Dalton Gardens, Idaho: On January 24th at around 2:00 pm, the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office received a call of an armed suicidal person in a residence next to Dalton Elementary School. Once Deputies arrived on scene they began to negotiate with the male. At the same time, Dalton Elementary School was placed into a Safety Hold. Deputies and Officers from the Coeur d’ Alene Police Department responded to the school and assisted in the safe release of the students to awaiting buses and parents. Additionally a reverse 911 was sent out warning surrounding homeowners and citizens to keep them out of harm’s way.
Deputies and Officers continued to communicate with the male for the next several hours in an attempt to find a peaceful resolution. During this communication, the male repeatedly said he was going to shoot the officers on scene and made threats towards people at the school as well.
At approximately 5:26 pm, the male brandished a weapon at the Officers and Deputies. This resulted in an officer involved shooting. Members of the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office and the Coeur d’ Alene Police Department were involved in the shooting.
The male was treated by medics at the scene and transported to Kootenai Health. The man’s identity and condition are not being released at this time. None of the Deputies or Officers on scene were injured during this incident.
Per standard protocol, the North Idaho Critical Incident Task Force was activated and the Idaho State Police was identified as the lead investigative agency for this incident. No further information will be released at this time, as this is an ongoing investigation.
Any further media inquiries or requests regarding this incident should be directed to the Idaho State Police.
Sheriff Robert B. Norris
By: Lt. Ryan Higgins