Man arrested after five-hour standoff in Sandpoint

A 19-year-old Sandpoint man was arrested this morning, hours after shots were fired inside a downtown Sandpoint apartment over the heads of guests. Homer James Shinn IV was taken into custody about 7:20 a.m. after a five-hour standoff with police and Bonner County sheriff’s deputies, said Police Chief Mark Lockwood. Shinn faces a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Members of the county sheriff’s emergency response team used a diversionary tactic and stormed the apartment where Shinn initially resisted arrest; he was taken into custody without any injuries. No shots were fired during the arrest, Lockwood said. Shinn apparently was intoxicated, Lockwood said. Shinn reportedly was inside his apartment at 110 S. Second Ave. in an older part of Sandpoint when shots were fired over the heads of other persons inside the apartment about 2:40 a.m., the chief said. They fled the apartment. No one was injured. Police responding to the scene cordoned off the area and waited until the sheriff’s team could make the entry and arrest. “We were certainly fortunate no one was hit,” Lockwood said. Two loaded weapons were seized in a search of the apartment, including a .22-caliber handgun and a 12-gauge shotgun, the chief said. Several spent casings were also retrieved from inside the apartment and from outside an apartment window.