off. It's considered a threat and you are sometimes better off not giving them the opportunity to retreat, stupid as that may be. There was an instance here a few years ago where a man walking down the street was confronted by several men who had left a bar and were trying to pick a fight. The passerby was hit several times by the men before he drew his gun and told them he would shoot if they didn't stop. He ended up being charged with some crime or another for pulling his weapon and lost his concealed carry rights despite the fact he was trying to defend himself and deter an attack. So despite concealed carry being legal, other laws make it damn near impossible to actually make use of your gun for self defense purposes.

BunnyGirl: "So despite concealed carry being legal, other laws make it damn near impossible to actually make use of your gun for self defense purposes."

Yeah, that sucks. In that case a gun is less useful than a rock. Fortunately in this state you don't have to wait until an assailant is all over you before it's legal to defend yourself. The criterion is "imminent danger", but different jurisdictions define that in different ways.

"...you are sometimes better off not giving them the opportunity to retreat, stupid as that may be."

Every situation is different. About 15 years ago a friend of my daughter, who lived alone in a rural area, was confronted in her bedroom by a notorious creep. She'd heard him in another part of the house so she got her gun and took cover behind the bed. When he entered the bedroom and saw her she didn't speak to him, just aimed her gun at his chest, fully intending to use it. The creep never spoke either, just stood staring at her for a full minute before finally leaving. She called the police and was glad she didn't have to shoot him. He was caught a little over a year later. In the meantime he murdered two women and permanently injured two others. My daughter's friend testified at his trial. Ever since she has been sorry that she didn't kill him when she had the chance.

About 15 years ago a friend of my daughter,....

Cases like that are generally considered Castle Doctrine rather than threatening with intent. If someone is in your house, without your permission -- you can generally point and shoot or not shoot without being charged. The way some states (or judges/D.A.s) interpret it though, is that if you fire a warning shot or use a less-than-lethal round for the first shot, the second one is manslaughter or worse.

You definitely need to psychologically prepare yourself and develop the mindset that if you are going to point a gun at someone, it needs to be as you are pulling the trigger.

I think women have more hesitation then men and think in the back of their minds, that merely having the gun in your hand is enough to "scare" an intruder away. This is a very dangerous attitude, and has gotten a lot of people killed, especially when the bad guy is also armed.
I would not hesitate to blow an intruder back out the door.
My father pulled a gun once on a window peeper when I was sixteen years old. I went and looked out the back door because I saw a shadow against my window and thought it might be one of my friends. It wasnt a friend. I was scared and went and woke up my dad. The idiot was still in the yard, and was dumb enough to start walking towards my father, My father told him to stop and he finally did. My dad said, two more steps and the window peeper would have been a dead man. You don't let anyone get close enough to you to grab the gun.
The police came by and picked the guy up. They told the window peeper "Boy, did you ever pick the wrong house." My father was a gunsmith. :-)
That said, the,legal issues are not anywhere near as clear cut when you are out in public, and in parks and on the streets you can encounter some pretty bizzare behavior that is still not putting you in immediate danger, especially if they have their dick in their hand, and not a gun or a knife.
Remember, if you kill some 17 year old thug, who is unarmed but pounding your head into the pavement, you will be nitpicked and second guessed to death by the legal system.

Isab, first comment: "His first rule was; never pull a gun unless you intend to use it, and never point it at anyone unless you are going to immediately pull the trigger."

Isab, later comment: "My father pulled a gun once on a window peeper... The idiot was still in the yard, and was dumb enough to start walking towards my father, My father told him to stop and he finally did. My dad said, two more steps and the window peeper would have been a dead man."

Was your father following his own advice when he menaced the peeper with a gun and instead of immediately pulling the trigger, waited to see if the peeper would retreat? My respect to your father for his self control and sense of humanity. He was ready and willing to do what he had to do, and he did what hundreds of thousands of good Americans every year do when they threaten a bad guy with a gun but don't end up shooting him.

Isab: "Remember, if you kill some 17 year old thug, who is unarmed but pounding your head into the pavement, you will be nitpicked and second guessed to death by the legal system."

I think in the minds of "progressive", politically correct people, whether an action is viewed as right or wrong, good or evil, depends not on the nature of the action itself, but on the social and political identities of the parties involved.

It is better to be tried by twelve than carried by six. Still relevant, and despite what judges tell you, jury nullification is a defense against tyrrany.

Ken, what seperates the two incidents, is that we were in our yard,in the middle of the night. the guy was unarmed, but dumb enough to advance upon my father who was a professional with firearms, and had already used deadly force during World War II. My father was in fact quite a bit more qualified than probably 98 percent of the police on duty today.
This was also 1972, in a small town in Wyoming.

As I tried to explain, there is a huge difference between what you can do on your own property, and what I would do in a public park in a major metropolitan area in 2012,

Most people with a CCP don't shoot enough, and do not have enough experience in pressure situations, to be pulling a gun, in a public park to scare someone away, or hold them for police.

I shoot handguns, almost every day, and am quite good at it, but I still attempt to stay out of situations, where I might actually have to use one to defend myself.

The last thing I want to do is lose my right to own competitive handguns because I pulled a gun in a situation, that could be second guessed by law enforcement.