Man Dies After Holding Police At Bay For 4 Days
A man holed up in the home of his estranged wife died Monday after a four-day armed standoff with police.
Authorities would not immediately say what caused the death of Marty Cooley, but said there was no police gunfire during the standoff, and tear gas and pepper spray used against Cooley on Monday were not lethal.
Police confirmed a gun was found in the home, but they would not say what type.
The standoff began Friday after police were called to the home of Lisa Cooley on a report of domestic trouble. She and her 10-month-old daughter were in the home until Saturday morning, when they left as Cooley slept. Lisa Cooley told KPAX-TV that her husband held a gun to her head and threatened to kill her.
Officers began firing tear gas and pepper spray into the house Monday afternoon in an attempt to force Cooley out.
The 38-year-old man was carried from the house shortly before 5 p.m. and placed in an ambulance, which remained at the scene for about half an hour. Cooley was found on a floor in the home after officers using mirrors and other equipment determined they could enter safely, Detective Gregg Willoughby said.
Earlier in the day, police configured a makeshift barricade of heavy equipment - four dump trucks and two front-end loaders - in front of the house.
A 3-year-old girl was removed from the house Friday by an officer responding to the report of a domestic disturbance.
Police operated out of a command center at Shopko, a discount store near the Cooley home. SWAT-team members could be seen on the Shopko roof Monday, behind the barricade of heavy equipment in front of the house. Others were in a prone firing position, scattered about the lawn with their weapons pointed at the residence.
About 12 neighboring households, some 21 people, left their homes at the request of police after the incident began about noon Friday. They returned home Monday, after the standoff ended.
The Missoula chapter of the American Red Cross had arranged to put up the evacuees in motels and expressed hope that people would make donations to help defray the cost.