LANCASTER – A suspect was arrested Tuesday night after he allegedly beat a gardener and then barricaded himself in a stranger’s Lancaster home for more than two hours, authorities said.
The suspect, whose name was not immediately released, was taken into custody with the help of a police dog just before 9 p.m. in the 1300 block of West Indian Stage Road, according to Deputy Kit Gruppie of the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station.
Before the standoff and arrest, the suspect had been arguing with his sister at her home, Gruppie said, and then the suspect left the home by car and crashed into a parked vehicle a short distance away.
“Upon colliding with the parked vehicle, he exited the vehicle and had some sort of verbal altercation with a gardener who was doing work approximately two houses to the east of where he had the altercation with his sister,” Gruppie said. “From there, he chased the victim into a residence and began to beat him while he was inside of an unknown person’s house. He beat him to the point where it caused great bodily injury. He then dragged the victim out of the house and continued to beat him in the front yard,” Gruppie continued.
When deputies responded around 6 p.m., the suspect fled back into the residence, which was occupied by two elderly women, Gruppie said.
“Deputies did a great job of responding in a short time frame [and] contained the residence. The ladies exited the house without any bodily harm,” Gruppie said.
The suspect was eventually flushed out of the home, after a sheriff’s Special Enforcement Bureau team arrived and deployed their dog.
The gardener was transported to Antelope Valley Hospital to be treated for his injuries, Gruppie said.
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UPDATE: The suspect is 33-year-old Darrold Hunter of Texas, according to Deputy Joshua Stamsek of the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station.
Karen says
I cannot understand how this story about a criminal who got arrested for committing a crime…. made people complain about the lasd. I am going to express my gratitude to the lasd. Thank you all for your service to our community.
Tim Scott says
I’ll explain then, since you don’t understand.
People who are desperate to apologize for all the well known and documented excesses that the LACSD perpetrates on a daily basis invariably jump on this kind of once in a blue moon event to say “see, this is why we need to just let them run amok.” They want the public to be like the beaten spouse that says “but he can be so nice sometimes” while taking a beating every other day.
Claire says
The proper initialism is LASD! LACSD is “Los Angeles County Sanitation Department.”
Tim Scott says
Are you STILL crybabying about that? They are the County sheriff’s department. If you have trouble distinguishing them from garbage that’s not really my problem.
Concerned person says
Tim Scott, do you do anything else in your life besides bashing law enforcement? You really have a sick hatred for them. What caused this. You seem to be so miserable. I feel you might need help to over come your problem.
Tim Scott says
Thanks for your concern, however misguided.
I don’t really have time or inclination to list all the things I do in a day, but there is more than enough things on it that make me happy that I can say for sure that there is no reason to think I would be miserable.
I don’t understand how “hating” would be “sick”, even if I did outright hate them. But in fact I just don’t see any reason to let them bully me into pretending to like them, which is a pretty common thing hereabouts. So since I don’t pretend to like them I do point out the thuggish and corrupt things they do. Honestly, I can’t think of a single reason why I shouldn’t.
Claire says
Karen, thank you for your comment. You are entitled to have an opinion without Tim Scott feeling he has to enlighten you with his endless pontifications. His anxiety ridden compulsion to control comments, and try to bend people to his will, only speaks to his problems, not others.
Tim Scott says
She said she didn’t understand something, and I explained it. Unlike you I actually read what people have to say.
Chris says
To Tim Scott
You do have some valid points at times but however on this matter and others you have posted on, in regards to Law enforcement your input is really poor and outdated you really have no clue except for what the press reports say and about 50 percent of what the press writes is misleading at best. Yes Lasd and most other Law enforcement agency’s do have internal issues but not as bad as you think. I am not an Lasd employee but i do know what i am talking about.
Mr Tims says
It’s a shame we keep attacking each other via person to person & internet interaction. Just accept there’s nine ways to skin a cat. Don’t attack thoughts that are
AVSUX says
Yes, there are some people in this world that need containment, but for some reason I just straight out hate cops. Like, If I was robbed at gunpoint I still wouldn’t call the police. Maybe it’s genetic.
Tim Scott says
Just common sense. If you’ve been robbed at gunpoint, what are the cops gonna do for you? Take a report? What are you gonna have to put up with in the process? They’re gonna sniff around you looking for a case. Unless you want to meet them in the street they are gonna sniff around your place looking for a case. You aren’t going to miraculously be “unrobbed” and the whole process of dealing with the badged thug gang is as unpleasant as getting robbed was, if not worse.
Tina says
You won’t be “unrobbed” but it let’s the police know where the trouble is so they can do extra patrol there, and maybe save others from the same fate. This person can and probably will progress to more severe crimes. Those that don’t report have something to hide and those that do report probably will save a life.
Tim Scott says
This is based on a number of misconceptions.
First off, if someone robs you at gunpoint and then proceeds to hang around the same area to do it again there are much better ways to deal with them than calling the cops…but they generally don’t. If they rob you on one street, their next stunt will probably be at least several blocks away.
Second, “extra patrols there” would just INSURE that their next stunt will be at least several blocks away. Despite what you see on “stupid criminal files”, most criminals are of ordinary intelligence and don’t commit crimes right next to black and white cars.
Third, I’ve never seen any indication that cops do anything with reported crimes. How often do you see stories in the paper about the capture of a criminal OTHER than in the immediate aftermath of the crime? If you can manage to materialize a patrol car at the scene while the robber is still in plain sight down the street you might “save a life,” or more likely at least prevent the next robbery, but getting the cops out there an hour later so you can tell your tale of woe is, at most, an exercise in feeling better.
Jim says
“Third, I’ve never seen any indication that cops do anything with reported crimes.”
Between Lancaster and Palmdale our “solve rate” is in the 90% range. It’s just not bragged about or covered by the media because they follow calls that happen now with the great attention grabbing pictures. So yes, report your robberies, we catch them all the time. Oh and I know your next comment will be for proof, come into the station and review the stats.
Tim Scott says
While I appreciate the invitation, for obvious reasons I’ll be declining.
Tim Scott says
So, let’s examine this here on neutral ground.
How much of the solve rate comes from the reality that criminals generally keep on committing crimes until they get caught? What I mean by that is that when a robber happens to get caught, probably in the act, and you close a dozen cases on him it looks really good on the solve rate. If the reporting of the cases that are being closed doesn’t contribute anything to the “solve” that’s just inflating the stats. So what’s the skinny on that, or do you guys not keep track of stuff like that?
Another question, does it really do anything for the victims in those dozen cases? They might add to the restitution assigned by the court, but who really cares if they are owed money by a prisoner making a nickle an hour in the pen, if they work at all? If the report doesn’t really contribute to the robber getting caught, and it doesn’t get your stuff back, is it worth the added unpleasant experience?
Suzie Q says
Thank you., we cannot live un a lawless society.Money & drugs playa a big role in crime.I have been at the other end,had my car taken at knife point, stabbing my 100 lb. mother.So I am glad they came I to my rescue. Live right, you don’t have to fear the police. Ok?If they have balls to do the crime then they should do the time.It didn’t take a rocket scientist to want to go in and steal or hurt an innocent person, or bystander, to know its wrong to hurt or steal from anyone. Its the rush of a criminal to think they can get away from being caught . There is so much of this going on, so just let it happen, oh well? No I don’t think so. Thank all if you hero’s that help lawlessness without wearing a badge, they are human, & need help too. Which side if the fence do you prefer?
Mrs wonder says
I read this page every night and I like you Tim Scott..also like how you have your WHOLE ENTIRE NAME on here..! Unlike the rest hiding behind their real names..! Sorta like me although I rarely comment..my family name is known out here we are long time residents. I was born at AVH in 1976..so I don’t use my name for that reason..but finally someone who speaks the truth…funny thing is while this LASD helicopter was flying in circles near my home although I live near ave H for 2 1/2 hours all I could hear was them on the microphone instructing him to come out..what took so long to send the K9 in? Wasting of tax payers $ as well as when it first started there was REX’S EYE IN THE SKY after the fact..I am also a victim of the LASD..they are full of [removed]..keep calling people out…I love it..
Tim Scott says
Thanks…though I must admit that for the protection of my family I actually do not use my real name.
smh says
Its not genetics.. its pride.. most people who had a wrong done to them dont involve the police because it makes them look like a “snitch”.. and it damages their “street cred” or because they doing dirt they self and they dont wanna be exposed or get they people exposed.. but thats most.. it might not be u..
Tim Scott says
LOL…street cred? You think there is a majority of people thinking about “street cred”?
People who don’t call cops don’t call them because they have talked to cops before and realize just how unpleasant and pointless it is. If you think telling someone you got robbed, or your car got broken into, or whatever, is going to make you feel better…go to church and tell the minister, or go to a bar and tell the bartender, or go home and tell your spouse, or tell a friend. In every case you will be spending your time with someone more pleasant and more sympathetic, and just as likely to “do something about it” for you.
Claire says
This is why we need police officers. What a horrifying experience for those elderly women and the gardener.
Tim Scott says
Given the extreme rarity of this kind of thing I suspect there are more efficient ways to meet that need than hiring the band of thugs that is the LACSD.
John says
Please list some more efficient ways of dealing with at violent person who has barricaded himself in a house. I’m sure law enforcement around the globe are at the edge of their seats waiting for the expert advise of Tim Scott. And it’s LASD, not LACSD. LACSD is the las Angeles county sanitation district.
Tim Scott says
They are the COUNTY Sheriff’s Department. The CITY of LA want’s nothing to do with them. Which is why they have the LAPD. That’s why I always stress that C. As to more efficient ways to deal with situations like this…there is not one good reason that Lancaster and Palmdale don’t have their own police departments.
When they were little podunks out in the north county contracting for law enforcement with the LACSD made perfect sense. That is no longer true. There is no reason that we shouldn’t have the responsiveness of a PD that is accountable to our own city government, instead of the “bad deputy refuse dump” that the country provides. If we were getting a really good deal moneywise, maybe it would make sense, but we aren’t. If we were getting some sort of top shelf tradition of excellence law enforcement organization instead of the constantly under investigation, corruption riddled, laughing stock gang of race baiting thugs that we are getting it might make sense, but we aren’t.
Every city needs cops, because once in a blue moon some idiots turn a fender bender in the street into world war three, and in even more rare event that might spill into someone’s house…but that doesn’t mean we need to stick our heads in the sand and refuse to acknowledge that contracting with the LACSD is perhaps the stupidest choice available as far as providing law enforcement.
John says
Take it easy Tim. No need to make an angry scene in your moms basement again. Just log back into world of Warcraft and let’s forget this conversation ever happened. P.S. Vote Tim Scott mayor of lancaster. We need real ideas and real solutions that only Tim can provide this great city.
Tim Scott says
LOL…I’m not angry about anything, just stating the obvious. I take it from your attempt to attack ME instead of the message that you can’t find any errors in what I had to say.
I live in Palmdale, by the way, so while I admit I would be a better mayor than Lancaster has (who wouldn’t, really?) I won’t be running.
Tim Scott says
Yeah, he clearly is, but if I keep stuffing him with facts he’ll probably explode eventually, and that’s always fun.
Anon says
Still waiting on those alternate solutions to dealing with dangerous criminals.
You seem like the kind of person that would climb a tree to tell a lie, when you could stand on the ground and tell the truth.
You say you served. Possibly officer. You understand the idea of sending three good men to risk death for one piece of trash.
The idea of always vigilant only works when your contingency involves what happens on that BLUE MOON! Are you going to head a rapid response team? Will it be under your biased critique once it is formed? You rant about the cops shooting someone and say the police are not meeting the requirements. You scrutinize any action of law enforcement but praise veterans. Do you understand the concept of consistency?!
Tim Scott says
You should try reading instead of waiting. I suggested a more efficient solution to our once in a blue moon contingencies several posts up.
By the way, if I ever said anything that would lead you to think that I was an officer in the military please point it out so I can correct it. I was enlisted. E-6.
And I’m far too old and fat to climb trees, and have no particular reason to lie about much of anything here. What would be the point?
Chris says
Well Tim Scott you may be right in a sense however the La county Sheriffs Do a great job thru out the Av & county even in La City the problem is the disrespectful people such as yourself that has no true understanding of how hard it is out there to work as an LEO……
Tim Scott says
Last I checked, this is America. If the job is too tough, getting a different one is always an option. If they want respect, they can earn it. And when someone says “oh they do a great job” I always wonder what motivates them, because objectively, they don’t.
The LACSD is constantly being investigated, and fails. The biggest source of investigations, and failures, are the AV stations, and that is because for years, at least, and probably decades, the “disciplinary solution” in the department has involved assigning every screw up that might bring shame on the department to the hinterlands where there was less media. So yeah, people like me out here in the AV don’t just think LEOs are the coolest…in fact experience teaches us that they frequently aren’t.
Just Saying says
If you don’t like LA County Sheriffs, then you would really hate Kern County Sheriffs. They are double the cowboys LASD are.
Tim Scott says
When I lived in Kern County it was in cities that had their own PDs so I didn’t see much of the KCSD. Whether they are markedly worse than the LACSD is an open question, but there is really no reason why any city of well over a hundred thousand people should contract their law enforcement out to either one of them. County sheriff’s departments aren’t even SUPPOSED to be good at urban law enforcement, and the LACSD clearly isn’t.