85-year-old Idaho woman hailed as ‘hero’ after shooting home invasion suspect

‘Her grit, determination, and will to live appear to be what saved her that night’

Derek Condon (Bingham County Sheriff's Office/Facebook)

An 85-year-old Idaho woman is being hailed as a “hero” after fatally shooting a home-invasion suspect with a handgun she kept under her pillow.

Christine Jenneiahn was sleeping in her bedroom when a man — identified by authorities as Derek Condon — broke into her Bingham County property at around 2am local time.

Her son David Jenneiahn, who is disabled, was also at home at the time.

Authorities said Ms Jenneiahn was woken up by Condon, who was “dressed in a military jacket, black ski mask, and pointing a gun and flashlight at her,” before she was allegedly handcuffed to a chair in her living room and shot multiple times.

According to an incident review, Condon allegedly struck Ms Jenneiahn in the head as she lay in her bed, “as there was blood on the pillow and floor in her room where she had been sleeping,” and before being taken to the living room.

The incident review added that Condon left Ms Jenneiahn handcuffed in her living room while he went downstairs and searched multiple rooms in her home.

However, unknown to Condon, Ms Jenneiahn had dragged the chair she was handcuffed to back to her bedroom to retrieve her “357 magnum revolver from under her pillow” while he was downstairs in the property.

“She then went back into the living room and hid the revolver between the arm rest and cushion of a couch next to where she was seated and waited to see what Condon did next,” the review added.

Upon returning to the living room, Condon allegedly became angry with Ms Jenneiahn for not telling him her son was in the house and threatened to kill her numerous times at which point “she ultimately made the decision that it was ‘now or never’ and drew her concealed 357 magnum and engaged Condon striking him with both her shots,” the review stated.

Condon then returned fire and shot Ms Jenneiahn multiple times in her abdomen, leg, arm, and chest before he died of his wounds in the kitchen.

Ms Jenneiahn was found by her son in her living room, where she was still handcuffed, ten hours later.

Police later arrived at the scene and discovered a screwdriver next to the door where Condon entered the home along with footprints leading from the direction of his nearby car. Condon was found to be carrying a lock pick set and a bag of stolen items from the residence.

Following the incident, Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley hailed Ms Jenneiahn as a “hero,” calling her actions “one of the most heroic acts of self-preservation I have heard of,” adding, “Her grit, determination, and will to live appear to be what saved her that night.”

Ms Jenneiahn’s case, from last month, was ruled as “justifiable homicide,” the Bingham Country Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Facebook.

Based on Idaho's self-defense law, which states, "No person in this state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting himself" – similar to “stand your ground laws in other states of the US, killing was ruled justifiable.

Mr Jolley said that if Condon had survived the incident, he would have been charged with felony attempted murder, kidnapping, burglary, aggravated battery and grand theft.