BLAINE, Minn. — A 62-year-old man has been charged after a standoff with law enforcement in Blaine that ended with him being hospitalized after deputies returned fire.
According to court documents, Randy Reeve is charged with first-degree assault, threats of violence and reckless discharge of a firearm.
Blaine police were called to the 10500 block of Quincy Boulevard Northeast around 10:15 p.m. Monday after neighbors reported Reeve shooting his gun outside.
According to the criminal complaint, when officers arrived a neighbor told police that Reeve allegedly confronted her and her boyfriend while "holding and racking a shotgun." The neighbor also said that after she and her boyfriend had gone inside, she could hear the gun being fired.
The complaint says authorities set up a perimeter around the Reeve's house – just blocks away from Madison Elementary School. Officials say Reeve threatened to kill officers and allegedly fired a shotgun and a rifle into the air and in the direction of the officers – putting a bullet hole in one of the squad cars.
Authorities say after Reeve allegedly fired at officers and in the direction of a nearby home, a deputy with the Anoka County Sheriff's Office - now identified as Jeffrey Barrett - shot Reeve. The complaint states Reeve is still hospitalized but is expected to survive.
Barrett, a deputy of six years with the Anoka County Sheriff's Office, has been placed on standard administrative leave, according to an evening press release.
Blaine police actually responded to an earlier call regarding Reeve that evening. At 6:00 p.m., his wife reported him suicidal with a gun. Officers learned he left in a vehicle, armed, and they began treating it like a mental health situation.
"We spent a lot of resources looking for him. Not just in Blaine but in a couple cities here across the metro. We did things like pinging phones, we did everything we could to find him," said Blaine Police Chief Brian Podany.
At some point, Reeve returned home. But Podany said officers were not able to reach him, so they left.
"If somebody’s a danger to themselves versus a danger to other people, we handle it a little differently. We try to get them the help, but we also don’t want to force a deadly-force confrontation," Podany said. "At that point he had not yet actively threatened other people. He had been certainly displaying unusual behavior. We tried everything we could and ultimately were left with no other options than to leave or push that confrontation."
Podany said his department was following changes made to the law by the Minnesota State Legislature in the last session, intended to prevent the escalation that sometimes leads to a police shooting.
In this case, they avoided it earlier in the evening, but police needed to be called back when neighbors reported Reeve firing a gun outside.
Residents familiar with the suspect told KARE 11's Lou Raguse that Reeve has lived in the neighborhood for 30 years or so, and say he can become volatile over minor issues like fireworks or people driving at speeds he thinks are too fast. Multiple people said Reeve was distressed following the recent death of his father.
At least one told Raguse that Reeve was an ardent and vocal supporter of police, and had "Back the Blue" signs posted on his lawn.
The Minnesota BCA and Blaine police are investigating the incident.
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