Johnson County man sentenced to 3 years of probation for 2019 shooting near school

A Johnson County man was sentenced Friday to 36 months of probation for a shooting near Highlands Elementary School in 2019 in which he exchanged gunfire with police officers.

Johnson County District Court Judge Neil Foth sentenced Dylan Ruffin, 28, to an underlying 48 month sentence, according to the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office. Ruffin was granted 36 months of probation which he will serve at the Johnson County Adult Residential Center.

Ruffin pleaded guilty in early May to two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and one count of discharge of a gun into an occupied dwelling, prosecutors said.

The school went on lockdown March 1, 2019, after gunshots were heard outside. Students, parents and staff were sent inside. Bullets pierced a classroom window, struck an area near the roof and damaged a van parked in the school lot, The Star reported at the time.

Ruffin also pointed a handgun at three police officers who engaged him outside the front door of his Fairway home, which was across the street from the school. Ruffin was wounded as he exchanged gunfire with the officers.

Police found bullet holes in Ruffin’s bedroom in the direction of the school, according to prosecutors. Court records alleged Ruffin was suicidal and had said he wished the officers had killed him.

The Star’s Luke Nozicka contributed to this report.