An 85-year-old local woman is being credited as a hero after she fatally shot a man who broke into her home while she slept, struck her in the head and then handcuffed her to a chair during a terrifying home invasion last month.

The Bingham County Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday issued a lengthy news release detailing the harrowing incident and its decision not to file any criminal charges against Christine Jenneiahn, whose actions in killing Derek Ephriam Condon, 39, of Blackfoot, at her home in the Rose area on March 13 were deemed to be justifiable.

The incident began to unfold when Jenneiahn was asleep in her home. Her disabled son David was also asleep at the home. The Bingham County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday said that David lives with significant physical disabilities.

Jenneiahn told investigators that around 2 a.m. she was woken up by an unknown man, later identified as Condon, who was dressed in a military jacket and a black ski mask while pointing a gun and a flashlight at her, the news release said.

Investigators believe there is a strong likelihood that Condon struck Jenneiahn in the head as she lay in her bed because there was blood on her pillow and the floor of her bedroom where she had been sleeping.

Jenneiahn told investigators that Condon then placed her in handcuffs and took her into the living room of her house. Jenneiahn also told investigators that Condon hit her in the head at some point during the incident but was unsure of exactly when that took place, according to the news release.

After taking Jenneiahn at gunpoint into the living room, Condon handcuffed her to a wooden chair, placed his pistol to her head and demanded that she tell him where she kept her valuables inside the home, the prosecutor’s office said.

The elderly woman finally told Condon that there were two safes in the basement of the home

“After telling Condon that there were two safes downstairs in the home, he left her handcuffed in the living room and went downstairs multiple times and rummaged through several rooms in the house,” the news release said. “At some point, he discovered that (Jenneiahn’s) son was also in the home and became angry with (her) for not telling him. He also made numerous threats to (Jenneiahn), telling her that he would kill her.”

When Condon was downstairs rummaging through her belongings, Jenneiahn drug the chair she was handcuffed to into her bedroom and retrieved the .357 Magnum revolver from under her pillow, prosecutors say.

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

Jenneiahn’s memory of exactly what occurred next remains somewhat unclear, however, she told investigators that at some point Condon came back into the living room and threatened to kill her as he continued to rummage through her home and burglarize it.

“She ultimately made the decision that it was ‘now or never,’ drew her concealed .357 Magnum and engaged Condon, striking him with both her shots,” the release states. “Condon returned fire and emptied a 9mm pistol into (Jenneiahn) striking her multiple times in her abdomen, leg, arm and chest.”

The injured Condon then went into the adjoining kitchen where he would die from his gunshot wounds, the prosecutor’s office said.

Still handcuffed, Jenneiahn fell to the floor in the living room where she remained for approximately 10 hours, the release states, adding that she was finally able to call 911 after her son came upstairs later in the morning and handed her a phone.

Deputies responded immediately at approximately 12:17 p.m. and provided lifesaving measures to Jenneiahn.

Investigators discovered a broken window in the back of the home and a screwdriver next to the door where Condon is believed to have entered Jenneiahn’s residence, the news release states. Additionally, Condon’s car was located near Jenneiahn’s home with one set of footprints leading from the car in the direction of her home.

“Condon had on his person a lock pick set, his car key, a handcuff key, and a bag containing items he had stolen from the residence,” the news release said.

Bingham County Sheriff Jeff Gardner described Jenneiahn as a hero, and commended her for the personal choice she made long ago to arm herself with a firearm as a means to protect herself and her disabled son.

“She is definitely a hero,” he said. “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.”

The Bingham County Sheriff’s Office posted a news release to its Facebook page on Wednesday explaining that the details in this case were released not to defame Condon or make a tragic situation worse for his surviving family.

“Now that we are able to release the details, we wish to make it clear that our intention is not to defame the name of the suspect involved or make a tragedy for his family worse,” the statement read “We are simply releasing the facts of the case, and explaining that there was a victim involved that displayed heroism, fortitude, and a will to live that we’d be remiss not to share. We feel fortunate to know (Jenneiahn) and wish to thank her for her example at this time. We wish her well in her recovery and look forward to finding a way to honor her at a later date.”

Gardner said that despite being struck multiple times by Condon’s gunfire, Jenneiahn is expected to survive and is doing well in her recovery.

The Bingham County Prosecutor’s Office in its news release indicated that the legal review of this situation was based on information contained in the reports, video, photographs, search warrants and witness statements and was conducted as a means of answering one question: Was Jenneiahn justified in her actions when she fatally shot Condon?

“The law in Idaho regarding self defense is clear,” the news release said. “(It states) ‘No person in this state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting himself.’ In addition, an individual acting in self defense is not required to ‘wait until he or she ascertains whether the danger is apparent or real,’ and ‘need not retreat from any place that person has a right to be.’

Quoting Idaho law, the news release also said, “A person may stand his ground and defend himself or another person by the use of all force and means which would appear to be necessary to a reasonable person in a similar situation and with similar knowledge without the benefit of hindsight.”

The prosecutor’s office ultimately determined that this case “presents an easy analysis of self-defense and justifiable homicide.”

“It also presents one of the most heroic acts of self-preservation I have heard of,” Bingham County Prosecutor Ryan Jolley said in the news release. “Condon was still in the act of his violent home invasion when (Jenneiahn) chose to engage him with deadly force. He had told (her) that he would kill her multiple times. He had broken into her home in the middle of the night, handcuffed her to a chair, and struck her with his firearm. Her disabled son was downstairs in his room. She is also 85 years old. Any reasonable person would believe it necessary to defend themselves or their disabled child under such circumstances. That (she) survived this encounter is truly incredible. Her grit, determination, and will to live appear to be what saved her that night.”

Jolley’s statement continued, “Absent a clear attempt by Condon to retreat from the residence or surrender, which based on the evidence clearly did not occur, (Jenneiahn) was justified in taking any and all means necessary to defend herself and her son that night.”

Had Condon survived, he would have been charged with multiple felonies including attempted murder, kidnapping, burglary, aggravated battery and grand theft, the news release said.