A Dixmont man remained in critical condition Saturday night at Maine Medical Center in Portland after being shot by state troopers following a 20-hour standoff in Dixmont that trapped neighbors in their homes for hours and included multiple exchanges of gunfire.
Michael Grendell, 61, barricaded himself in his house on Thursday, according to Stephen McCausland, spokesman for Maine State Police, and shot randomly from his house regularly during the standoff. He emerged with a baseball bat Friday morning after the State Police Bomb Team used an explosive to draw him out of his residence, dropped the bat and picked up a firearm, said Col. John Cote, chief of the state police. At that point, Grendell was shot.
No officers were injured.
Grendell faces charges of criminal threatening and reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon, according to Cote, and may face other charges as the investigation is completed.
The standoff began early Thursday afternoon, a day after Grendell allegedly pursued his best friend and neighbor in a vehicle, shooting from it and hitting both his friend’s vehicle and residence.
The friend didn’t call police until Thursday, when he told investigators he believed Grendell was having a mental health crisis, according to court documents. The situation escalated after an officer tried to talk to Grendell about the incident. Officers said Grendell came out of his residence armed and uncooperative.
Troopers – including members of the tactical team, negotiators and the bomb team – were at the home on Fox Lane for about 20 hours. A robot was deployed early Friday, officers said, and Grendell responded by shooting multiple rounds at the troopers.
He continued to randomly shoot from inside his residence over the next few hours, according to Cote. After an explosive was detonated, Grendell emerged from his house armed with the baseball bat, officers said.
A New Hampshire State Police tactical team was on the way to assist but was called off before arriving in Dixmont, McCausland said. The standoff ended shortly before 10 a.m. Friday.
Three state police officers – Sgt. Christopher Harriman, Trooper Caleb McGary and Trooper Andrew Hardy – are on paid administrative leave, following the protocol for officers involved in using deadly force.
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