.jpg)
An Ely man faces nine months in jail after pleading guilty to two felonies in connection with a house fire and a subsequent high speed chase more than a year ago.
Jason Gillson, 50, reached a plea bargain with county prosecutors and was sentenced on Jan. 6, according to court records.
Gillson was convicted on felony charges of fourth-degree assault on a peace officer and second-degree arson.
Four other charges, including three felonies and a misdemeanor, were dismissed in connection with the Sept. 13, 2023 incident.
Judge Robert Friday stayed a one-year prison term and instead sentenced Gillson to 270 days in the St. Louis County Jail, beginning April 1, along with five years of supervised probation.
Other terms include an allowance that Gillson could be released or time to serve may be waived, if he completed chemical dependency programming and any other programming as well as an updated diagnostic assessment.
Probation terms include no use of mood-altering chemicals, no entry into bars or liquor stores and no possession of firearms or dangerous weapons.
Gillson was also fined $1,090.
Gillson was apprehended and tased by an officer near County Road 904, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Ely Police Department with county authorities.
The criminal complaint also sheds more light on the circumstances that led to the high-speed chase, which reached speeds of 90 miles per hour, and the arrest.
Just after 10 a.m., Ely police were dispatched to Gillson’s home at 45 East Boundary Street and a report that Gillson was screaming at his girlfriend. En route, police received another report of a woman trying to break into Gillson’s residence.
When officers arrived, they encountered Gillson’s girlfriend, sitting on the back steps with an axe and broken glass nearby.
Ely Police Chief Chad House noticed the back door was open and yelled for Gillson. While doing that, the woman said Gillson had shot her phone with a .38 two-shot Derringer.
The woman said Gillson had been drinking and angry and grabbed her by the shoulders and hair and threw her out of the house.
Police attempted to get Gillson to leave the home, but he refused and barricaded himself in a bedroom, according to the complaint.
Shortly afterward, police noticed heavy smoke coming from the back of the residence, with Gillson emerging and holding a shotgun.
Authorities say that Gillson responded to officer commands to drop the shotgun, but that he also got into his van and fled.
Officers subsequently pursued Gillson on Highway 21, and that he eventually left the van near the 7900 block of the Virginia-Ely Road, opening the door and jumping into the ditch.
Gillson later emerged from the woods and was spotted by an officer, who was aware that Gillson likely had a pistol in his holster.
According to the complaint, Gillson did not listen to officer commands and a taser was deployed, dropping him to the ground.
Upon being placed in handcuffs, officers located a black and silver revolver in Gillson’s left hand. Officers collected the Derringer .38 Special and two rounds of ammunition.
While en route to jail, Gillson wrapped a seatbelt around his neck and as officers assisted to properly restrain him, he allegedly spit on an Ely officer.
At Gillson’s residence, police noticed charring on the basement ceiling and a bullet hole in a mattress, where the woman said he shot her phone. On the bed was also a rifle, and next to the gun was a green box that contained a taser. There were also several bullet cartridges on a shelf near the bed.
