Granville residents learned Sunday afternoon from a short message on the “Go Granville” app about some sort of incident involving police officers on W. Broadway.
It came at 4:22 p.m. on Aug. 10 under the heading: “POLICE ACTIVITY: W. BROADWAY”
“W. Broadway is closed from Shepardson Ct. to Wildwood Park due to an active police scene,” the message said. “Please avoid the area, including TJ Evans Bike Trail from Palmer Ln. to Moots Run Rd.”
Granville Police Chief Bill Caskey said Monday that police received a call at 2:12 p.m. Sunday about a possible domestic violence situation at an apartment near Wildwood Park.
A man in his 30s experiencing a mental health crisis refused to come to the door and had pulled the shades, Caskey said, adding that a woman inside the apartment had indicated to a relative via text message that she and a child with her did not feel safe.
The man, who is not being named because of his mental health issues, was yelling at police officers from one of the windows but wouldn’t engage in a conversation.
Deputies from the Licking County Sheriff’s office responded to a request from Granville police officers for assistance, Caskey said.
“They did all the right things,” he said. “They did it by the book and resolved the situation.”
The man reportedly was holding a kitchen knife during some of the time deputies attempted to negotiate with him, but the man did not physically harm anyone.
“The problem was that he wouldn’t talk to us,” Caskey said. “We had serious concerns for the female residents. The whole incident was resolved when deputies went through the door and arrested him.”
The man was charged with abduction, domestic violence and obstructing official business, and he was transported to the Licking County Jail.
“It’s more sad than anything,” Caskey said, adding that he hopes the man receives the help he needs.
At 4:49 p.m., the Go Granville app reported: SCENE CLEARED & ROADWAY REOPENED.
Alan Miller writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.