Christopher Lindner would 'break from reality' on drugs, court documents say

Christopher Lindner was in a downward spiral of drug and alcohol abuse in the years ahead of a fatal police shooting, occasionally having moments when his wife said he would “break from reality,” according to court documents obtained by The Enquirer. The progression to Lindner threatening construction workers with a knife, leading police on a chase and being shot at one of his family’s homes in Adams County on Nov. 14 began more than half a decade earlier, the documents show. Lindner was the 40-year-old son of Carl Lindner III and a member of the Lindner family, one of Ohio's wealthiest families and one of Cincinnati's most well-known. The Lindner family expanded its small dairy business into the United Dairy Farmers chain of ice cream-selling convenience stores and founded American Financial Group, a Fortune 500 company. As recently as two weeks before the shooting, Tabitha Lindner warned authorities of her husband’s declining mental state in filings for a protective order. He was talking to people who weren't there and “preparing people for battle,” she wrote, and gathering multiple rifles and other firearms for “the end of the world.” “He appears to believe he is in a battle and being directed by God,” Tabitha Lindner wrote. “I am afraid of what he might do with his guns.” Firearms incident led to 2019 arrest Christopher Lindner was charged in December 2019 after he "was photographed pointing a handgun" at his wife, according to Hamilton County court records. Lindner’s wife said he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol, waving a firearm at her and the children in a threatening manner while screaming obscenities, according to court records. His wife said she would not press charges if Christopher Lindner went to rehab. He agreed. The case was dismissed about six months later, but Tabitha Lindner said the drug and alcohol abuse did not stop. In late 2024, she recalled an incident on a trip to Disney where Christopher Lindner was smoking marijuana, drinking alcohol and acting “extremely paranoid” that they had been followed there. Tabitha Lindner said he made comments about hurting her and other people nearby. The couple separated until Christopher Lindner said he would stop using drugs and alcohol. He moved back into their Indian Hill home in early 2025. Lindner, with THC vape pens, said he was ‘bringing about the rapture’ In early October, Tabitha Lindner found multiple THC vape pens she believed Christopher Lindner had purchased. When she confronted him about it, he eventually told her he was a “living radio” and supposed to play a part in “bringing about the rapture,” but wasn’t sure what that would entail. Christopher Lindner left the home a few days later, deciding to stay at the family’s estate in Adams County to “detox.” Tabitha Lindner said she saw Christopher Lindner on the property’s security cameras, watching as he wore a bulletproof vest, carried a side arm and paced the house yelling at people who weren’t there. He made mentions of their children, she said. Christopher Lindner made attempts to come back home on Oct. 7. He was caught once by his father, Carl Lindner III, who asked him to leave, which he did, according to court documents. A day later, on Oct. 8, Tabitha Lindner filed for a civil protection order because she believed Christopher Lindner would harm her and their children. The protection order was granted first on Oct. 8, then again after a full hearing on Nov. 3. He did not attend either hearing. In both cases, Lindner was instructed to give up his guns. It is unclear if he was served. Lindner threatens workers near marijuana dispensary In the hours leading up to Lindner’s deadly confrontation with police, a 911 caller described him threatening construction workers with a knife and making threats to kill them. The call came from an employee at UpLift, a marijuana dispensary in Mount Orab. The employee said she could identify the man because he shops at the dispensary and gave the dispatcher Christopher Lindner’s name and driver’s license number. "He was outside of his car," the caller said. "He put a vest on, and then started waving a knife around in the air, told the construction workers, 'I'm going to kill you' and then peeled out of here." The caller said he left through a field near the business and headed toward Holman Way. Police officers spotted Lindner in Peebles, a village 30 miles east of Mount Orab, and began a chase that reached over 100 mph. Lindner led police to the family’s home in the 4100 block of Brush Creek Road. "After repeated attempts for the subject to surrender, he exited the residence with a firearm at which time an officer-involved shooting occurred," a highway patrol news release states. Lindner was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident remains under investigation by Ohio's Bureau of Criminal Investigations.