HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Shocked, roughed up ... but fighting back.

That's how a woman from Huntington says she handled an attacker Monday night. Now -- she and police hope to catch a thief.

You'll have to excuse Carol Mazurek if she sounds a little upset.

"I feel like a prisoner," Ms. Mazurek told WSAZ.com. "You have to lock your house. You have to lock your office. You have to lock your car."

For the first time in her life, Carol became a crime victim. "He came out of nowhere and touched my shoulder. I turned to the right and while I'm turning, he's grabbing the purse, but I'm hanging onto it."

It happened about 6:30 p.m. Monday near St. Mary's Medical Center in Huntington as Mazurek was walking home from work, just as she's done countless times. Despite a quick knock down, Carol answered the bell and got up fighting.

"I did get up. I tried to chase him. I did all the things you're not supposed to do when you're being assaulted like that. And I was screaming. I was screaming."

The screams alerted another woman who called Cabell County 911. Now, Mazurek hopes to face her attacker again -- this time in court.

"He doesn't have to live this way. There's another way to live. There's another choice. There are other opportunities for him. He doesn't have to throw his life away like this."

Mazurek did not get a good look at the man, other than to say he was about six feet tall with a thin build.

Anyone with information on the case -- even a potential lead -- is asked to call the Huntington Police Department Tip Line at (304) 696-4444.