Community Corner
Police Radio Traffic Reveals Tense Moments During Hours-Long Eureka Standoff
Police dispatch audio News 4 obtained reveals the tense moments as Eureka police tried to talk a suicidal man down.
March 06, 2021
Police dispatch audio News 4 obtained reveals the tense moments as Eureka police tried to talk a suicidal man down who was inside his home with a gun, a woman and two young children. Police were called to the home on Currier and Ives Drive on February 18 just before 3:30 p.m. for domestic violence. When police arrived, they heard a gunshot. In the newly released police radio traffic, you hear a dispatcher communicating with Sergeant Will Knittel and Lieutenant Mike Werges of the Eureka Police Department. Dispatcher: “Just said there’s going to be blood all over the wall. The male is counting down again. He said he could hear the cops.” Dispatcher: “Male has the gun to his temple with a finger on the trigger.” Werges said in most cases during a standoff, police would not enter the home at risk of escalating the situation and instead use a negotiator to try and convince the suspect to come out. In this situation, that all changed when Knittel and Werges realized there was a 5 and 2-year-old inside.
