A man emerged from a Southeast Washington home and surrendered to D.C. Metropolitan Police on Wednesday evening, ending a daylong standoff that began after three officers were shot attempting to deliver a warrant on animal cruelty charges.
A law enforcement source familiar with the barricade situation said the man was arrested around 7:45 p.m., just over 12 hours after gunfire opened on a group of police officers attempting to serve the warrant in the 5300 block of Hanna Place Southeast.
Police Chief Pamela Smith said the three officers suffered injuries that were not considered to be life-threatening. They were shot in the hand, ankle and leg. A fourth officer suffered minor injuries not related to the gunshots.
Authorities have not identified the man. Charges in the case are pending.
Chief Smith said the man barricaded himself inside the home and continued to fire shots during the tense standoff, which caused nearby schools to go into lockdown and homes in the area to be evacuated.
The man reportedly was barricaded inside the residence with 10 pit bulls.
Police said the man refused orders when officers tried to serve the warrant around 7:30 a.m. so they tried to force their way into the residence. Gunfire went through the door.
Chief Smith said occasional gunfire continued but didn’t indicate that the shots were targeting anyone specifically.
She said negotiators were talking with the man for most of the day and his willingness to surrender was “up and down.”
“There were moments where he was very agitated, and there were moments where he was very positive,” Chief Smith said.
She said earlier that police would wait “as long as it takes” to bring the man out in handcuffs.
A law enforcement source in MPD said the man is the brother of a police officer who works in the 7th Police District.
The source cited emergency call logs that said the MPD relative spoke with the man over the phone around 8:45 a.m. and arrived at the barricade about 15 minutes later.
Chief Smith described that information as “inaccurate” at her evening press conference.
The chief didn’t delve into the nature of the arrest warrant for animal cruelty.
Police said they secured the warrant after an investigation by the Humane Rescue Alliance.
The rescue alliance said in a statement that its field services director was at the scene with police but wasn’t hit by gunfire.
“As this dynamic situation unfolds, our thoughts are with our partners at MPD who are being treated in the hospital and we are wishing them all the best in their recovery,” the organization said. “We could not fulfill our mission without them.”
Nearby roads were closed, and schools were locked down. Police warned people to stay far from the area.
Students at the nearby KIPP DC LEAP Academy were dismissed early, around 2 p.m., so police could further evacuate the area.
Safe Passage worker Michael Plummer, who supervises the adult guardians that watch over children as they get to and from school, said he rallied his team a few hours early because of the unrest.
He mentioned that some children were overwhelmed by the commotion, including police vehicles parked by the school’s front entrance and yellow crime scene tape cordoning off parts of the sidewalk.
Parents were a bit harried by the situation. The barricade was roughly two blocks away from the school.
“It’s chaotic anytime you hear about a shooter [because] your children are your first concern,” Mr. Plummer said.
He said that kind of scene was “very unusual” for the neighborhood, which he described as relatively calm compared with other parts of town.
Keona Davis, who was among the throngs of parents picking up their children, said she felt reassured knowing officers had a heavy police presence around the building.
“After learning how close this incident really was and just knowing that this space was considered a safe space … I was very, very confident,” Ms. Davis said.
The District of Columbia is struggling with violent crime, which rose 39% in 2023. It was largely fueled by a 35% rise in homicides and growth in carjackings, which nearly doubled.
Most violent crimes are down so far this year, though robberies and violent car thefts continue to plague the city.
News of the barricade reached the White House by the afternoon. Spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre shared the administration’s condolences to the wounded officers and general concerns about violent crime.
She then blamed Republican lawmakers for not supporting President Biden’s agenda on how to best bring down the bloodshed.
“Everyone in every community in this country wants the same thing. They want their families to be safe. And — not getting into politics on this — the president is wanting to make sure that communities feel safe,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said. “And we’re not seeing that from congressional Republicans. We’re just not. They continue to get in the way.”
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