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StumbleArmed man arrested, residents return home after evacuation
Published Thursday, Sept. 9, 2010 | 4:28 p.m.
Updated Thursday, Sept. 9, 2010 | 5:19 p.m.
Investigation
Metro Police safely took a man into custody after receiving reports that he had barricaded himself inside his eastern valley home with a shotgun.
Officers arrested the man after he complied with officers' orders to exit the home about 4:30 p.m, police spokesman Jay Rivera said.
Phil Willars, who identified himself as the armed man's father, said the incident was the result of an argument between his 22-year-old son and the mother of his son's child. Willars said he didn't know what the argument was about.
Authorities were called at 2:13 p.m. by the armed man's mother outside the home in the 4900 block of Sandra Road, which is near Nellis Boulevard and Washington Avenue.
The mother reported that her son was inside the house acting erratically and had a shotgun, Officer Barbara Morgan said. A neighbor then notified police that the son was outside the house with a gun, Morgan said.
When police arrived and interviewed the mother, they thought the son might have left, but later determined that he was still inside the house, Morgan said.
SWAT officers were called to the scene and police evacuated nearby homes, taking residents to Robison Middle School.
By 5 p.m. police were leaving the scene and residents were allowed to return home, Rivera said.
Discussion: 2 comments so far…
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Thanks Mom, you have probably just sent your son to an early grave.
20 bucks say shotgun dude is killed by police and not arrested.
pdxjim,
Mom is not the one running around with the shotgun. Learn to put responsibility where it belongs and you will do much better in life.
Hopefully he is smart enough to put the gun down when they find him or he is going to learn a hard lesson.
furtive movement
wouldn't drop gun
paid administrative leave
phony inquest
business as usual
taxpayers pay out $$$$
This is a perfect example of how a well-trained police department with intelligent officers could diffuse a perilous situation without any loss of life.
Parents have, in many instances, caused the death of one of their children by calling 911, and getting a police response that resulted in the unecessary death of the kid - not only here in Las Vegas, but across the country.
Let's see how well Metro diffuses this.
PDZJIM and MRED...yup, there is a chance this kid may get shot by the police. The only way he will be shot is as a result of his own actions. Chances are, not a single patrol car would have driven down their street today. His actions have caused 100 cops to be on that street now. Had the police not responed, INNOCENT lives would be in danger, such as the mother and neighbors. Of course his mom does not want him shot, but she had to call 911 to protect the child, her, and the community at large. The police will do whatever they can to ensure they can bring this situation to a peaceful resolution, which is exactely the reason there are so many officers there. 1) to protect the community, 2) ensure no officer is killed, 3) to ensure the situation can end peacefully. If he is shot, it will be a result of what he does.
Much like when the 15 year old was shot in the head. He was dragging his mother backwards with a knife to her throat. The officer had to shoot him before he killed her. People like you two were outragged, especially after the Mom said they did not have to kill her son. Until they showed VIDEO of the incident which proved he was about to kill his own mother and Metro saved her life.
Hope the kid enters my property. I'll diffuse the situation.
I completely agree Icare2009. Everyone is quick to place blame on Metro recently for having to shoot suspects in unpredictable situations. It's amazing that nobody can use their brain anymore to think about what it's like on the other side of the table. Take a walk in Metro's shoes for a day and we'll see how quick you are to pass judgement in the future.
Thank you Metro for everything you do! One less idiot on the street, on drugs (not necessarily in this case, just in general), and with a gun, makes me feel safer each day!
Kudos to the Metro officers that ended this situation successfully without any loss of life.
It doesn't always have to end in a tragic result - you simply need well-trained, psychologically-fit professionals working the situation.
I wondered what all the fuss was about when I couldn't get to a friend's house in the area. Thank goodness no one was hurt.
Desertfox, you also need the suspect to realize he/she needs to do what they are told. You can have all the training and be mentally sound, but the other person will dictate the response. pdxjim, how stupid can you be? The mother had an obligation to call 911. If her son had killed the woman and child, or others, you would blame her for that. It really is kind of simple - if you drive by the law, live by the law, and don't do stupid things, you will never have contact with metro. When you draw attention to yourself, and don't comply to the commands, you have dictated how you will be treated and the outcome may not be what you like. I am so glad none of you work for metro. Thank you, metro, for being there.
im just glad no one was hurt...or took my bet that shot gun dude would be killed
@ manlaw - mentally ill patients or those slightly deranged don't always do what they are commanded, and can't reasonably be expected to comply. Recent case involving Metro - two officers now charged criminally didn't break off the chase that ended in a civillian's death when told numerous times to break off the chase and stop endangering civillians by their commanding officer. They aren't necessarily operating under the disfunction of mental illness (hopefully), but these are cops we employ to follow the law and their superiors'comands, and, hopefully, aren't severely mentally deranged.
Manlaw:
"It really is kind of simple - if you drive by the law, live by the law, and don't do stupid things, you will never have contact with metro."
Thanks for clearing that up for us. If you hadn't, someone might think that the citizens of a free country would be free to do stupid things as long as they were driving and living under the law. Obviously, they are not.
Still, it's not clear that driving and living "by the law" serve as a very effective prophylactic against Metro screwing with someone.
Until it is, citizens would do well to: Beware GESTAPO 911.
wait, metro shoots unarmed crouching men but not an armed nutcase?
They went completely against their training.
Relax, fair citizens, it wasn't that big of a deal....really.
wow. everyone does get a bit off the path for things. take the situation at hand folks. handled well enough by folks that are just like you and me ( well most of us) that are lucky to get some more life training. metro aren't super friggin heros. just people who are shook up by the crap they have to deal with.. rrreeelllaaaxxx... they did a good job..
I am so tired of the "take a walk in "Metro's shoes lest you judge them. It is this myth that clouds the judgement of officers making them more fearful than they have to be. After all, of the cops that are killed at work, most die in car accidents, not at the hands of a citizen. In fact, the chance a cop will die on the job are roughly the same as the chances a gardener will die on the job. Yet we let ourselves believe their job is more dangerous than it really is. Garbage men have a higher on the job mortality rate than cops. But when city trash collector dies on the job serving you, there's no fanfare, no flags flown at half mast, no five foot flower monuments. No motorcycle caravans of garbage men swarming into the funeral from seven neighboring states. It is this hyper-inflated myth of a hero sacrificing his lives for you that allows police to create a shield against criticism of any misdeed. No matter who shoes I wear, the fact is that while Metro officers shoot kill about nine people a year. Only nine cops have been shot and killed since the 1930's. You got to love those odds. Unless, of course, you aren't a cop.
This event, shows that with patience and training, nobody has to die. Good job guys. But guess what? You won't get a paid vacation. That is a shame. Gillespie should offer you paid leave equal to what Yant has already milked from the tax payers
Please don't believe everything you read. I personally know this family involved in this story. The 22 year old was not at the house that cops surrounded. He was at another location. After many attempts made by the family to explain that he was not in the house Metro did not believe them until the suspect called the police. He was then picked up at the other location. He was NOT barricaded in the house. Ultimately he was not charged with breaking any laws. So this story made a mountain out of a mole hill