When a home intruder handcuffed an 85-year-old Idaho woman, he likely thought he had the upper hand. However, she was about to show him how wrong he was to underestimate her will to live.
When 39-year-old Derek Ephriam Condon chose to commit a home invasion in rural Idaho, he likely thought his 85-year-old victim would be no match for him. Unfortunately for Condon, he was about to learn that he was dead wrong and had grossly underestimated Christine Jenneiahn’s will to live when she came face to face with the violent home intruder.
Wearing a military jacket and a black ski mask, Condon parked a mile from the elderly woman’s home at about 2 a.m. After making his way to the house, he entered the home through a window with a screwdriver, according to Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley. Condon is then believed to have awakened Christine Jenneiahn by bashing her in the head with his gun, The Blaze reported.
After striking the woman in the head, Condon dragged Jenneiahn into her living room and handcuffed her to a wooden chair. Although he likely thought he rendered his victim powerless, he was about to learn otherwise. After demanding that Jenneiahn tell him where her valuables were located, Condon grew angry when the elderly woman explained that she didn’t have much. When he put his gun to her head, she told him there were two safes downstairs.
Leaving Jenneiahn handcuffed in the living room, Condon went to search for the safes and discovered that Jenneiahn wasn’t home alone. Instead, her disabled son was also in the home. This caused Condon to grow even angrier with Jenneiahn for not telling him about her son. With Condon’s temper flaring, Jenneiahn grew increasingly concerned for her and her son’s safety and decided to take a chance.
When Condon left Jenneiahn alone again, she dragged the chair she was handcuffed to into her bedroom and over to her pillow, where she retrieved a .357 Magnum revolver. She returned to the living room and hid the gun as she waited to see what the home intruder would do next. When Condon threatened to kill her as he burglarized her home, Jenneiahn decided it was “now or never” and fired her weapon at Condon, striking him twice.
Unfortunately, Condon was able to fire back, hitting Jenneiahn in the leg, arm, chest, and abdomen with a 9mm handgun and causing her to fall to the floor. After striking the elderly woman numerous times, Condon made his way to the kitchen, but he wasn’t going to get far. Instead, he fell over dead, thanks to the gunshot wounds Jenneiahn had inflicted. Meanwhile, the elderly woman was still handcuffed to the chair and would remain on the floor for 10 hours before her disabled adult son was able to bring her a phone so she could call the police.
Officers with the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office responded to the call just after noon, according to East Idaho News. When they arrived at the home, they found 39-year-old Derek Ephriam Condon deceased. Christine Jenneiahn was also injured, but unlike the home intruder, she was still alive. She was given life-saving treatment and taken to the hospital.
Police found Condon’s car with footprints leading to the house. They also discovered a broken window and a set of lockpicks on Condon’s body, as well as a bag containing some of the woman’s possessions and a handcuff key. In addition, police found blood on Jenneiahn’s pillow, substantiating the belief that she was awakened by a blow to her head. After a review of the evidence, the incident was determined to be a “justifiable homicide,” and the 85-year-old woman was hailed as a hero for her brave actions during the home invasion.
After being threatened, hit, handcuffed to a chair, and shot multiple times, Jenneiahn’s actions were described as “one of the most heroic acts of self-preservation” Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley had ever seen. “Her grit, determination, and will to live appear to be what saved her that night,” Jolley explained. “Christine was justified in taking any and all means necessary to defend herself and her son that night,” he added, and we couldn’t agree more.
Thankfully, Idaho law was on Christine Jenneiahn’s side, and the evidence painted a clear picture of self-defense. As Prosecutor Jolley said, “Any reasonable person would believe it necessary to defend themselves or their disabled child under such circumstances.” We are just grateful that the elderly woman had chosen to exercise her Second Amendment right, which allowed her to neutralize the threat rather than being rendered powerless and at the mercy of a violent criminal — or this story could have had a much different ending.