By Hunter Lee
San Gabriel Valley Tribune, West Covina, Calif.
SAN BERNANDINO, Calif. — San Bernardino police officers faced a tense standoff on Sunday when a 35-year-old woman locked herself in a room of an apartment and held a 3-year-old boy at gunpoint, authorities said.
When officers kicked down the door of one the apartment’s bedrooms, they came face-to-face with the woman who was standing on a bed pointing a handgun at the boy who was seated next to her, according to police and photos released from the scene. One officer then fired shots at the woman, according to San Bernardino Police Lt. Jennifer Kohrell .
The woman kept the gun in her hand and, after the officer ordered her to drop it, pointed the firearm back at the child. The officer shot her again before additional police rushed in to get the child away from harm, Kohrell said.
Officers were unable to negotiate with the woman as the child’s life was in “imminent danger,” Kohrell said.
“The gun was pointed directly at the child’s head, and we couldn’t spend too much time negotiating and risk the safety of the child,” Kohrell said. “The actions of the officer saved the child’s life.”
The woman, Darvet Brown, of San Bernardino , was pronounced dead at the scene.
Brown was friends with the woman living in the apartment and was staying there at the time, Kohrell said. She was not related to the child and information on a motive for her behavior was not available on Monday.
The child was not injured and was returned to family members outside the apartment, police said.
The incident first began around 8 a.m. Sunday when a 911 caller reported that an armed woman inside her apartment in the 200 block of East 21st Street was holding a gun to the head of her 3-year-old grandson, according Kohrell. The woman had moved onto the balcony when police arrived and pointed a gun at one of the officers.
The woman then went back inside the apartment and locked the door with the child still inside.
The 911 caller told officers the woman had already fired the gun inside the apartment, Kohrell said.
That’s when officers entered the apartment and proceeded to kick down the bedroom door leading to the confrontation.
Anyone with information regarding this incident should contact San Bernardino Police Detective Chavez at Chavez_ed@sbcity.org.
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