Man who Barricaded Himself Faces Felony Charges

A Reseda man who holed up for more than seven hours in a Woodland Hills veterans lodge with a shotgun was charged today with assaulting the facility's commander-in-chief.

Jacob Matthew Zimmerman, 52, faces one felony count each of assault with a deadly weapon, criminal threats and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Prosecutors say Zimmerman was upset that he had been denied membership at the Disabled Americans Veterans Lodge, located on Corbin Avenue north of Victory Boulevard. After allegedly assaulting the victim, who managed to get away, Zimmerman barricaded himself in the building Friday.

A SWAT team and crisis negotiators were deployed once Zimmerman threatened to harm himself. Homes in the area were evacuated and tear gas was used to flush him out of the building.

Zimmerman was convicted of robbery in 1984 and, in 2004, was convicted of discharging a firearm with gross negligence and inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Zimmerman is being held in lieu of $1.05 million bail and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

--City News Service