TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)– It started out as a normal Saturday night for Ronald May.
He had just gone to the casino in Terre Haute, and was pulling into his driveway when he noticed a red truck behind him.
He got out of his car and looked at the man, later identified as Dustin Roecker of Bloomington– before suddenly, Roecker began to speed right at him.
“He just looked at me, then all of a sudden, he let out this battle cry yell and just floored the gas,” May said.
May sat down for an interview Tuesday, less than 72 hours after the attack. Thousands have now seen the shocking video, caught by a Ring camera on his garage, of when the incident occurred.
May broke down what happened from his perspective.
“The only choice I had was to try and jump up over the vehicle. I took a step back and stepped on the seal of my door, and I used that as leverage to get higher, absorbed the hit from the truck and landed on the hood,” he said. “As I was going through the air, I was definitely reaching for my pistol that was in my pocket.”
Despite breaking two bones in his lower leg, May fired off several shots into the truck to protect himself.
“I had no idea if he was still coming at me or what’s going on,” May said. “I can tell you this is the first time I ever used my pistol and the only reason I did that is because I had no other choice to do what I did.”
There would be no further altercation. Roecker ran from the scene naked and ended up stealing a nearby vehicle and initiating a pursuit with Indiana State Police. He was later caught, and airlifted to a hospital for gunshot wounds while May and the female passenger in his car were taken to a local hospital for treatment.
It wasn’t until later May watched the footage of the incident, which he called a surreal experience.
“Watching the video, like you said, it’s nothing you would expect in real life. This only happens in the movies,” he said. “You just don’t believe it.”
His focus is now on his recovery– which will take months– but May said he is thankful for the support he has around him in his home and around the community.
“A lot of people have reached out with support, it’s been almost overwhelming at times for sure. Been getting a lot of requests and friendships,everyone’s been trying to reach out. Just trying to get around the house has been a chore, I’m not used to that,” he said.
Most importantly, he’s happy that it wasn’t any worse on Saturday.
“Very grateful to be alive because I know that could’ve turned out so much worse,” May said. “I’m thankful I still exercise and I had the strength to jump, and that I had the reflexes to do what I did or it could’ve been so much worse.”
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