A Sellersburg man faces six felonies after he allegedly shot and wounded a Clark County Sheriff's detective, shot and killed an Indiana State Police K-9, broke into at least two homes and kept police at bay in a standoff that lasted almost ten hours.
State police said Joshua L. Priddy, 31, of Iowa Street in Sellersburg, is charged with attempted murder of a police officer, "causing the death" of a law enforcement animal, burglary, residential entry, pointing a firearm and criminal recklessness with a firearm.
The standoff ended at 9:24 p.m. Monday, outside a home on Delaware Court in Hill ‘N Dale subdivision on the northwest side of Sellersburg. Priddy, who police believed to be mentally ill, surrendered to police officers. He came out of a closet in the home, then to the backyard, dressed in boxer shorts and a torn shirt, Whelan said.
Priddy was not hurt after a barrage of "flash bangs," tear gas and 30-40 rounds fired throughout the incident. Whelan could not say how many of those rounds were fired by the suspect or police. He was whisked away by patrol car to the Clark County Jail, Whelan and Sheriff Danny Rodden said.
Police wanted to question Priddy late Monday "and help him get the appropriate help he obviously needs," Whelan said.
Priddy allegedly shot Clark County Sheriff's Dept. detective Chris Proctor in the lower leg, Rodden said. An ambulance with special police escort took Proctor to University Hospital in Louisville for treatment about 3:30 p.m. His injuries are not life threatening, and Proctor was in good spirits and due for surgery Tuesday morning, Rodden told reporters.
WDRB Chief Photographer Ken Bradley reported that Proctor appeared to be awake and moving around as he arrived at the hospital. Rodden did not immediately have Proctor's age available for reporters Monday night.
Priddy also shot and killed Indiana State Police K-9 "Kilo" in the house, Whelan and state police Sgt. Noel Houze said. Officers sent "Kilo" into the house early in the incident and never saw the dog leave. They confirmed the dog's death late Monday night. Whelan also said the house was heavily damaged during the standoff. Police expected to spend most of the night processing the scene for evidence.
Approximately 100 SWAT officers and at least two armored vehicles from several departments responded to what began as a call from Priddy's wife about 11:30 a.m. Monday, Whelan said. She asked for police help in convincing her mentally ill husband to go to a hospital voluntarily for treatment.
Whelan said he encountered Priddy in a neighbor's backyard, carrying two handguns, in the presence of his children. The Priddy children were left alone; the suspect later ran and broke into at least one home before breaking into a second home on Delaware Court, where he refused police orders to surrender, officers said. Priddy took off his pants at the first home, hence his arrest later in boxer shorts and the torn shirt, Whelan said.
Priddy shot the detective, the police dog and also shot out the camera on a police robot, Houze said. That shot rendered the robot's camera useless to SWAT officers and negotiators who had backed off the scene once shots were exchanged, police said.
"Officer down! Clear the street!" a Clark County police captain yelled to neighbors as an ambulance responded to help the injured officer.
Neighbors said they were worried about children and elderly residents who were at home alone in houses near the standoff. Police had advised neighbors to stay in their homes, stay away from windows and keep doors locked.
"I keep texting them and making sure they're OK, and thankful that it's not in my house, and very thankful that my son's home," said Meredith Trendel, a Delaware Court resident.
"They told me someone came to the house, asked who was in the home. There was an officer came to the front door and the back door, told them to stay down. So my son took the girls in the basement."
Trendel said her children are ages 20, 14 and 9. Trendel and other neighbors returned their homes before 10 p.m.
Neighbor Evelyn Tuttle learned of the situation from a phone call.
"My sister told me to go in and lock the doors, and that a guy ran across her front yard and had a gun. And then the next thing I heard was all these police cars coming up here," Tuttle told WDRB News.
The situation closed several blocks of the subdivision, which is west of Interstate 65 and north of the McDonald's restaurant on Sellersburg's northwest side. It is about a mile from the Indiana State Police post.