Sgt. Scott Strathy responded to the call and said that he heard five or six shots fired. He called in for additional help and went house to house to determine where the shots were coming from.

A woman exited one of the homes and told police that it was her husband who was doing the shooting. She said that he was distraught and it would be better if the police left.

Fearing for the woman’s well being, the police would not let her return to the house until they felt it was safe. They told her that they wanted to speak to her husband before she would be allowed back inside. They put the woman in a squad car.

The man made his way to his dock on Lake Leota. A hostage negotiator took a position of cover behind a group of trees and began to talk to him. Other police blocked the man’s path back to his house. One officer was positioned at the house. Other officers secured the street.

The negotiator spoke to the man on and off for about 45 minutes. Occasionally, the man would take a few steps toward his house, but he always stopped short of a point that would have forced officers to engage him. At one point, he picked up a broom and carried it with him. Eventually, he walked most of the way to the house, forcing officers to engage him.

Officers surrounded the man and took him to the ground. He actively resisted but was overpowered and placed into handcuffs. On him, police found a Glock 23 40-caliber handgun, loaded and in a holster. They found four magazines of ammunition in two different holsters, one on each side of his body. In addition, they found other ammunition in his pockets. He was taken to Harborview Hospital Medical Center in Seattle. He was charged with reckless endangerment and discharge of a firearm.

That night, police were issued a search warrant for the man’s home. One of the officers reported that the house showed signs of a struggle. Police found 21 spent casings inside the house, five rounds from an assault rifle and 16 rounds from a 38 Special. A police report indicated that both weapons were capable of shooting their respective projectiles across the lake and killing someone on the other side.

Police also found a significant quantity of other firearms and ammunition in the house.

The Woodinville City Council sent a letter to King County Sheriff Sue Rahr about the incident. In it, the council commended the two Woodinville Police officers, Sgt. Scott Strathy and Deputy Eric Muller, and seven King County Sheriff’s officers for their professional response that brought an effective resolution to a very dangerous situation. The letter stated, “We are especially grateful to Sgt. Strathy for on-scene command and King County Sheriff’s Deputy Wayerski for on-scene negotiation.”

The letter went on to state, “… The City Council would like to acknowledge its extreme gratitude to those involved who demonstrated their training, experience and professionalism in disarming a volatile confrontation.”

Each councilmember signed the letter