Man surrenders after 7-hour standoff in Joliet home

A 61-year-old man was taken into custody after a seven-hour standoff late Sunday into early Monday in southwest suburban Joliet.

About 9:45 p.m. Sunday, family members called police to a home in the 1300 block of Brentwood Place because they had been unable to make contact with a resident there, according to Joliet Police Chief Brian Benton.

No one answered the door for family and police officers, and the family asked that officers force their way in to make sure there was no medical emergency, Benton said.

When the officers tried to force their way in, a gunshot rang out from inside the home, Benton said. The officers began loudly identifying themselves as police, and another shot was fired.

A perimeter was established around the home, and a Critical Incident Response Team, which consists of a special operations squad, hostage negotiators and tactical emergency dispatchers, was activated, Benton said.

Negotiators tried for several hours to get the resident to surrender, but he would not talk, Benton said. The Will County state’s attorney’s office was contacted and a search warrant was prepared.

About 4:30 a.m. Monday, the special operations squad breached the doors of the home and set off tear gas inside, Benton said.

About 25 minutes later, the man left the home and peacefully surrendered, Benton said. He was taken to Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet for evaluation, where he remained Tuesday morning.

Several weapons were recovered during a search of the home, and charges are being reviewed, Benton said.