News

Man gets prison time for threatening deputies with shotgun

Jeromy Swaringen

By Lightning Reports, Published: April 14, 2025

A 42-year-old Hendersonville man was sentenced to up to 6½ years in prison on Thursday after a jury convicted him on a charge of felony assault with a firearm on a law enforcement officer, District Attorney R. Andrew Murray announced.

Superior Court Judge William Stetzer presided over the four-day jury trial in Henderson County court and sentenced the defendant, Jeromy Swaringen, after the trial concluded.

According to the investigation and court trial records, Henderson County sheriff's deputies responded to a health and welfare check call for service to Swaringen’s Howard Gap Road residence during nighttime hours of Aug. 29, 2022.

According to a 911 call, a neighbor reported that she heard a female yelling for help, followed by a gunshot and then silence. When deputies reached the house, Swaringen came out onto the porch with a shotgun pointed at deputies, who took cover as best they could below the porch and behind the structural support beams.

Swaringen refused multiple demands by deputies to put the firearm down. At first, the defendant told officers they had no business being there and went back into the house. Deputies attempted to speak with the defendant's girlfriend, who had exited the residence with him. Within minutes, the defendant came back out on the porch, pointed the shotgun directly at Sgt. Carlos Montoya, who had moved to a cover position behind a parked vehicle, while screaming “Kill me motherf----.”

At that point, fearing for their safety, the deputies discharged multiple rounds from their weapons, striking the defendant in the shoulder. After confirming that Swaringen was down and the shotgun was not within his reach, deputies entered the porch. They administered life-saving care until EMS arrived and treated Swaringen. He was transported to the hospital with a non-life-threatening injury to his right arm.