Suicidal Standoff
updated: Nov 07, 2012, 4:07 PM

Source: San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office

An Oxnard man holding two knifes to his throat for hours was taken into custody by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Special Enforcement Team ( S.E.T.). The incident lasted nearly four hours as deputies negotiated with the subject in attempts to have him put down the knives.

Shortly after 9:00am on Wednesday, November 07, 2012, deputies responded to South Jameson Road near San Ysidro Road, for a man seen holding a knife to his throat. When deputies arrived they found 43 year old Paul Robinette, standing near a parked car holding two knives to his throat. Deputies with the Sheriff's Office quickly secured the area as Officers from the California Highway Patrol closed off surrounding streets and the San Ysidro freeway off-ramp. A reverse 911 call was placed by Sheriff's dispatch to area residents, advising them to stay in their homes.

After repeated attempts to communicate with Robinette failed, the Hostage Negotiation Team (H.N.T) along with the S.E.T. arrived and took over the incident. Robinette stood behind a parked car with an open trunk and an open passenger side door. Deputies initially believed Robinette had a gun in the open trunk and did not want to provoke him into using it.

The Sheriff's Bomb Team robot was used to approach Robinette with food and water. Robinette did not take the food and continued to pace back and forth with the knives held tightly to his throat. The standoff finally ended when S.E.T deployed distraction devices (flash-bangs) and hit Robinette with several less lethal foam rounds, causing him to drop the knives. S.E.T. quickly moved in and safely took Robinette into custody before he could hurt himself. Robinette was transported to the hospital by A.M.R. Paramedics where he will be medically and psychologically evaluated.

10 comments on this article. Read/Add

# # # #