An 85-year-old Idaho woman reportedly killed a home intruder last month in a shooting that authorities ruled was justified.
On March 13, Derek Condon, 39, allegedly broke into Christine Jenneiahn’s Bingham County home, handcuffed her to a chair, and assaulted her. Jenneiahn’s adult disabled son was home at the time of the incident, according to East Idaho News.
Jenneiahn reportedly woke up to Condon — dressed in a ski mask and military jacket — pointing a gun and flashlight at her. Condon allegedly took Jenneiahn to the living room, where he handcuffed her to a wooden chair and put a gun to her head while demanding valuables.
East Idaho News reported that Condon became angry upon learning that Jenneiahn’s son was also in the home. While Condon was downstairs, Jenneiahn reportedly dragged herself and the chair she was cuffed to her bedroom — where she recovered her revolver from under a pillow. Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley said Jenneiahn then returned to the living room and stashed her revolver in between an armrest and couch cushion before Condon returned.
Officials told East Idaho News that Jenneiahn landed two shots, wounding Condon in the chest. Condon reportedly returned fire, striking Jenneiahn in the stomach, leg, arm, and chest.
Condon reportedly died in the kitchen. Jenneiahn remained wounded in the home for 10 hours until her son came upstairs and gave her a phone to call the police.
Condon and Jenneiahn were known to one another. Authorities believe he forced entry into the home through a back door that was near a broken window.
Jenneiah is expected to survive, according to the Idaho State Journal. Prosecutors ruled Condon’s shooting death as self-defense and a justifiable homicide.
Bingham County Sheriff Jeff Gardner said, “She is definitely a hero. I think this comes from the choice she made a long time ago that she’s going to have firearms to protect herself if that day were to ever come. Well, at 85 years old she had the fortitude to protect herself and her son and did what she thought she had to do.”
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast.
[Feature Photo: Derek Condon/Bingham County Sheriff’s Office]
