**SWAT Faces Off Against Killer 43 Years Later โ€” Transcript & Summary | SozAI** Source: https://sozai.app/transcript/swat-faces-killer-43-years-later/ FBI and local police coordinate a tense SWAT standoff to arrest alleged murderer James Vannest 43 years after a cold case murder. ## Key Takeaways - Cold case investigations can lead to arrests decades later due to advances in DNA evidence. - Interagency coordination is critical in high-risk arrest operations involving armed suspects. - Use of non-lethal tools like pepper balls and gas is a key tactic in managing barricaded suspects. - Effective communication and negotiation are essential to minimize harm during standoffs. - Ensuring the safety of bystanders and officers requires careful perimeter control and room clearing. ## What the video covers - The video documents a coordinated law enforcement operation at the Rodeway Inn in Canton, Ohio, to arrest James Vannest for a 1981 cold case murder. - New DNA evidence linked Vannest to the murder weapon and crime scene items from Debbie Miller's 1981 killing in West Virginia. - US Marshals and local police attempt to enter room 220 where Vannest is barricaded with a firearm. - The suspect points a gun at officers, prompting a SWAT team response and a perimeter lockdown. - Officers use pepper ball launchers and gas to try to force Vannest out while negotiating with him. - Multiple rooms are cleared to ensure no other occupants are endangered during the standoff. - Negotiators attempt to communicate with Vannest via phone and loudspeaker to de-escalate the situation. - The video captures tense moments including tactical movements, use of non-lethal force, and officer coordination. - The standoff lasts several hours with efforts to safely resolve the situation without casualties. - Security footage shows bystanders remaining in their rooms during the incident, with some unexpected moments involving a dog. ## Chapters 1. 00:00 Operation Begins: Arrest Attempt at Rodeway Inn 2. 01:19 Perimeter Secured and Pepper Ball Deployment 3. 03:09 Tactical Preparations and Shield Request 4. 05:03 Negotiations and Pepper Ball Use Intensify 5. 06:14 Room Clearing and Communication Efforts 6. 07:14 Maintaining Perimeter and Tactical Positioning 7. 10:58 Continued Negotiations and Tactical Movements 8. 17:17 Standoff Resolution and Aftermath Answers ## Questions about this video Who is James Vannest and why was he arrested? James Vannest is the alleged murderer linked to the 1981 cold case killing of Debbie Miller. He was arrested after new DNA evidence connected him to the crime. What tactics did law enforcement use during the standoff? Law enforcement used a combination of perimeter control, pepper ball launchers, gas deployment, negotiation via phone and loudspeaker, and tactical room clearing to safely manage the armed suspect. How long did the standoff last and were there any casualties? The standoff lasted several hours with no reported casualties. Officers focused on de-escalation and safely resolving the situation. ## Full Transcript โ€” Download SRT & Markdown 00:00 Speaker A At Rodeway Inn in Canton, Ohio, the FBI, state, and local police coordinate to arrest alleged murderer James Vannest. 00:06 Speaker A The cold case murder of Debbie Miller stems well over 40 years prior in 1981. 00:10 Speaker A Newly discovered DNA evidence linked James to several notable items, including the weapon he used to bludgeon her to death all those years ago in her apartment in West Virginia. Officials also obtained a weapons warrant and will now attempt to take him under arrest. 00:26 Speaker A OCCUPANTS OF 220, US MARSHALS with a warrant, come to the door. DO IT NOW. 00:30 Speaker A I'm going to pop this if you can wedge it. Am I doing something wrong here? 00:39 Speaker A Master key's not working for room 220. Maybe he locked from inside. That's why it doesn't work sometimes. 00:44 Speaker A So, he's locked? I have the one master key. If it's latched closed, then it won't work. 00:49 Speaker A Yeah. Thank you. Appreciate it. He said it's set, but if the latch is closed, it may not work. 00:58 Speaker A Someone is in there. Police, come to the door now. James, we know you're inside. 01:03 Speaker A He's got a gun. He's pointing a gun at us. Call for SWAT. Subject is inside, does have a gun. 01:08 Speaker A They're calling for SWAT. If we can get everybody here en route. Come to the door. Do it now. 01:19 Speaker A Get out of the way of that. 81, all units here are holding perimeter. You got the pepper ball launcher? 01:23 Speaker A 81, make sure you get people out of there, adjacent rooms. Copy, we have to wait for units here. 01:27 Speaker A Folks, go back in your rooms, please. James, this is US Marshals. We don't want to see anyone get hurt. Come out with your hands up slowly. 01:34 Speaker A He's laying in the bed with a pistol pointed right at us. Pepper ball is for the adjacent rooms. 01:41 Speaker A All units responding, go to south side. I have three other units with me on the north end. 01:53 Speaker A This [ \_\_ ] has been notified. I have additional units coming from the county. 02:11 Speaker A Do what we want. Instead of pulling over 209 to see now you got people around the corner from you. They're not listening, going back in. 02:17 Speaker A Get a medic on standby. What was he holding? Pistol. Should have just lit him up, but it's all right. 02:40 Speaker A Do you want any update? Negative. They got him on the bed with the firearm. They're on the phone with SWAT right now. Unit over there, we need to have somebody come down from your end and start clearing the rooms if 02:48 Speaker A possible. The place is surrounded. We don't want to see anyone get hurt. 91 and 24 come to my side, my mattress firm. So we're going to work on clearing these rooms. 02:59 Speaker A I'm not with, I'm not with you. Get them out. Just a warrant. No reason to have this turn into something way worse. 03:09 Speaker A 18 50 5. Do you need a drone up there for any reason? 81 to 38 negative on that. 03:14 Speaker A Where is this room at? Room 220. It's going to be the corner end on the south side. Correction, north side. Start knocking to get people out. 03:20 Speaker A Hey. Get the [ \_\_ ] inside. Get inside. Stay over there. Go further back that way, please. 03:26 Speaker A Keep them all with your long guns. 224 make contact with the doors if possible. 03:32 Speaker A We should just keep everybody inside. Jackson, please. We're going to keep getting them all towards the front office. Just throw them all that way. 03:39 Speaker A Everybody needs to clear out. Get my stuff? Can I get my baby's stuff? Hurry up. 03:43 Speaker A We should just keep everybody inside. We have a new situation over here, right? Just stay inside. Don't even come out right now. 03:49 Speaker A There's a guy standing over here. We got to get these ones out for any fire though. 03:54 Speaker A James, please open up. Please open. You guys need to get your stuff together and get out of the building and go down that way. 03:59 Speaker A Why, bro? Why are... Just we have a situation going on. You just need to get out. For your safety, go that way. 04:04 Speaker A Easier, just grab a couple of the room numbers. We'll make contact with the front desk, see if they can call them to have them vacate. 04:08 Speaker A Can you get me a shield up here if I'm doing this? We'll work on getting you a shield. 04:11 Speaker A Negotiator's here. What's going on? Look, here. Let's talk it out. Get out. Get out. Go this way. 04:18 Speaker A Go. Go. Go. Go that way. Into the building. Into the building. He was stopped somewhere, I believe. 04:24 Speaker A Maybe it had to be in Westwood Canyon. Had guns on him with curtains. Well, he's got a warrant for felon in possession. It's a B&E warrant. 04:30 Speaker A Just stay back right here. We'll get the rest of those rooms in a minute. 04:32 Speaker A Yeah, I'm not going to go banging on the door next to this dude. Hey, go around. 04:36 Speaker A All the way down. He's a big boy, six something, 300 lbs. All right. Explain that. 04:40 Speaker A Anybody got a PA or anything? To be honest with you, I think from here, just be your facing, you probably hear us. 04:44 Speaker A Hey, James. This is Detective Ames with the Jackson Police Department. If you can hear me, can you let me know just so I know I'm talking to someone? 04:51 Speaker A Just watch crossfire. These rounds go through those doors. They got units on the other side. 04:55 Speaker A James, we're not going anywhere. Can you talk with me a little bit, please? Our current angle's kind of [ \_\_ ]. They're going to have the most direct shot at that door, anyway. We're just going to get him if he bails out this 05:03 Speaker A way. We haven't heard anything. Yeah. He puts the pepper balls in there. We are going to gas your room if you do not come to the door with your hands where we CAN SEE THEM. 05:16 Speaker A HEY, RAY. THAT'S GOING TO BLOW TOWARDS US. HEY, do me a favor. Step back so you don't get hurt. 05:23 Speaker A Nah, don't listen. Take a risk of getting shot. 50 stupid. James, if you can hear me, I need you to come to the door with your hands where we can see them, please. 05:32 Speaker A Love pepper ball. Clear your sinuses. I got a bunch of bodies popping up on the other side, just be aware. In my back right pocket where my phone is, there's gum in there if you want it. 05:41 Speaker A Is it from the... Are we coughing from the... Yeah, it's from that pepper ball. 05:45 Speaker A Go down that way. [cough] See, they don't want to see you. They're busy. We don't have a shot. 05:51 Speaker A Not at all. Hey, this is Detective Ames. I'm outside of the room where we have this person. 05:55 Speaker A Are you able to put me through to his room phone number? We're trying to call in now. 05:59 Speaker A James, that's me calling. If you could answer it. If you don't answer, we're going to pepper ball you again. 06:04 Speaker A Great. That was super effective the first few times. For all we know, he could have retreated to the bathroom as well. 06:08 Speaker A Hey, is there anybody that's registered for room 221? It would be nice if these people over here could cover, right? 06:14 Speaker A Yeah, I would. They... but that's not something I go through with. Somebody's 222. Are you able to call 222 and see if they're in the room? 06:22 Speaker A Okay, I got it. Thank you for letting me know. Okay, thank you. Can you drive a patrol car up this way? 06:26 Speaker A Yeah, pull it up right here where I can get on top of the hood. 06:29 Speaker A Rear sight just moved. That's not good. I don't feel good about taking a shot without knowing what's behind that building. 06:34 Speaker A Every time there's somebody who walks between the car and the building. What? Why are you behind them? 06:39 Speaker A Hey, won't you shut the [ \_\_ ] up right now, okay? James, we need you to come to the door with nothing in your hands. KEEP THEM VISIBLE. 06:47 Speaker A JEEZ. Keep them visible. Did you want to send more pepper in or not? Yeah, I'd say go ahead. 06:52 Speaker A Here we go. Get ready to breathe it. There's a way to get from the bathroom up into the crawl space. 06:57 Speaker A And you get to other rooms from that? Oh, not this guy, Jeff. He's over 300 lbs. He's too big. 07:01 Speaker A Okay. Yes, you could get to other rooms. If he's in the bathroom with that plugged with a wet towel, it's not doing anything. 07:10 Speaker A Where do you want it, Ryan? Just get it so the engine blocks in front of me. Back it up. Back it up. 07:14 Speaker A Back it up. Back up. James, if you can hear me, I need you to let me know. 07:18 Speaker A Towards, uh, to the right. Come back. Perfect. Sit there. Meow. He's probably not on the bed anymore, though. I probably hear him coughing. 07:29 Speaker A 81-24, can you just have those two behind you go to the other side of the building, please? 07:32 Speaker A Be on that side just in case fire, okay? Keep turning to the right. Wondering if I could take it up to the side just to hear if the phone is going to be ringing. 07:39 Speaker A [cough] Like I told you before, we're not going anywhere. Hey. Get the [ \_\_ ] back. GE 07:48 Speaker A NO. NO. What you doing? Hey, one more thing. You guys are getting arrested, every one of you. Shut up and get over there. 08:05 Speaker A Get the [ \_\_ ] out of the corner now. Get behind the corner. Go. Get your I know you're holding but are you able to do the same position? Back up the cruiser. 08:17 Speaker A Come on, dude. Can you jump in and back this up some? Just straight back? 08:21 Speaker A I don't know what they want. Just listen to Anthony. He'll get you back somewhere. 08:24 Speaker A Keep it coming. Have her go up over that hill cuz they might come in through here. 08:27 Speaker A That's good. This guy pops out in the middle of us. You guys are in a bad tactical spot there. 08:32 Speaker A If that's what you see, I can move cuz I've got a good spot. I got the whole windows covered here. I don't have any of you in my sights. Not even close. 08:38 Speaker A So, if this guy comes running out that door towards this truck, then what happens? 08:42 Speaker A Yeah. That's what you're saying. Yep. Yep. I'm just saying use the corner of that building. 08:45 Speaker A Perfect. I'll back up there. Why would building? That's nicer than Yeah, right here is what he's saying. 08:51 Speaker A You got a drone? Yeah, but not with us. I don't know what the drone would do right here. 08:55 Speaker A Do it's latch. We would have to breach it first. We're probably going to gas out of it. 08:58 Speaker A So yeah. Folks, can you go back in your rooms, please? Thank you very much. Appreciate it. 09:03 Speaker A Okay. That's good. No, we don't want you to get hit by the bullets where you're standing. 09:12 Speaker A Nowhere good to stand. Oh, they got the [ \_\_ ] BearCat. bots here. Why don't you get these people out of the out of here. I got flex cuffs in my car. 09:20 Speaker A They'll all get arrested. Officers evacuate the motel rooms to the south while those to the east are ordered to stay barricaded inside. It appears officers haven't yet contacted the western rooms directly behind the suspect. Notably, the individuals who 09:32 Speaker A were watching the scene unfold begin recording, capturing a rare first-hand view of this multi-agency standoff from inside the danger zone. 09:38 Speaker A What? They're all backing up. They're moving that car. He's like, "Oh, they're going away." Yeah, they're just bringing in the heavy artillery. 09:50 Speaker A I don't feel a little exposed now. That's crazy. Oh, no, they're just getting out right here. 09:55 Speaker A He's already got the doors open about 2 in. Yeah, they're getting ready to storm in. 10:08 Speaker A He's got a weapon out here, so let's go behind the truck. Can we leave, BRO? I GOT KIDS in here. 10:14 Speaker A LIKE, IF SOMETHING GOES DOWN, LIKE, I'M NOT DRIVING the baby. They're not going to let us leave. 10:19 Speaker A Back up. Cuz they're not going to let you leave at this point. You try and leave, they'll arrest you. 10:27 Speaker A Back up. I need you guys lay over there by the dog. Yeah, they're getting ready to breach this [ \_\_ ] I NEED MASK IT UP. 10:33 Speaker A DID YOU SAY MASK UP? YEAH, MASK IT. YEP. AND I'M GOING TO DO THE TWO TREES. THEY GOT A SNIPER in there. 10:41 Speaker A Thought it'd be a little more simpler than that today. Right. Spent casings are always an issue. 10:45 Speaker A There's a possibility YOU COULD GET SHOT. YEAH, I DON'T LIKE OUR LEGS hanging out under the shield. 10:54 Speaker A Just so you know, SWAT's on scene and they're getting ready to gas the room. 10:57 Speaker A Yeah, web up there home perimeter. It's first day training. He was so excited. He's a good kid. He'll be all right. 11:01 Speaker A Oh, they getting gas mask on. They about to gas that [ \_\_ ] Hey, this is the police department. You need to come outside with your hands up. 11:08 Speaker A You don't come out, we're going to insert chemical munitions into your apartment. They want this whole parking lot cleared. 11:13 Speaker A This agent just referenced the entire Cracker Barrel parking lot to the north. Officers will need to keep pedestrians inside or evacuate them on the opposite end. 11:20 Speaker A We need to get everybody clear out. Can I have you exit out that way, please? On that side, guys. Thank you. 11:25 Speaker A Guys, if we can move our [ \_\_ ] car back. We need everybody to get in their cars and exit out this lot, please. Do so as quick as possible. I'm not going to go inside and get everybody else out of the 11:33 Speaker A restaurant. I mean, just have them in the lot. Yeah. If everybody else moved their car, WHAT ABOUT OURS? 11:38 Speaker A WHAT'S UP? What's up? Is it clearing out? I have no idea. I don't know. There's definitely people in the windows there. 11:43 Speaker A We have a right to know what's going on and I don't know what they're saying. 11:46 Speaker A Yeah, especially we're being trapped in here like in prison or something. I mean, Billy probably put 30 rounds of pepper balls in there this whole time. 11:54 Speaker A Let's put the 40 mm in first. All right, go ahead and get to it. 11:57 Speaker A All right. Hey, when we get ready to move, you're going to have to take this. 12:00 Speaker A Hey, this is the police department. We need you to come outside with your hands up. 12:03 Speaker A We're just going to be right there in front of you on the left side of that truck. 12:05 Speaker A I'm just worried about you finding a hole because the Dodge truck covers most of the front of that house. 12:10 Speaker A You just give me your hands up. You do you, boo. Yeah, if he did something that heinous, just burn the [ \_\_ ] Run run pick them and go run. 12:20 Speaker A Hey, glass breakers on the pepper ball gun and fork that window for the drone. 12:24 Speaker A GAS IS MOVING ACROSS. COME RIGHT OFF YOUR LEFT SIDE. MOVEMENT, moving out front window. 12:46 Speaker A Do one more and then you can throw a couple shotgun in. YEAH. ALL RIGHT, LET'S HOLD IT THERE. 13:03 Speaker A OKAY, MOVING. RIGHT RIGHT RIGHT RIGHT. We'll go secure the pepper ball. If you guys want to hang here if you got cover, I'll go grab them quick. 13:10 Speaker A COPY THAT. MAYBE IT WAS THE CURTAINS. IT LOOKED LIKE SOMEBODY WAS MOVING around up there. 13:20 Speaker A All right. Yep. Did he just misfire his [ \_\_ ] No. No. Nope. Hopefully that's enough. I'm ready for some glass breakers when you guys are. 13:36 Speaker A James, this is the police department. We need you to come outside with your hands up. 13:39 Speaker A Let him get that drone up and then we'll move up. Just be aware he might shoot at it. 13:50 Speaker A No. Both are alcohol. Now, get it out. Did you get the drone up? No go. 14:00 Speaker A All right. Can I get one to go move up to break the window? Yes, absolutely. 14:06 Speaker A I got to do it one at a time. I don't have an empty hopper, so. 14:13 Speaker A Oh, that ain't going to be nice. Break mother Oh, we got a couple left. 14:35 Speaker A There we go. That might be it. Can you get it through that? Yeah, you got to have to open up that glass IN THE MIDDLE. 14:44 Speaker A A LITTLE BIT JUST HANGING ON. THAT'LL DO. A hopper would have been nice. One 3/4 of an inch at a time. 15:04 Speaker A Oh [ \_\_ ] All right, there's a chair. Blankets. Be ready for shots if he shoots at it. 15:14 Speaker A There it is. He shoot? Someone just shoot. HEY, HE'S GOING TO SHOOT. HEY. FIRE. STOP FIRE. 15:27 Speaker A HEY, YOU WANT ME TO GET IN? I GOT my rifle. Shooting at the motel. Everybody down. 15:44 Speaker A He's right here ON MY LASER. ON MY LASER. Shooting through the walls. I saw it coming out the side. 15:49 Speaker A I don't like this. Let me out. Let me out, bro. You all right? [laughter] I know something's sh- Came out of the face? 15:55 Speaker A You can hear it whiz past? I sure did. Jeez. Hey, give me cover. I need to go get that gun. 16:00 Speaker A Got you. I'm moving. I got it. I got it. I got it. Good? Where's the launcher? 16:06 Speaker A I got it, bro. Who's idiots back over here? What? Because I didn't move because there's gunfire? What am I supposed to do? They're not shooting at me. They're shooting at you. 16:14 Speaker A Can you launch it right up here on the front of the truck? He's shooting out the side door. 16:19 Speaker A HEY. HE'S SHOOTING out that side wall. State line of fire from the room is right towards the interstate. One last OSV notice shut down 77 south. 16:30 Speaker A Come on. Drone is down. Gas deployed. They're about to blow something up in that room cuz he started shooting at them when he seen the drone so got the whole parking lot blocked off just for this bull Cuz if this was happening they 16:43 Speaker A would have already been up in there and you know they would have. This guy really wants to smoke. Don't move forward. 16:51 Speaker A This is why we need helmets. LT, can we get helmets next time? I would love TO GET HELMETS. 17:00 Speaker A GET DOWN. SIT DOWN. NOW. GET OUT. [ \_\_ ] YOU with this y'all. You better listen. 17:05 Speaker A We're telling you for WE'RE TELLING YOU SIT DOWN. GIVE ME GAS, THOUGH. BETWEEN THE BACK BATHROOM AND the bed. 17:18 Speaker A I don't even think they what they're doing. The moment they just stood there for a while holding both and the gun whatever else. 17:24 Speaker A Really, do y'all even know what y'all are doing? Hey, I got a visual where you're at. 17:28 Speaker A Yeah, but I I can't see anything else cuz there's a chair in the way and then the bed. 17:32 Speaker A Okay. They're putting it through the door now. It's just seeping out cuz there's so much gas in there. 17:43 Speaker A Hey James, come on outside with your hands up. Just come outside with your hands up. 17:48 Speaker A You haven't hurt anybody. Come outside with your hands up. Just tell them to have the gun and crackle barrel and get EVERYBODY OUT. 17:55 Speaker A WHAT ABOUT US? I HEARD THAT. YOU'RE MAKING EVERYBODY IN CRACKLE BARREL MAD. THE WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT ROUND? 18:13 Speaker A YOU JUST TELL US TO GO back inside. I won't with these paper thin ass walls. 18:18 Speaker A Get the HELL OUT OF THERE. ARE YOU SERIOUS? SIT DOWN. WAY TO PROTECT AND SERVE. 18:29 Speaker A YOU EVEN KNOW THE CALIBER? JAMES, THIS IS THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. COME OUTSIDE WITH YOUR HANDS UP. 18:41 Speaker A COME ON. MHM, THAT SMELLS NICE. ANY movement to the right of the counter. Coming right here. He's on you. 18:57 Speaker A Right behind you. If he flips the shield, he can lay it LIKE A BARRICADE. 19:09 Speaker A I'M GOING TO CHEW ON THE PEPPER BALLS. I CAN'T SEE in there anymore. Take cover. 19:16 Speaker A What's all that body armor for? For show? [cough] HEY, HE'S IN THERE COUGHING. I CAN HEAR HIM. 19:26 Speaker A I CAN SELL this footage to the news, too. I got the exclusive Bro, if you can send a round with me right here, I will never [ \_\_ ] forgive you. 19:36 Speaker A Sorry. I can go lower if you want me to. It's up to you. I'll work around you. I just if you want to push up on the car, I can switch you out. 19:42 Speaker A You want the shoe? I can push up on the shoe, for sure. All right, take my spot. 19:46 Speaker A All right, go for it. SOMEBODY GOT HIT. OH MY GOD. OH MY GOD. OH my god. 20:15 Speaker A Oh my god. Let us out, bro. STOP. STOP. STOP. DAMN IT. YOU GOT HIT. ONE DOWN. 20:24 Speaker A We're good, bro. We got you. Okay, stay down. IT'S OKAY. [screaming] GUYS, GET BACK INSIDE. BACK INSIDE. 20:33 Speaker A GIVE ME THE SHIELD. GIVE ME THE SHIELD. Set this up in front of you. 20:40 Speaker A You're all right, bro. You're all right. We got you. GO BACK. GO BACK. ONE MORE. I'M GIVING ONE MORE. 20:50 Speaker A GO FOR IT, MAN. GET ME OUT OF HERE. ALL RIGHT, MEDICS ON THE FRONT side of the building. 20:59 Speaker A All right, guys. This is now beyond ridiculous. 45 RIGHT HERE. SO, NOW THIS GUY LIKE I GOT LIKE I GOT KIDS IN HERE. 21:11 Speaker A HURRY UP. 1 2 3 STAY LOW. STAY LOW. STAY LOW. BACK BEHIND THIS CAR. 21:36 Speaker A YOU GOT NO TURN IT KIDS. I THINK I'M BETWEEN THE BED AND THE BATHROOM WALL. 21:52 Speaker A GUYS, GET IN THE CAR. GET IN THE CAR. YES, FREAKING GUY. WE'RE LOCKED IN THE ROOM. They're clearing everybody out. 22:02 Speaker A And then this guy shot bro. I got it on video too. And James had that all on video. LIKE THIS IS RIDICULOUS. 22:08 Speaker A GO. GET OUT OF HERE. GO. [screaming] THAT WAY, GO. YEAH, I GOT EVERYBODY OUT THE DINING AREA at least to the north side. We got a lot of elderly people in their 90s in here. 22:24 Speaker A Do you guys see any over there? I can't see it. Where at? Arm and knee. 22:29 Speaker A You said the arm and knee? Mhm. AND IT'S FUNNY THAT THAT DUDE CAN SHOOT Y'ALL BUT Y'ALL CAN'T SHOOT HIM. 22:34 Speaker A Finish him. Finish this. LET'S FINISH THIS. THERE'S people in here. HURRY UP. GET AWAY FROM THE WINDOW. 22:48 Speaker A WELL, CAN YOU EVER YOU FINISH THIS. GET OUT OF HERE. GET OUT OF HERE. GET OUT OF HERE. [ \_\_ ] GOD, WE HAVE KIDS IN HERE, YOU STUPID I GOT KIDS. HURRY UP. 22:59 Speaker A [ \_\_ ] DUMB ASS, YOU SHOULD HAVE EVACUATED THE WHOLE DAMN PLACE. MY KIDS ARE SCARED. 23:04 Speaker A WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE. WHO IS STOP. GET IN YOUR BATHROOM. TAKE THE KIDS IN THERE. 23:10 Speaker A GET IN THE BATHROOM. THE PAPER THIN ASS WALLS AIN'T GOING TO DO [ \_\_ ] WHAT A STUPID ASS THING TO SAY. 23:16 Speaker A LIKE THAT'S GOING TO HELP. WHO'S THIS GUY YELLING AT? An ignorant [ \_\_ ] WE'RE BEING EVACUATED EVERYBODY BUT OVER HERE. 23:23 Speaker A YOU. I'M NOT GOING TO WAIT TO THE BATHROOM. DON'T LIKE DOING NOTHING. FINISH THIS GET IN THE BATHROOM IF YOU GOT TO DO. 23:29 Speaker A YOU JUST LEFT US ALL THE [ \_\_ ] HERE. PROTECT AND SERVE. GOOD JOB. 23:33 Speaker A WE SHOULD PRESS CHARGES AGAINST SERGEANT LEE. YOU WANT TO DISPLACE THIS PLACE WITH GAS? 23:42 Speaker A YEP. GUYS, leave the property. COME ON. IT'S NOT WORTH SEEING. IT'S NOT WORTH GETTING KILLED OVER. GET everybody out. 23:47 Speaker A Everybody stay down on this side. There's active shooting. I got line of sight. Peel off to the right. 23:51 Speaker A Go away. GET OUT OF HERE. GO AWAY. GET OUT OF HERE. SORRY. WE DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE SERGEANT. 23:58 Speaker A STAY HERE. JESUS. HEY, shoot him in the head. [ \_\_ ] stupid and worthless [ \_\_ ] Don't talk fake news. 24:06 Speaker A Same guy getting hit? Hm? Okay. Where's he at? Uh, that's cool. Sniper position got hit in the arm. 24:12 Speaker A Who's chewing out out here? We got five. Go. There's no [ \_\_ ] way. 24:16 Speaker A Get back. You ain't going to listen. GO IN THE BATHROOM. HE'S TELLING US TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. 24:22 Speaker A I'm not going to the What the [ \_\_ ] that going to do? It's not a tornado. They're gunshots, DUMB ASS. 24:28 Speaker A I'M NOT WALKING IN THERE. [ \_\_ ] WORTHLESS ASS [ \_\_ ] [ \_\_ ] SERVE, worthless ass [ \_\_ ] One thing. If I do not tell you to come out, DO NOT COME OUT. 24:44 Speaker A TURN ON THE BABY DRONE LIGHTS SO WE CAN SEE IN THERE. Can't see [ \_\_ ] Grab my tripod out of car 45, that camp police unit right there. BACK SEAT. 25:05 Speaker A BY NOW, OFFICERS HAVE SHUT DOWN SURROUNDING roadways and are working on evacuating Cracker Barrel. An MRAP, short for mine resistant ambush protected vehicle, is called in to join the BearCat already on scene. Additional off-duty officers are also ordered in 25:16 Speaker A via their personal vehicles to assist. The new sniper also takes an alternative position in this corner of the parking lot. Notably, any shot from here will have to thread between fellow officers before reaching the suspect believed to be barricaded in the corner of the motel 25:28 Speaker A room behind the bed. Yes, MRAP to that door. Through that hole where he's been shooting through? 25:32 Speaker A Wouldn't hurt. Call me on the radio if you need me. I hear movement. Sounds like it. 25:37 Speaker A Movement inside. Stay behind hard cover. I'm going. What's up, guys? Do you think he's got maybe an air pistol just because of the sound? 25:43 Speaker A got a UAV in there yet? Drone got shot down. This is the bed? Yep. 25:47 Speaker A Between the bed and the wall to the bathroom, there's a space to get out of the bed. That's where he's been shooting from. 25:53 Speaker A But, he's been shooting through the walls here, through this uh little motel. If y'all tear this bathroom, I'm going to I swear to god. 26:00 Speaker A Let's zoom out. When we lay down suppressive fire, there's a red hat that flew up across the room. We don't know if it was his or not. 26:09 Speaker A DO YOU NOT HEAR THAT? I'M GOING TO CALL BEN FROM FBI SWAT AND let him know what's going on. 26:13 Speaker A Yeah, all right. MOVEMENT. DO YOU SEE ANYTHING? THE PILLOWS ARE MOVING. I CAN'T see in there. 26:44 Speaker A Shots fired by the police at the suspect. I cannot tell if he's down. Nope, still shooting. 26:52 Speaker A Oh, I was going through anyway. Damn mother [ \_\_ ] Every last one of these stupid pig You endanger my whole [ \_\_ ] family being in here, you stupid [ \_\_ ] dumb [ \_\_ ] I called the news. Channel 3 news is on 27:06 Speaker A their way. You are green if you have a shot. It's possible he's just reaching over the bed. I can't see his face. 27:12 Speaker A He's reloading. He's reloading. Shots fired. Shooting over the BACK WALL. YOU BETTER SHOT ON THAT BACK, TAKE IT. 27:32 Speaker A ARE YOU HEARING ALL THAT? GET DOWN. IT'S OKAY. NO MOVEMENT. I BELIEVE HE'S still in the back left corner there. 27:52 Speaker A Through the door, I can just barely see movement behind the bed on the left side. 27:57 Speaker A Get away from there now. Shooting at Cracker Barrel. He stopped shooting at us. Going on, he's shooting at me. He's shooting at me. 28:11 Speaker A Let's finish him off. I don't think he That's crazy. I thought I was seeing a muzzle flash, maybe. Do we have people outside of the hotel? 28:20 Speaker A All the rooms on the back side should have been evacuated and all the rooms over here. 28:24 Speaker A Okay. He's reloading. Okay, so we don't know if he has a hostage in there or anything like that. 28:28 Speaker A Stay low, bro. Hey, come stack ammo for me. Reloading. Yep. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey, back. 28:34 Speaker A Watch out. See where those rounds he's firing might have struck. Hey, he reloading. I think the suspect is reloading his weapon. 28:40 Speaker A Bunch of coward ass [ \_\_ ] [ \_\_ ] Hey, dude. Oh, [ \_\_ ] Yep. You good? 28:47 Speaker A Yep, we're good. SUPPRESS. SUPPRESS. SUPPRESS. KEEP CALM KEEP CALM OVER THERE. ALL RIGHT, HOLD your fire. 29:17 Speaker A Here one I got to move he's shot at me twice. We can give them suppressing fire. Two load that thing up get those guys in there and let's get it over here as soon as you guys can. 29:29 Speaker A Now everybody out we got everybody to the north side they got a lot of old people in there. 29:42 Speaker A You want any people in the bear? Let's just get it up here in front. 29:46 Speaker A We have the bot we can insert the bot once we're ready but we shot at them. 29:49 Speaker A The drone's down that's the only thing we have. Where are the drone he's still in between the bed and that wall. 30:05 Speaker A Well we're not going to be able to we're not going to be able to put it up there with us. 30:09 Speaker A I'm trying to keep this as calm. Hey yeah. Everybody in the building is right here sir. 30:17 Speaker A All right we need everybody on this north wall single file do not leave the cover of the building please quit filming please sir and and exit the building. 30:34 Speaker A I have video of the OFFICER GETTING SHOT. KNOWING LIKE I HAVE KIDS HERE. WHAT CAN I DO? 30:46 Speaker A WHEN OUR MRAP GETS HERE, WE'RE GOING TO DRIVE it right through that wall. Actually, let's hold off for a second. 30:50 Speaker A Let me THINK ABOUT THIS. I WANT TO TAKE OURS, ANGLE IT THIS WAY, AND just smash his truck. 30:59 Speaker A You want to put some guys in there? Yeah, turn fire. Or lethal force, yeah. 31:02 Speaker A We're open for business. Are they having to evacuate these buildings? That's what I heard. So, how many people shot? 31:10 Speaker A How many shots have been fired? A lot. They want to push that guy's truck. 31:15 Speaker A Going to push it south. Okay. Oh, yeah. I couldn't see inside the room. All you saw was just a haze. 31:22 Speaker A How much ammo does he really have, too, you know? Get him to keep shooting. 31:25 Speaker A It's a green light. If he shoots, return fire. Top it up. Just stop right here at my truck so I can grab my gas mask and my rifle. 31:37 Speaker A What's up, boys? Come on, Ed. Fellas? Fellas? I got a bunch of people out that national furniture. 31:44 Speaker A Get off the property. Move. Bearcat is ready to move. I'm pushing right through here? 31:48 Speaker A Yeah, hold on. They're going to have to move. So, this very end unit, I'm assuming Yeah. Yeah. 31:53 Speaker A He's shooting through this wall. He's basically shooting through this wall? I see Yeah, I see the holes now. 31:57 Speaker A There's people. See this guy in the orange hoodie right here looking out the window? 32:01 Speaker A Rayburn, behind the wall. Get out of there. Stop. I'm telling him to get out of there. He needs to get out of there. 32:08 Speaker A Jesus Christ, how are those people not out? Oh, they're pushing. Hit it. Hit it. Gas. Gas. Gas. 32:16 Speaker A Yeah, move this [ \_\_ ] AMMO. LET'S GO, ED. THERE SHE IS. AMMO. YEP, JUST HOLD RIGHT THERE. HOLD RIGHT THERE. 32:33 Speaker A YOU. IT'S A NEW MRAP, I think, with they're planning to do is push in that north wall. 32:43 Speaker A I wouldn't open for business, but just stay out of I don't know about you guys, but I can't see through this window for No, we need to get [clears throat] that window completely taken out. 32:54 Speaker A That would help a lot. You guys shoot this glass out? Yeah, we're going to try to take it out. 32:57 Speaker A One at a time? One at a time. One at a time. One at a time. 33:10 Speaker A You're good, Mike. Fire. Our lower right. Let me know if you see any movement. 33:20 Speaker A Breaking very good, isn't it? No, it's hot. Hey, can we get something flammable in there and just burn them out? 33:27 Speaker A He said the whole place on fire. One at a time. One at a time. 33:34 Speaker A One at a time. One at a time. That's him again. He's still shooting out of the building, so we're just going to hang off right now. 33:45 Speaker A Someone want to tell him it's not the shooter. That's OSP Trooper shooting into the apartment. 33:50 Speaker A Yeah, they're using window breakers. Mike, standby. Movement behind the bed. Yep, he's moving. He's still moving. 33:54 Speaker A He's rolling right. Mark by the bed, west side of the room. If we have to pop out, we're right in the line of fire. 34:01 Speaker A It's hard to tell with this glare. Thomas, THEY GOT A SHOT, SHOOT HIM. THERE HE IS, HE JUST popped Heads up, guys. 34:08 Speaker A There we go. Keep going. Keep going. Take more to the middle of that. I have a shot. I HAVE A SHOT. 34:21 Speaker A ALL RIGHT, HE MOVED THE PILLOWS, THAT'S GOOD. HE'S POINTING A gun at me through the port. I engaged a handful of rounds. 34:26 Speaker A We could technically have casualties in those rooms right now and not know. Where are we at glass-wise? What do you want? 34:31 Speaker A Take that big chunk in the middle. HIT THE GUTTER. HE'S GOT A BUNCH OF CLOTHES IN piled up. 34:37 Speaker A Those rounds are completely ineffective. Where did I hit? Nothing. Trash bag. Rubber baton. This is not taking that big chunk, Mike. 34:47 Speaker A you. Rubber baton. There you go. Good job, Mike. Rubber baton. There you go. You got any movement at all since [ \_\_ ] engage? 35:01 Speaker A seen anything. There you go. Yeah, there you go, Mike. I got good vision through that window now. Still no movement. Can we clear these rooms? Get people out I thought they said they did. 35:11 Speaker A No. Yeah, see if they'll let us go down through there. Yeah, so I'm looking straight down that bed to the right. 35:20 Speaker A I'm not armed here. We're just trying to Yeah, keep talking up. Yeah, I mean, if I get in the head It is what it is, I guess. But I blatantly saw him point a gun over the [ \_\_ ] bed. 35:28 Speaker A If he can move anymore, I'm shooting again. This is not turning on. I think your headset's dead. It's doing something weird. So, when you click it in with the second click, is it going? 35:38 Speaker A Okay. Is that blood on the wall, too, or no? I CAN'T TELL. ZACK, [screaming] THERE'S CIVILIANS ON THE BACK SIDE. HOW ARE THEY NOT EVACUATED? 35:47 Speaker A I don't know. That's what we were told. Need you to call all these rooms. They need to come out and go left. 36:05 Speaker A Okay, that's fine. That's fine. Dude, I almost had to walk away from that lady that was yelling at me about this. 36:13 Speaker A Yeah. Yeah. Folks, ALL OF YOU NEED TO GET DOWN ON THAT SIDE of the building. Move. 36:18 Speaker A Straight down this sidewalk. You want me to take off from the roof there? Yep. 36:21 Speaker A Oh, we got this. I have not seen any movement at all since we engaged. And if you get movement, put your laser above him on the bed, and I can send one through the bed. 36:29 Speaker A Let's just go one by one. You guys already go 213? Clear? Sheriff's office, anybody in here? 36:42 Speaker A Aircraft in authorization zone unable to take off. I think he's down. I see his head. 36:47 Speaker A You see his head? Yeah. Yeah, I see the head. They toss a bang right in from there. 36:50 Speaker A You might get a reaction if he's still alive. I know I shot like probably seven, eight rounds. 36:54 Speaker A Okay, all these people need to wave. Need over here. Get away from this window. 36:59 Speaker A Make sure you set eyes on him. Sir, first day on the base. This was our first day here. 37:11 Speaker A What did you have to say on there? Aircraft in geo zone unable to take, I'm assuming off. 37:17 Speaker A We're geo-fenced from the airport. We're trying to get it up. They're waiting on confirmation from the airport. 37:21 Speaker A Tell the [ \_\_ ] airport this is life-threatening. Did he punch a hole in the wall? 37:26 Speaker A Okay. I just want to make sure we got everybody out. It sounds like, okay, so when we initially showed up, they said that there was all evacuated. I saw people in that back corner. When I talked to Billy, I was like, what the He said that 37:39 Speaker A they It was People must have just came back being idiots. They got a robot going in. 37:47 Speaker A Why is this so spicy here? This is the stupidest Yeah, we got him last four, five rooms. 37:56 Speaker A They're yelling over there to get out of there. Pull back. Yep. Pull back now. 38:02 Speaker A See him not moving on your side? No. I'm assuming you guys are watching They're looking at his head. 38:06 Speaker A Okay. What do you want to do with these? We're going to shoot him when we get eyes on him. 38:19 Speaker A How many rounds went We're and out of that room? I don't know. So, you're telling me all those people were sitting in there? 38:25 Speaker A Well, that's what I'm worried about with that room 200. They're firing into that They're in there. 38:29 Speaker A So, I'm knocking on that room 200 right here on the end. I could be laying in there dead. 38:33 Speaker A That's what I'm saying. We've got to throw a bang through there and see if we get a reaction. 38:37 Speaker A Bang down! Anything? I got nothing on my end. No. When that smoke clears, see if that body part still just sitting there where it was. 38:48 Speaker A Mike, did that leave you a hole big enough to get the robot through? No, not big enough. 38:54 Speaker A This is pretty good. We're going to go off. Yeah. Drones are no go. Tell him big drone. 38:58 Speaker A Big drones are no go. Tell him big drone. Big drone, I don't know where where he got it from. 39:02 Speaker A No, we have it. He can't fly it. They got it locked. Unlock it with the airport. 39:07 Speaker A He's still there. Didn't move. You want to try to get another one? Throw another bang? 39:10 Speaker A Yeah, another bang. Throw it up in there, right on him. He's down. He's down. 39:14 Speaker A Hang on. He's Hey, Zach. Yeah. He's down. All right, does he Did he pull the pins out of those? 39:19 Speaker A Yep. All right, have him deploy them and then we'll go. For good measure. As soon as the smoke dissipates, shield up. 39:27 Speaker A Hang on. Don't be in a hurry. DEAD BODY CALL. YES. YES. YES. I WANT A BANG over top of the robot watching. 39:35 Speaker A If it is, we can hold and then get in there. You want a bang? We were going to less lethal him. 39:39 Speaker A No, I want a [ \_\_ ] bang. You want to less lethal him, do less lethal him. 39:43 Speaker A But, I want a bang on the back side of the bed where he's at. And then Mike's going to watch. 39:47 Speaker A All right, robot still has eyes on the subject. All right, go ahead. Move up to door and get that bang deployed. D. 39:52 Speaker A Right off gun. Off gun. Bang out. THIS IS IT. NO MOVEMENT. NO MOVEMENT. YOU WANT TO MAKE ENTRY? 40:06 Speaker A Let's go confirm. Jesus Christ. Let's go. Let's go. Extinguisher. Dead check. Dead check. Get a fire extinguisher in. We got a fire. 40:39 Speaker A Right here. Right here. Is the building clear? Hold. Hold. Come on. Come on. Move back. 40:47 Speaker A Move back. Pull the pin. Pull the pin. There is no pin. Fire. Hey, dude. 40:56 Speaker A There's no [ \_\_ ] pin. Get another fire extinguisher, please. Nothing else. Hey, turn that the the fire hydrant. 41:13 Speaker A Watch out. Watch out. JUST GO. HEY, GET SOME MORE WATER IN HERE. HEY, BRING SOME WATER IN HERE. 41:24 Speaker A THE fence is on fire. The fence IS ON FIRE. THE FENCE is clear. 51 in plain view. Suspect down. 41:36 Speaker A Another 51 under him. Right here. Yeah, I'm going to get some fresh air. Space secured. 41:44 Speaker A Yeah, he's got multiple pistols here. I want all those apartments on the back side checked to make sure nobody's hurt in any of those apartments. You with me? 41:51 Speaker A Yeah, we got a gun there. Do you want me to look at the gun, mister? 41:53 Speaker A No. Okay. You got the gun? Just hold. Lewis is good. He's got hit in the arm, didn't break anything. 42:00 Speaker A So, Lewis, is that our guy? that, our our Lewis? Yeah. Oh, no [ \_\_ ] Yeah, he's the one that I didn't know we had I didn't know we had anyone got hit. 42:06 Speaker A See, I was gentle cuz I didn't want to cause you any pain. They're still usable. 42:11 Speaker A First time driving the bear. I was gentle as I could, legit. I'm going to keep this on for now just because I'm covering my ass. That looks nice. The truck? 42:20 Speaker A Yeah. He's got a gun in his hand. He's still got his finger on the trigger. 42:25 Speaker A Ask him if they want him out there. YOU WANT GUNS MOVED. THEY'RE IN his hand. 42:29 Speaker A Remove it so they can treat him. What the [ \_\_ ] are we doing? 42:32 Speaker A Hey, do we want him out? DO WE WANT HIM OUT? LET'S GET the guns to get out. 42:38 Speaker A Mike. No, I'm not either. I'm going to Did he give us a no sign, Mike? 42:46 Speaker A He's shot. See, obviously he can see us. Call it in, okay? He ain't hitting the head. 42:52 Speaker A I don't think he is either. Mike said he's dead. Cannot leave him laying. Leave it I have to leave it in there. 43:03 Speaker A Shut it down, man. BCI's going to need it. Just check him, Paul. Let me check real close one more time. 43:09 Speaker A Yeah, he is not hitting the head. There's a pulse? No pulse. Brett's neutralized, folks. Everybody can uh go back inside or leave. It's up to you. They're no longer with us. 43:22 Speaker A You did a good job. Thank you. Let's not disturb the scene any more than it already has been. Let them now explore and evaluate. 43:29 Speaker A That was a lot of gunfire, right? It was. That was nuts. Suspect is confirmed dead at 10-50 status. 43:34 Speaker A How many of those went through? I'm going to step out. I'm getting a little queasy. 43:41 Speaker A Officers searched the remaining rooms. There were no other individuals injured. Afterwards, they made contact with the individuals who recorded and voiced their opinions throughout the hours-long incident. 43:49 Speaker A Thank you. Why couldn't y'all help us out earlier? Y'all didn't care earlier. We didn't care. 43:54 Speaker A And you only care now because we're we opened the door freaking out on y'all. 43:58 Speaker A No, that's that's not that's not That's what it feels like, though, because you guys didn't actually DO ANYTHING. 44:01 Speaker A WHAT CAN we do to help you out right now because you're wanting out? out. Like I'm trying to go. Like I don't want to be here. 44:07 Speaker A I completely see where you're coming from, okay? A situation like this, we did the best we could in the little bit of time that we had. Let's just be thankful that everybody's safe. 44:15 Speaker A You got to send the city a bill for me not being able to get out and before anything could happen. 44:20 Speaker A I haven't been able to get out and work all day. If you and your kids were to come out right here while he's shooting out his door right here, how could we have saved you? The They didn't stop. The easiest 44:32 Speaker A thing and the safest for you guys and your kids was telling you to take cover. 44:38 Speaker A We had officers right here getting shot at. Oh, we know. We've seen everything. Okay, do you understand what I'm saying now? 44:43 Speaker A Yeah, I'm just trying to leave. Okay, that's fine. Security footage shows these bystanders remained in their room for at least the next few hours, during which it appears their dog got loose, ran under caution tape, and among officers before going 44:53 Speaker A back inside. Regarding the suspect, James was killed during the exchange of gunfire. However, the publicly provided BCI summary redacts the coroner's autopsy as required by Ohio law, concealing the details behind his cause of death. The report does detail that 45:05 Speaker A nine officers fired their rifles during the shooting incident. Investigators recovered 147 rifle casings linked to officers, 15 casings from inside James's room, and at least 39 identifiable less-lethal rounds, excluding the dozens upon dozens of pepper ball ammunition. 45:19 Speaker A BCI cautioned the true number of shots fired may have been even higher. Investigators found James with two handguns and four additional loaded magazines in the room with him. In his truck, he had three additional firearms along with magazines and ammunition. 45:30 Speaker A BCI's investigation found James fired first, continued shooting toward officers and the public, and was given multiple opportunities to surrender. 45:36 Speaker A Reports indicate officers were legally justified in their use of deadly force, and no criminal charges were filed. Topics: SWAT cold case James Vannest FBI police standoff DNA evidence Rodeway Inn Canton Ohio law enforcement hostage negotiation --- This is the markdown twin of https://sozai.app/transcript/swat-faces-killer-43-years-later/ โ€” the same content, without the markup. Published by SozAI (https://sozai.app). Reuse and quotation are allowed with attribution and a link back. Machine-readable index: https://sozai.app/llms.txt ยท data API: https://sozai.app/api/