Jason McClellan, 44. He looks tired. (Photo: Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office)
A simple choice “either him or me” was what prompted 70-year-old Ronald Dykes of Sullivan County, Tennessee, to open fire on a home invader, later identified as 44-year-old Jason McClellan.
“I thought, ‘He’s either gonna rob me or hurt me — I better do something,” Dykes told the Times-News. “It scared me bad. It took me a long time to calm down and quit shaking.”
At around 2 a.m. Sunday night McClellan was casing Dykes residence, looking for a way inside. McClellan shined a light inside Dykes’s bedroom before he decided to break in.
“He was checking to see if I was asleep,” recalled Dykes. “I thought, ‘Yep, I know what you’re up to.” He turned sideways, like a judo guy, and bam: half of his body was in (the window). That’s when I shot him.”
McClellan immediately fled the scene, jumped into a car and drove to a nearby hospital. He was later arrested, marking the fourth time in the past seven months he has had a run in with the Kingsport Police Department.
Meanwhile, the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office commended Dykes for defending his castle, while also saying that the matter is “pretty well settled” and Dykes will not face charges.
“The victim had every reason to believe he was in danger of being harmed and, as a result, made the decision to fire shots at the suspect in an effort to protect himself,” said SCSO Public Information Officer Leslie Earhart.
Too bad the habitual criminal lived.