Eric Dillard testifies he shot man in self-defense

LISBON — Eric Dillard, on trial for murder, testified he was holding his pistol with both hands while Jamie A. Farley kept coming closer to his home.

“Thump, thump,” Dillard said, “Two shots went off.”

Dillard, 31, of 906 Commerce St., Wellsville, said today that Farley, 35, of East Liverpool, “ran toward a red Cavalier.”

The red car was driven by Farley’s girlfriend, Shirley Hackney. In the car was Hackney’s mother, Andrea, and Hackney’s 9-year-old son and 15-month-old daughter.

“A woman yelled, ‘We’ll be back,’” Dillard testified in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court. He added he was not sure who yelled.

But no one came back.

Dillard could get 15 years to life in prison if convicted of the murder charge, and up to another three years because that charge carries a gun specification.

He also is charged with illegal possession of a weapon because of a previous drug conviction.

Dillard claims he shot Farley in self-defense, saying Farley approached him with his arm behind his back.

For the complete story, see Wednesday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com