MONROE — Police used non-lethal force to end an hours-long standoff in a Monroe mobile home park on Tuesday, March 12.

The standoff and resulting investigation may yet produce an arrest, but Police Chief Fred Kelley said charges are still being weighed by prosecutors and the suspect is getting mental health evaluations — as of the paper’s Thursday deadline.

The ordeal began just before 6:20 p.m. in the 4100 block of West 21st Street. Police were initially called to the mobile home subdivision there for a disturbance. Backup officers were soon requested as the situation escalated.

“The officers were able to locate the individual and he appeared to be threatening himself with injury” with a sharp object, resembling a machete, said Kelley.

He also would occasionally run and try to threaten officers on the scene. Those officers cordoned off the immediate area and took measures to protect neighbors and residents.

“Back and forth, he’s threatening (them) with that thing,” Kelley said. “It was a high-risk situation.”

After a couple of hours, he said, officers on scene used “non-lethal force” to subdue the suspect and take him into custody. 

Such non-lethal force can include the use of bean-bag type shotgun rounds, but Kelley declined to elaborate on exactly what type of weapons were deployed. Police at the scene also had tasers, he added.

No officers or any of the public were injured in the standoff, he said, adding that the decision whether to charge the suspect is now in the hands of the district attorney. The officers, he said, will not be subject to a change in job status — such as administrative reassignment — or an outside investigation because they did not use deadly force. 

Still, Kelley said the department continues to investigate the incident using all available information, including body-worn cameras. He also praised the officers on scene for their restraint in handling the situation, which he added reflects their good judgment and training.

“These type of situations in other communities have resulted in tragedies and this was not that,” he said.