Police favored wait game over using force in standoff

MANASSAS, Va. - After an armed man took his life during a nearly 23-hour standoff on Thursday, the hotel where it took place became a crime scene for police to investigate.

Police have not said what John Carlson, 50, had inside the hotel room at the Homestyle Inn at 9913 Cockrell Road in Manassas where he lived with his wife.

Carlson was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound when police entered his room at 4:20 p.m. Thursday.

Initial police reports from the scene indicated he had a semi-automatic hand gun which he fired several times while police stood outside the hotel. He also had small propane containers that those who knew Carlson said he used to cook on a small gas stove.

Carlson and his wife lived in the hotel on and off for about a year before he died, according to a family member.

Forensic investigators searched the room after the standoff, and police will review how they handled the situation.

During the first few hours of the standoff, police negotiators used a phone to talk with the lone man in hopes of coaxing him out.

Hanging over his head was an arrest warrant from Chesapeake, issued when he did not report for jail as ordered after being convicted as a habitual DUI offender.

Carlson spoke to his 20-year-old son by phone when the standoff began. He said he was not going to go to jail and was considering suicide.

When the phone negotiations with police weren't working during the early hours of Thursday, SWAT teams lobbed tear gas into Carlson's room. He hid in a bathroom and was able to escape the fumes, according to reports from the scene.

Officials at the time said they would continue using the tear gas in lieu of forcing their way into the room, fearing that a suicidal man wouldn't hesitate to kill a police officer.

"Using the gas was the absolute right thing to do. Just like on the street, when you have a subject who is not cooperating, an officer can start with using a form of less-lethal force, like pepper spray, or if it elevates, use a Taser. That prevents officers from having to go 'hands on' and be in-jured," said Manassas police spokesman Tim Neumann.

The standoff forced the evacuation of homes, closed businesses in the area for much of Thursday, and left about 40 people who had rooms in the hotel in the care of the Red Cross.

Also still being tallied is the number of police officers who were called to respond to the standoff, and how much their time and needed supplies will cost taxpayers.

When the ordeal began, Manassas authorities requested help from all available units from neighboring Prince William County and Manassas Park police.

After arriving, Manassas SWAT team members worked with Prince William police, who took positions around the hotel for most of the night.

When the standoff continued past daybreak, Virginia State Police from Richmond replaced the local offi-cers.

"It's a huge undertaking when you consider all of the overtime, all of the man power that was called in from other jurisdictions; you have to feed them, hydrate them, it is a big job," said Neu-mann.

The final cost estimate on the standoff is expected out sometime next week.

The standoff began at 5 p.m. Wednesday, when an argument between Carlson and his wife in the hotel parking lot escalated and police were called.

When they arrived, officers knocked on the door to the hotel room where Carlson was staying, asked him to come outside and talk about the outstanding warrant for his arrest. That's when he shot out the win-dow in the room, said Neumann.

Carlson's wife was taken to a local hospital and treated for distress and interviewed there by police. Though her two stepsons remained at the scene during the standoff, she did not go back to the area, police said.

Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-530-3905.