Overview
- The 53-year-old was taken into custody without injury around 10:40 p.m. on Jan. 5 after more than 30 hours of negotiation at a home on West Cross Street.
- Tactics reported by neighbors included an LRAD, repeated flash bangs, tear gas, a fire hose and demolition equipment, and the duplex was later declared unsafe for occupancy.
- Ypsilanti police had visited the address three times in prior days without contact, then engaged the county Crisis Response Team before Metro SWAT was requested per protocol and command shifted to the sheriff’s office.
- Residents and local officials criticized the response as militarized and are seeking details on de-escalation efforts, decision-making and the chain of command.
- Neighborhood life was disrupted, with at least one resident displaced and about 350 Meals on Wheels deliveries canceled when access to a nearby church site was blocked.