A Pennsylvania man has been found guilty of trying to murder his ex-wife after prosecutors say he broke into her home, attacked her while she slept and shot her five times as she fought desperately to stay alive.
Darrell Long, 63, was convicted Sept. 22 of attempted first-degree murder, burglary, two counts of aggravated assault and harassment following a two-day trial in Lebanon County.
The attack happened March 25, 2025, inside the North Lebanon Township home of his ex-wife, Dawn Long.
Prosecutors said Dawn had fallen asleep on her living room couch when she woke to find her ex-husband standing over her with a loaded .22-caliber firearm.
What followed was a brutal struggle.
According to testimony, Long struck Dawn in the face with the gun before shooting her twice in the left leg.
One bullet went through her knee. Another struck higher in her thigh.
Dawn fought back.
She kicked him away, managed to get to her feet and tried to grab the gun as Long allegedly pointed it toward her face.
That move may have saved her life.
The next shot struck her left hand instead of her head, badly damaging her index finger.
But the attack continued.
At one point, the gun jammed.
Prosecutors said Dawn saw Long struggling with the weapon and rushed him in another desperate attempt to take it away.
He then shot her again, this time in the right arm.
By then, Dawn had been shot in three limbs and was losing strength.
She testified that she began dragging herself across the floor toward her bedroom because she believed Long was going to kill her.
Before she could get inside, he shot her for a fifth time in the right leg.
Dawn finally made it into the bedroom and barricaded the door.
Bleeding heavily and unable to move normally, she used her Apple Watch to make an emergency 911 call.
Long fled before police arrived.
Prosecutors said he locked the exterior door behind him, making it harder for rescuers to reach Dawn.
She eventually had to struggle toward the entrance to let emergency crews inside.
Dawn was rushed to Penn State Health Hershey Medical Center and underwent multiple surgeries.
Doctors testified that some of the damage to her left hand will be permanent, and she still has a bullet lodged in her leg.
Prosecutors argued the attack had been building for weeks.
Dawn had filed for divorce in 2023 and later sought child support.
The district attorney said that child-support filing appeared to be a major trigger for Long.
In the month before the shooting, he allegedly sent repeated hostile messages to the couple’s son about Dawn because she had blocked him.
One message sent 17 days before the attack allegedly warned that he had a clear line of sight into the home and suggested their son could lose both parents.
After the shooting, Long turned himself in to police within about two hours.
Authorities said he admitted shooting Dawn and told investigators he wanted to “make her suffer as he has suffered.”
He also allegedly said he intentionally shot her in the knee so she would feel pain whenever she walked.
The jury also heard recordings of Long speaking from jail.
Prosecutors said he showed little remorse and at times appeared proud of what he had done.
According to District Attorney Pier Hess Graf, Long made comments suggesting women needed to be “taught a lesson” and portrayed himself as a hero for the attack.
His defense attorney did not dispute that Long shot Dawn.
Instead, the defense argued that he intended to hurt her, not kill her.
The jury rejected that argument and returned guilty verdicts on all five counts after about an hour of deliberations.
Long is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 9.
