Armed standoff on Chinden ends in fatality; stretch of road in Meridian still closed

An hours-long standoff between multiple police forces and an armed motorist on Chinden Boulevard ended early Wednesday evening when the suspect shot himself, according to authorities.

Police had closed Chinden between Ten Mile and Black Cat roads in Meridian after a car chase came to a halt there. Police said they had no success negotiating with an armed man who had led them on the chase, so the Ada County Metro SWAT team “deployed distraction devices and gas in an effort to get the suspect to exit the vehicle,” said Stephany Galbreaith, a spokesperson for the Meridian Police Department, by phone.

At around 5 p.m., the suspect, who was in possession of two firearms, shot himself fatally, police said.

Chinden Boulevard should reopen “within a few hours,” Galbreaith said.

The chase began Wednesday at around 2 p.m., when Caldwell police began pursuit of a vehicle that eventually crossed into Ada County, according to Galbreaith. Meridian police tried to deploy a spike strip to stop the vehicle, but it was unsuccessful.

Galbreaith said the driver pointed a handgun at Meridian officers while they were trying to deploy the spike strips.

Later, a police car successfully hit the back end of the suspect’s vehicle, using a maneuver to spin it around and bring it to a stop.

Those nearby the standoff were alerted to the situation using CodeRed, a reverse 911 notification system, according to Ada County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Patrick Orr.

In addition to the Ada SWAT team, members of the Idaho State Police, Boise Police, Meridian Fire Department and Ada County Paramedics were at the scene.