Jamestown man involved in standoff facing multiple felony charges

Jun. 19—JAMESTOWN — A 30-year-old man who was involved in an hours-long standoff on Wednesday, June 18, at Western Park Village is facing felony charges in Southeast District Court in Jamestown.

Jacob Lee Schmitt, Jamestown, is facing charges of terrorizing, prohibited/possess firearm, preventing arrest or discharge of other duties, child neglect, prohibited acts A/controlled substances and possession of drug paraphernalia, Class C felonies, ingesting a controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor, and disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor.

Bail was set at either $10,000 cash or a $25,000 surety bond.

Schmitt was in custody in the Stutsman County Correctional Center as of 5 p.m. Thursday, June 19.

Schmitt is accused of threatening to harm an individual by burning her on a cross, possessing and/or controlling a firearm after being convicted of a felony in the last five years, creating a substantial risk of bodily injury to a public servant or to anyone except himself or employing means justifying or requiring substantial force to overcome resistance to affecting an arrest or discharge of duty, child neglect, possessing methamphetamine and items used with methamphetamine with previous convictions in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021 and ingesting methamphetamine on June 18 and hitting a child in the face with his elbow on June 17.

The Jamestown Police Department responded to a report of a female resident who was not feeling safe in her home at 1818 Western Park Village at about 2 a.m. Wednesday, June 18.

Court documents say Schmitt came to the residence a "couple days" before Wednesday to see his child and refused to leave. The woman said Schmitt was using narcotics "very heavily" and he had not slept for four days.

Schmitt told a Jamestown police officer that he would "burn" the woman on a cross and called her a "witch," court documents say.

Jamestown police officers tried to make contact with Schmitt but he refused to speak with law enforcement and retreated further inside the residence, barricading himself in a back room, said Maj. Justin Blinsky, assistant chief of police for the city of Jamestown.

Four occupants were evacuated from the home but Schmitt took a 2-year-old child with him to the back room, Blinsky said.

The woman told a Jamestown police officer that the back room had three to four firearms that Schmitt had access to, court documents say.

The James Valley Special Operations Team was activated at 2:50 a.m. Wednesday to help minimize safety risks, Blinsky said. The Jamestown Police Department asked residents of Western Park Village to shelter in place, which was lifted after Schmitt was arrested.

Blinksky said police were able to communicate with Schmitt while he was inside the residence, but he refused to comply with police requests to come outside or to assist the child in leaving the residence.

At about 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, the James Valley Special Operations Team entered the home, removed the child and took Schmitt into custody.

A Class C felony is punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by 360 days in prison and a $3,000 fine. A Class B misdemeanor is punishable by 30 days in prison and a $1,500 fine.