Nassau County

‘She had a good heart,’ family remembers Nassau County grandmother killed by deputy

HILLARD, Fla. —

Family of the grandmother killed by a Nassau County Sheriff’s Office deputy Tuesday said she was battling mental illness.

Family identified Crystal McClinton as the woman killed during the SWAT standoff at a home on Ruby Drive.

The sheriff’s office said McClinton, who was upset over a custody issue, made threats against herself and pointed an AR-15 rifle at deputies several times before she was shot.

The deputy who fired the fatal gunshot was in a wooded area on the property. The sheriff’s office said McClinton pointed the rifle at that deputy and he fired out of fear of his life.

Chance McClinton said his mother was standing in the door frame leading to the porch when she was shot, which he said was dozens of feet away from the wood line.

“She probably didn’t see him there and never even knew he was there,” Chance McClinton said.

Chance McClinton said he spoke with his mother on the phone shortly before she died.

“She called me at 4:39 p.m., which was right there in the area when it came to an end,” Chance McClinton said.

He said his mother told him deputies had her house surrounded. “[She said] they’re probably going to kill me.”

Chance McClinton said he tried to convince his mother to surrender.

“She told me she loved me and hung up,” Chance McClinton said. “I tried calling her back and she didn’t answer.”

He said a few minutes later he got a call from his dad that his mother was gone.

Chessie McClinton said the sheriff’s office has dealt with her mother before. “She’s been battling with mental illness for a while,” Chessie McClinton said.

She said she spoke with her mother earlier that day and could tell she was down. “She wasn’t really having a good day,” Chessie McClinton said. “She kind of seemed sad.”

The children said their mother was upset over a custody issue.

Chance McClinton said his mother may have put herself in a dangerous situation, but he said she didn’t deserve to die. “I believe she deserves some justice.”

They said their mother wouldn’t hurt anybody. “I feel like she was ... scared I’m sure with all those guns being pointed at her.”

Despite how McClinton died, the family wants her to be remembered for the good things. “Everybody loved my momma,” Chance McClinton said. “She was a firecracker sometimes. She loved everyone. She had a good heart. She loved us and I know that she’ll be with us.”

There’s no body camera video of the shooting because the agency doesn’t have the technology.

The family said they hope their mother’s death sparks change within the department to implement a body camera program.