It was Sept. 26, the night Dillon, 45, of Cross Lanes, was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of solicitation, according to Kanawha County Magistrate Court documents.
Kanawha County Sheriff's Department employees were conducting a prostitution investigation in Jefferson and the neighboring communities, an area that is known as “The Badlands” because it is home to a slew of strip clubs and adult establishments.
Deputy S.D. Ferrell came in contact with Dillon during the investigation, according to an incident report filed by Detective R.A. Lane.
While speaking with the female deputy, Dillon offered Ferrell $30 to $40 for sex, according to the report. Once the offer for the sexual act was made, other department members arrested him.
“I’m guilty of what happened,” Dillon told the Coal Valley News. “You make stupid mistakes and you pay for it.”
Dillon thought his controversial arrest would destroy his pet project, a twice-a-week karate class called Danville Defensive Arts.
Although it cost him between 10 and 15 students, whose parents removed them from his class, Dillon still has about 35 students.
“Most of them decided to stay,” said Dillon, a divorced father of two. “There are a lot of good people in Madison and Boone County. They have been very forgiving and very loyal.
“From the beginning, it was very humiliating and I was very remorseful. I weathered the storm. It made me a better person.”
Dillon, a Scott High School graduate who originally is from Hewett, said the incident was a misunderstanding.
“I didn't have my pants around my ankles,” said Dillon, who claims his judgment was impaired because he drank a margarita at The Tomahawk’s Smokehouse and Saloon that night. “I just said and did something very stupid.”
Dillon defended himself in a letter he distributed to his students’ parents on Oct. 11.
"It is true," he wrote. "I was arrested for this. I was coming out of a restaurant/bar when a woman flagged me down. I asked if she was broken down. She said she was stranded from South Carolina.
“I asked if she needed help and, in response, she said she would give me oral sex for $30. I then smartallecky asked her what she would do for $40. I thought it was funny.
“She walked away. I thought nothing of it and pulled out into traffic to go home. Three Kanawha County Sheriff's (Department) deputy cars pulled me over and arrested me. I spent the night in jail, not getting out until 8:30 a.m. the next day.
“That is pretty much all there was to it. It was a lapse in judgment to say those things to the police woman. But I do not consort with hookers/prostitutes, and I am not some pimp or peddler of flesh, nor am I a sex offender or anything that implies."
A group of parents confronted Dillon in the wake of his arrest. He answered their questions and addressed their concerns.
That wasn’t good enough for some, who promptly removed their children from his class. Others, however, were satisfied.
Take Rhea Maynard, for example. She decided not to remove her granddaughter, Scott High School sophomore Breianna Maynard.
“People's private lives are their private lives,” Rhea Maynard said. “He has never done anything with any of the kids. The parents sit right there. They know nothing wrong is happening.
“Maybe he tried to pick up the woman like they said or maybe he had a drink and had a smartallek comeback for her like he said,” she added. “I don’t know, and I don’t care. That's his private life. I hold nothing against him and I trust him with my granddaughter.”
Breianna Maynard said she enjoys the class so much she gave up cheerleading to concentrate on karate.
“I had been cheering since I was 3 years old,” she said. “I gave it up after 12 years because I fell in love with this. It is so much fun. He teaches you so much.
“It builds your confidence and self esteem. There isn't a man in the house since my grandfather died, but I'm not afraid anymore. I feel safe and secure because I know I can defend myself.”
Some of the parents who removed their children from his class questioned Dillon’s credibility.
Those parents declined on-the-record interview requests, however.
“I'm not the greatest martial artist, but I can teach it,” said Dillon, who claims he has participated in karate since 1984.
“I'm not going to make any of my students a superman. I'm going to make them a better man. I’m not just teaching martial arts; I’m also teaching personal development.”
According to certificates that are displayed inside the building that houses his class, Dillon received his first black belt in 1995, through Sei-Bu-Kan, and his second black belt in 1997, through Zentokukai.
“This is my second stint as a teacher,” said Dillon, who opened Danville Defensive Arts in February. “The first time, I taught about a dozen students out of my house. That went on for a few years.”
Dillon received his Karate-Do Zentokukai Dojo Charter in 2000, through the Okinawa Shorinji-Ryu.
Dillon has the support of Kippy Robinson, who has two grandchildren enrolled at Danville Defensive Arts.
“This is a good thing for these kids,” Robinson said.
Jennie Thompson agreed.
“He is a good guy,” said Thompson, who takes the class along with her son. “He is great with the kids.”
Dillon said he offers his classes on Monday evenings (5:30 to 6 for ages 5 to 7; 6:15 to 7 for ages 8 to 12 and 7 to 8:30 for ages 13 and older) and Saturday mornings (10 to 10:30 for ages 5 to 7; 10:45 to 11:30 for ages 8 to 12 and 11:30 to 12:30 for ages 13 and older).
Classes are located at 271 Main Street, which formerly was home to Mac’s Kawasaki Cycle and Supply. Dillon said he moved the classes from the Danville Community Center in June to have more space.
Cost is $65 for all disciplines or $40 for karate only, he said.
“We can work out something moneywise,” said Dillon, who thanked Bill Cook and Lauren McNeely for their support before, during and after his arrest. “It is great to get paid for this service, but I'm not in it to get rich.
“It's more important that these people train. For some of my students, this is the only physical activity they get.”
Call Dillon at 542-0049 for more information.
Contact Managing Editor Jacob Messer at jacobmesser@coalvalleynews.com or 369-1165.
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